Do you want to publish your story, but the thought is terrifying?
Hearing a voice inside saying, “I can’t share my writing. No one will read it…”
I am embarking on several new fronts that honestly I am feeling a bit of fear about. Allow me to share a bit of my journey and what I’ve found that has helped me as the fears of publishing try to hold me back from where I want to go.
Doing the Scary Thing
In November of this year, I am publishing my mythic poetry collection, Oak: The Last Watch (read more about it here).
And I’ve felt fear rise up in me as I approach the final stages of my publishing plan. I haven’t really told too many people about it because there’s a small part of me that thinks, if I don’t announce it, I can just let it silently slip away. But it wouldn’t slip away all at once.
At first I’d convince myself that I just need a bit more time even when it is pretty much done. As the new target date approaches, maybe I push it back again or I lose the will to publish it at all thinking ‘I’ll wait for a better time.’ Little by little, I could see myself slowly drifting away from publishing it.
But there’s another path: doing the scary thing, and publishing it.
But how do you move forward feeling such a fear?
Understanding What is Within
I’ve been on a journey of understanding that our emotions are a natural part of life. Each emotion serves a purpose, and they are not good or bad in themselves. In this case, fear on occasion does prevent us from doing things that could cause harm. But the challenge is to not let the fear define what we do. Instead we treat it as a signal and we analyze it to understand if it is valid or not.
What would happen if you did the thing that has you feeling fear?
Does the level of fear you feel match the level of threat or danger as an outcome of it?
As I allow myself to experience the feelings that come and go, I take a moment to step back and examine the emotions. Personally I find journaling helpful for this. By writing what I’m feeling down, I’m able to examine it as if from an external objective perspective.
Is this a valid fear?
Is it worth listening to?
What would happen if I did the thing that I’m afraid to do?
What would happen if I didn’t do the thing I’m afraid to do?
Going through this process has helped me to accept the emotions, to experience them, and in the end, find a way to move forward. Sometimes that does mean not doing the thing, because maybe it would cause me or others harm.
But more often than not, I have found that the risk is greater if I don’t do the thing. If I don’t publish.
A New Perspective
As I get closer to publishing my poetry, I’ve felt a number of layers of fear and anxiety. The most prevalent fear for me, which is risking it being published at all, is: What if no one reads it?
I have been disappointed several times over the course of the last few years as I make different creative projects, only to have it not reach anyone or very few. This has been deflating, because one of the reasons I’m making things is to share the experience with others.
Then I saw a different way of creating that made me think about if from a new angle. An author friend of mine published their book, and they said something to the effect of ‘this book will find the people who will read it’. This approach surprised me initially. How can we spend so many hours on a creative project and in the end be so chill about it reaching people, or not?
I’ve been seeing of late that there’s only so many things that I can control. And while I do hope that many people will read my poetry and upcoming fantasy novels, I am on a journey of accepting that my stories will reach the people they need to. Maybe that’s a handful of people, maybe it’s thousands. That part is not something I have control over, so I am finding peace in that. What I can control, is that I show up.
So I continue forward, and share with whomever crosses my path.
Finding One
The other way that I’ve come to peace with this, is similar to my “rule of one” with social media. There are so many metrics to measure ‘success’ today. But when we start to measure our personal success by the volume of people we reach, we lose the value of the ‘one’. Instead of seeing each individual person and their experience, we see a group of numbers.
There’s nothing wrong with celebrating personal milestones, but similar to these newsletters, if one person can come away a bit more hopeful, or encouraged, or empowered to create something, that is a win.
That is the power of our words and sharing creativity.
My Words to You
I’m sharing this with you, because I know that many of us feel this fear. We feel a resistance rise up saying, “Don’t do that, no one will read it.”
But at the same time, there is another voice within you, saying, “I have a story to tell. I want to share my story with others.”
All of us feel fear at one point or another as we walk the path of writing and sharing our work. And that is okay! Take some time to understand why you’re feeling fear. Maybe you’re feeling fear like I am, or perhaps like I used to with my fear of rejection.
Whatever your reason, if you’re finding it difficult to override that voice of fear in your mind, let me speak to you the words I speak to myself:
Someone will read your story and enjoy it.
Share your story. Keep showing up.
You got this.
I believe if you continue to share your story, you will find people to read and enjoy it.
Keep writing, and stay creative.
– Glen
Photo: Tito Zzzz
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