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and it can be so easy to take it to heart. Don't. No-one should have that kind of power over you. By undermining you they are just projecting their own insecurities onto you. It may simply be that they don't understand why you want to write, and very few non-writers ever will truly understand that drive.
It doesn't matter what other people think. If you want to write, then write, otherwise you are undermining yourself. We all have our own paths to follow.
"Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different that each of us is special." Brian Dyson
Have you ever felt undermined? How did you cope with it? Share in the comments below, I'd love to hear from you.
Sadly someone I thought a good writing buddy told me I'd never 'cut' it... As you can imagine it hurt, they were referring to my lack of time to write. Saying I wasn't truly committed.
ReplyDeleteI'm like everyone else, I have stuff happening out in the real world. The thing that stung was, I'd given up afternoons and evenings to help them with their writing. So they could meet submission deadlines.
Another buddy who overheard the harsh comments, advised to ignore, and they were only trying to undermine me.
Still hurts, but I plod on, and yes, if asked I am still helping that writer. ;-)
Good post, thank you for sharing.
R. A. Salvatore said his advice for a writer is, "If you can quit, quit, if you can't your a writer." I love because I know what he means, I don't feel like I have a choice. I may can make myself step away from writing, but I will always long for it. I don't think anyone should ever have to explain themselves when it comes to doing what you love.
ReplyDeleteGreat words of encouragement. I don't discuss my writing with people unless they can encourage me in some way. Negativity is not needed when I am trying to excel.
ReplyDeleteIt's easy to compare myself to others and finding myself wanting. That's a good quote to keep it all in perspective.
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ReplyDeleteI think the person most-likely to undermine me, is me. I allow all sorts of things to distract me from writing, which is another form of insecurity--don't have to worry about my writing being judged if I haven't written anything!
ReplyDeleteAs to others, I listen to people whose opinion I trust and know is intended to make me a better writer. The others? Background noise in a full and busy life. :)
Thank you for the reminder!
Deborah (A to Z-er, too).
We've been undermined a lot but it's never deterred us. Our favorite was hearing an agent tell us, "This is a great book but zombies won't be popular in the next few years so you should just write something else." That was 2 years ago. What's all the rage now? Exactly. Our book is selling really well, and that agent is eating her words.
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