Hello there!
A big thank you to everyone who responded to my reader survey. The results are in. 👏
The most requested topic by far will be the subject of our next workshop…
Build your Writing Confidence: Thursday 20 June 2024, 6pm-7pm UK time
Pop the date in your diary and join me at the Zoom link at the foot of this post/email.
Workshops are for paid members only. A monthly membership is only £6 (£5 if you choose an annual membership) so you can join for the price of a fancy coffee. Your writing confidence will thank you (and so will I 😊).
How does a lack of confidence in our writing hold us back?
We start things and don’t finish them.
We keep our writing dreams a secret.
We doubt every word we write and waste hours going over and over each page instead of moving forward.
We don’t share our work.
We don’t call ourselves writers.
We ignore opportunities to submit our work for publication, enter competitions, or do things that might mean we get rejected.
We daren’t get feedback, or any help that might improve our writing.
We assume that other people know better than us and tie ourselves up in knots trying to follow all the writing advice out there.
When dealing with industry professionals like agents or editors, we don’t speak up and ask for what we want or need.
We might even fall prey to inexpert editors, unscrupulous agents or dodgy publishers.
Any of these behaviours sound familiar? They do to me. I did almost ALL of them.
The good news…
The good news is that all this is quite normal. I believe that any worthwhile creative endeavour will sometimes challenge our confidence. Being a writer often comes with a big dash of self-doubt, and that’s actually a good thing!
Read that again.
Self-doubt is a good thing.
The trouble is that lack of confidence, which leads to self-doubt, can also hold us back and stop us from getting where we want to go. But there are things we can do to grow our confidence as we put our words out into the world.
Join me for our June workshop and start building your writing confidence.
When?
Thursday 20 June 2024, 6pm-7pm UK time
Where?
On Zoom.
There’s no need to register. Zoom joining details are at the bottom of this post, viewable for paid subscribers only.
I’ll also send a reminder beforehand.
What we’ll cover
How a lack of confidence holds us back
Why so many of us struggle with confidence and why it’s not our fault
How we can build our writing confidence
Group discussion and mini-coaching exercises to help you identify your sticking points and ways to tackle them
Plus you’ll find out why self-doubt is good for our writing!
I hope to create a safe and non-judgemental space for interaction and would LOVE to see some of you there live so we can connect, share experiences and solutions.
Who’s it for?
Anyone who writes and would like a supportive space to explore their writing practice.
Will there be a replay?
Yes. I’ll make a replay available for all paid members.
If this sounds like something that would help you, make sure you’re a paid up member and join me on 20 June.
If you’re coming along, let me know. Post in the comments on Substack or hit reply.
I hope to see you there!