It's the first Wednesday of the month, and that means it's time to convene another meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group. Our esteemed leader Alex J. Cavanaugh has assembled some great co-hosts for this month: Kim Elliott, Melissa Maygrove, Chemist Ken, Lee Lowery, and Nancy Gideon.
Be sure to check out the IWSG website for lots of writing resources!
First of all, I would like to make an announcement regarding WEP. The winner's post for the April Challenge is now live. You can find that here.
Now on to the business of the day.
The optional question for this month is: It's the best of times; it's the worst of times. What are your writer highs (the good times)? And what are your writer lows (the crappy times)?
I've sure had a mixture of both, as I'm sure we all have. Personally, my favorite highs come from finding out I'm having a story published. When I found out that I won the 2015 and 2018 IWSG Anthology Contests, I was elated. Seeing my words in print makes all the struggles that come along with the writing process worth it. I'm sure publication counts as a high point for most.
When thinking about lows, rejection obviously came to mind. It always hurts to have a story rejected, but I think an even worse low than that comes from writer's block. If I'm submitting stories, that means the words are at least coming to me. I'm being productive, even if publication doesn't follow. The inability to get words on the page is far more demoralizing for me.
What are your writing highs and lows?
I agree with you that there are highs and lows of being a writer. And having writers block is a really hard low. Like you say, there's a joy to writing no matter whether your work gets published or does well.
ReplyDeleteLack of words gets me as well. But two IWSG books is good!
ReplyDeleteThose highs make up for the slumps, don't they? When the voices in your head refuse to speak to you, it's like being snubbed at the high school lunch table. What did I do? Just push through it!
ReplyDeleteMy highs include pub day (yesterday), good reviews (today), and days when the words flow like coffee. Because coffee. Low points: days when pushing out words is like forcing half-set cement through a seive. I wish you happy writing in May.
ReplyDeleteGirl, you're 121 on the list. What happened? :p
ReplyDeleteYeah, there's nothing much better than that approval from publication. And knowing that strangers might read and engage with it.
ReplyDeleteThat's why we have to remember our past successes. They get us through the lows.
ReplyDeleteI also was published in two IWSG anthologies. It was very rewarding - definitely a high for me too.
ReplyDeleteOh, yeah, being blocked is the worst. Even when it's just a little trouble with focus and figuring out the end of the novel... oh, not to suggest those things are troubling me right now :D
ReplyDeleteIt's a bummer to have writers block. When I get that I feel so unproductive and like I'll never get my creativity back but it always comes back which is a high in itself. If you can write then the whole road ahead is open to you.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you that writers' block is worse than rejection. The latter hurts, but at least you're putting your work out there and it might be accepted somewhere else in the future. With writer's block, you have nothing to show for it and it can become a bit of a vicious cycle as you get more anxious about it.
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