Creative Fear
This is creative fear: Your heart pounds and your palms sweat after you hand over your notebook, or pass around your pages, or hit send on your email. The words you’ve struggled over, the story you’ve crafted, your message, your art is suddenly out in the world. And it’s terrifying.
Or maybe you haven’t shared your work yet because even thinking about it triggers a cascade of doubt. Anxiety doesn’t feel good, and it’s easy to think that means your story isn’t ready.
That you aren’t ready.
If you search the web for “Fear and Creativity”, you’ll find articles about how fear will strip or limit your creative energy. Before you internalize these messages and convince yourself your worries are a sign you are not a writer… stop.
Breathe.
Fear is Normal
Let’s be real. It’s scary to put yourself out there. Scary to begin your blog, or to query or submit your writing. To publish a book is terrifying, and I’m finding releasing the sequel is even scarier.
In fact, if I think about it too much, Anxiety—my old frenemy—comes roaring back to ask the questions no creative wants to hear.
“What if…
- this story is not as good as the last?”
- the work is no good at all?”
- you let everyone who’s been looking forward to the story down?”
- this sequel is so bad no one buys the last two books in the series?”
- I look stupid, or people find out I’m not perfect?” (um, spoiler alert…)
But that’s okay.
Because not only does leaping from your comfort zone despite your creative fear give you a chance to grow, each time you do it, your confidence increases. That doesn’t mean the next leap isn’t also scary, but surviving creative fear again and again strengthens you. With each trip from your nest, you’ll become more eager to unleash your imagination—more empowered to share a deeper part of yourself.
Besides, what’s the worst thing that can happen? Even if someone hates your work… so what? Someone hates every book, every film, and every song. No one is immune, and no creative gets a free pass.
So, while you can’t command how an audience receives your work, you can control the effort you put into your creations. And, as long as you love it, someone else will too.
Creative Fear Happens…
So don’t let it stop you! If you haven’t seen the TED Talk author Elizabeth Gilbert gave in 2009, give it a whirl.
I hope you found her talk as comforting and inspirational as I did. Remember, your words are a gift to the world. It’s your chance to move from consumer to creator, and that’s awesome.
Resources for Dealing with Creative Fear
I was petrified to start jamifairleigh.com. Not only was I announcing to the world “I am a writer”, I was doing so with my real name. To process my anxiety, I turned to books as I am wont to do. Not only did I find the messages within the books soothing, that there were so many to choose from helped, too! Here are some of my favorites (affiliate links).
You Unstuck: Mastering the New Rules of Risk-taking in Work and Life
While this is a career-focused book, I found the case studies and brain science helpful. The tone is blunt, but not harsh.
Like You Unstuck, this book is not specific to writing, but I liked it because it had a focus on abundance and gratitude, and provided several tips to take control of your fear and make it useful to you.
This book is like a continuation of the TED Talk Elizabeth Gilbert gave. It’s written for all creatives in a funny, personal, and empowering tone. It’s a resource I often return to when I feel stuck.
Writing-Specific Books
This lovely little book is quiet, with a warm, encouraging tone. The author talks about her own experiences and how she pushed through her worries and anxiety.
I loved this book by Bill Kenower. If you’ve ever seen him speak at a conference or workshop, you know how enthusiastic and supportive he is. The book harnesses that same energy and delivers an empowering message. I liked it so much I took his Fearless Writing and Fearless Marketing workshops.
The focus of this book is on how fear can be useful. It included many quotes from famous authors who also struggled with creative fear and procrastination. The tone is more academic, but it’s filled with anecdotes which I found interesting.
This short book is like getting a pep talk from a coach. The author provides a 5-Step plan for how to work through creative fear and doubt. Through a series of questions and exercises, the book helps you express your “why you write”. Then it shows how to identify the reasons behind your fear and procrastination so you can manage them.
Ready, Set, Go!
I hope this post has helped you process your creative fear. For many of us, it’s unavoidable, but take heart. You’re in good company and your words matter.
How do you face your creative fears?
Header Photo by Vadim Bogulov on Unsplash