Why you're struggling to start writing your novel

What I'm about to say might seem like a minor detail, but you'd be surprised how many writers struggle with it.

Do you remember a while ago, there was a reel that said 'if you want this, then you have to do this?'

That's the general premise of what we're going with in this post today.

I’m going to be talking to you about how in order to become a best-selling author with your books adapted into films & series, you have to actually write the book in the first place. Don’t even worry about the publishing side of things, let alone the editing, if you don’t even have your words down on paper.

One of the hardest things about writing a book is getting started.

Strange, right?

But there is so much to tackle before you even start writing.

Self-doubt. Time constraints. Distractions.

Just to name a few.

Here are 5 reasons why you’re struggling to get started on your novel.

1. You’re waiting for it to be perfect.
→ You need absolutely everything in order. You need your first sentence guaranteeing that you’ll win the Pulitzer Prize. Everything.needs.to.be.PERFECTTTTTTT- YOU HEAR ME? Aight, but you get the point. Perfectionism is another word for procrastination. Let your work be messy. You can always come back to it later. Writing everything out will help you also clear out the cobwebs and allow for the perfect sentence to actually come through.

2. You’re not 100% clear on its direction
→ You’ve adopted the all-or-nothing style of doing things. You insist that you have to know absolutely everything to the finest detail. Guess what? 99.9% of us don’t. Why? Because like waiting for perfection, if we waited for 100% clarity on direction, we wouldn’t get anything done. Have the general idea and an outline, but if there’s a setting or character or storyline that needs some more fleshing out, it’s a sign that the best place to do that is when you actually start writing.

3. You’re not prioritising it
You keep putting your writing on the backburner. By the time you take care of everything else and find 100 other things to do (that you didn’t need to do before but you felt like you should do it instead of write), it’s time for bed and you haven’t written anything. It’s time to start making writing your priority.

4. You’re worried about the ‘what-ifs’ of when do write your book
You worry about what people will think, how they’d respond, what comes with having a published book, the visibility, the judgement, the rejection…you get it. Oftentimes, we think too far ahead and worry about things that don’t need to be worried about. And yes, a fear of being seen and a fear of success are very real, very legitimate fears.

5. You doubt whether it’s something for you in the first place
You start wondering whether you should even bother. You’ve heard how hard it is to get your book published and how little money you make, so what’s the point? (Hint: there’s a LOT of point). Oftentimes, one of the biggest reasons someone avoids starting their book is because they don’t see why they should. Get clear on your why and hold onto it.

There are very real, very legitimate reasons as to why you struggle getting started with your book.

And the great thing is?

They’re VERY fixable.

Make sure you keep an out for my posts because I'll show you how!