• Basic Writing questions is not a crit forum. All crits belong in Share Your Work

I'm not good enough...

Status
Not open for further replies.

PeteMC

@PeteMC666
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 26, 2011
Messages
3,003
Reaction score
367
Location
UK
Website
talonwraith.wordpress.com
I'm not sure any of us think we're good enough yet. When you stop wanting to improve it's probably time to stop writing, IMO.
 

auzerais

I like puppies.
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 7, 2014
Messages
402
Reaction score
87
Location
Seattle, WA
I'm not good enough for a lot of things, to be completely honest. I've said it here before, probably lots of times, that if I waited around to have the confidence to do anything I'd never finish anything. Being "good enough" is perpetually out of reach for me. As such, it's not a particularly useful concept for me. It's just something I level at myself when I want to make myself suffer. So I've taught myself to say, oh well. I'm not good enough -- oh well. I'm not talented enough -- oh well. I can't write well enough -- oh well. I'm gonna do it anyway, because the day is never going to come when I AM good enough.

So I've really endeavored to not allow my not-good-enoughness to rule my world, but that doesn't mean I'm not continually striving to be good enough anyway. Here's a more useful concept for you: what can I do to be better?

Anyone who's been writing for more than twelve minutes or so knows the answer to this: read a lot of good books. Read a lot of bad books. Critique other people's work. Read other people's critiques. And write. Writewritewritewritewrite. These are all tools in your arsenal -- not just in the effort to be better, but in the effort to stop beating yourself down for not being "good enough."
 

kathyc

Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 3, 2009
Messages
53
Reaction score
3
Location
CT, USA
Website
linktr.ee
Feeling like you're not good enough is normal, but it shouldn't stop you from doing what you want to do.

Many years ago, I felt like I wasn't good enough and MY standard for writing was super high. Everything I wrote had to be perfect. It crippled me. I kept rewriting the first 4 or 5 pages over and over again. It came to a point where I gave up and stopped writing for a long time. A couple years ago, I let everything go and just wrote. I turned off my inner critic and it worked out pretty well. I just finished my fifth book in the series and am working on the final two.

Forget the standard. Forget being good enough and just write. It does not matter if you feel it's a giant ball of nonsense or garbage, because guess what? There is a word, a sentence or even a paragraph hidden in there that is your jewel, but you have to be willing to do the work without restriction or judgment.

I'm not sure what to say about seeing the same plot line or characters over and over again to the point of eye-rolling. I LOVE middle grade fantasy. It's what I write and read. Yes, I do see many stories that have similarities. In my series, a few objects must be found. But, I still love it and don't mind. Maybe a change in genre might help?

I hope this helps a little and you're feeling better. :)
 

JeanGenie

Such a Greenie
Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 13, 2016
Messages
1,005
Reaction score
61
Location
Land of the Northern Lights
Hello everyone,
Title is self-explanatory. Years ago, I could pick up any book and read it (i'm heavily in Fantasy and Children's stories). Now it's difficult to pick up one without rolling my eyes and setting it down. Today, I put down books that emphasize a plot line i've heard of a million times, or contain main characters with the same objectives as others in other books. In other words, stuff i consistently see over and over again. Surprisingly enough, these plot lines and characters are extremely common. It's annoying. I love to read.

I wouldn't bring this up if it had nothing to do with my writing. The issue is: This picky behaviour doesn't just affect my reading, it affects what i write. I can't write something without rolling my eyes and scraping it. I doubt all my ideas, and refuse to expand them because i'm afraid i won't execute them to my standards (or, won't execute them into a story i'd enjoy). This is becoming a pain. I'm watching my writing dream run down the drain.

How does a person overcome this specific writing issue?

Thanks! :)

I think I'll always feel like this, and if I stopped I'd be kind of worried.

There are writers who write brilliant first, second and third novels, but then it seems they get a little too confident and stop critiquing their own work, because they "know" they are good. We all need the inner critic, but not to the point where we stop writing because of it. You just have to keep on writing, no matter what, and after a while you get familiar with your own style and your challenges and find confidence through that:)
 

JoeSmith

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 17, 2011
Messages
75
Reaction score
4
I've always thought this quote sums it up quite well.

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.” - Ira Glass
 
Last edited:

Jason

Ideas bounce around in my head
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 26, 2016
Messages
6,011
Reaction score
1,036
Location
Nashville, TN
I was gonna say:

welcome to the world of being a writer...

But it looks like several have already beat me to it. I routinely am dumping at least 10 files daily of work I start and promptly say "this sucks balls". Just keep at it, and you'll get where you want to be someday, though you'll never realize it because you'll always be trying to improve.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.