Fear, Lies and Doubts: A Breakdown of the Inner Voices

October 10, 2012 in Creativity, Dreams, Life with 30 Comments

Photo by Thomas Shahan (Creative Commons)

I have been hearing a lot of noise from the voices in my head lately.

Each voice has been filled with fear, doubt and lies.

I’ve been freaked out.

I’ve been scared. (And it might be worse now because of that spider picture above! Eeeek!)

But I’m tired of listening to lies, what ifs and could bes.

I refuse to give in.

Here is a breakdown of the voices I have been hearing and why each is a lie.

You suck as a person for writing this.
Okay, first off, my self worth is not up for grabs with one short story or anything I write for that matter.

The story will suck.
Maybe so. But it’s impossible to know without writing it.

You can’t finish it.
Oh yes I can, and I WILL. Chew on that for a while now please and SHUT UP.

No one will read it.
Well, by default I think my wife will read it And I have a few other awesome friends who will read it too. So again voice, SHUT UP.

You will NEVER be able to sell any fiction.
Oh wait a second, I have to FINISH it to sell it. Now SHUT UP voice! I caught you there. Ha! Oh and “any fiction” implies more than one. Again, say hello to Mr. Shutty!! (Tip of the hat there to the awesome Doug Heffernan)

You look like a piece of garbage for writing this piece of garbage.
This doesn’t make sense really. So I look like garbage for writing garbage. What if it’s not total garbage? Isn’t beauty in the eye of the beholder? If I like it, doesn’t all of this fall apart?

Your writing has more holes in it than swiss cheese.
My writing will get better. And I do like swiss cheese. Mmmmhmmm. Swiss cheese. Nom nom.

You can’t write dialogue-AT ALL.
Maybe not. But you gotta start somewhere. And I KNOW I’m not alone in this battle. I will just try my best and learn.

You suck, you suck, you suck.
I think my voices are getting desperate here. They certainly aren’t creative. Perhaps they will SHUT UP now??

Will you share some of the voices in your head and why it is a lie? Thanks.

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http://www.beyondthesinnersprayer.wordpress.com/ Barb

Have heard similar voices – loved hearing the replies you gave yours!
Roni Carter

You can’t write dialogue, Jim? You just did. Take that, mean voice!

I hear many of these frequently, along with the “Your story doesn’t make sense” and “It will never be what you want it to be”. That last one’s the toughest, because I have high hopes of evoking emotion, which I’m not great at yet. But every word that gets put down on paper is one more towards silencing this discouraging voice (who, by the way, hasn’t done anything productive today, and you already have. So, take that again, voice).
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Thanks Roni!! The “it will never be what you want it to be” is still really undefined and it’s impossible to judge a work accurately until it’s closer to completion, right? So even that one is a lie. It just stings more, like “the story will suck” voice I often hear.
http://intentionaltoday.com/ Ngina Otiende

You are so funny Jim. You just made my evening. yea, i needed some laughter and smiles after wrestling with words the whole day today. Thanks for this. (and am not laughing at you, but with you!)
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  And I thought I couldn’t write funny haha thanks for the encouragement.
http://www.chicagobearscentral.com/ Brent Jamison

That voice is following you around too? Good to know it is not just me.
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  haha, definitely not just you!!!
annette skarin

I bump against the glass of my fishbowl, my mouth opens, it closes, a bubble escapes…0
http://dailygallen.com/ tim gallen

jim, i love this because like many others, i too have been hearing the same voices as of late. they’re all trying to get me to settle but i’m tired of settling for too little in my life. thanks for the encouragement and inspiration!
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Thanks so much. Those voices are evil and full of LIES. So glad to help!!
http://twitter.com/KDmae Kelsey Anderson

This is AWESOME, Jim. I actually wrote something similar to this back in January, where I wrote down what the voices were telling me and my response. Good to know that we writers are not alone.
http://twitter.com/tdiddy1234 Todd Foley

You pretty much transcribed every single voice I heard while writing my novel – and continue to hear, for that matter. Thanks for normalizing the battle and for providing effective responses as well!
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Wow Todd, that helps!! That helps me a TON. So glad to help you too.
Brock Webster

You do not have enough education!! That is a lie!! I do have heart and passion!! Thank you for sharing!!
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Thank you so much Brock. I agree that education one is just a lie. It’s not about education rather just being willing to learn and you don’t always need a degree for that!
http://deuceology.wordpress.com Larry Carter

Stay out of my head, Jim Woods. Quit telling the world what I’m thinking.
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Haha you serious? Really? That’s funny and man that gives me and hopefully you a feeling of, “Hey, we’re in this together”.
  - http://deuceology.wordpress.com Larry Carter
    
    Exactly, my friend!!!
http://www.ordinaryservant.com/ Pilar Arsenec

You suck big time, you think you can write but you can’t, give it up already, you are not a writer, everyone else is better than you, smarter than you, thinner than you, more gifted, you will never amount to anything, noone is remotely interested in reading what you write, you are one big fat loser.
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Wow PIlar, your voices really sound familiar. I for one AM interested in reading what you write and would disagree firmly with EVERY single one of those voices you hear!
  - http://www.ordinaryservant.com/ Pilar Arsenec
    
    I disagree with your voices too, I love what you write, I love your heart. What you do matters, who you are matters, everything you do matters to me.
http://randomlychad.com Chad Jones

You’re a loser. No one cares what, or if, you write. Look at your stats–you call that a platform. And the book you’re working on? Please. You won’t finish, and even if you do, who’s gonna read it, Mr. Nobody?
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Wow Chad, now you are in my head. Some of those are VERY similar to what I listed out.
http://snapshotofthewhole.wordpress.com/ Pamela Williamson

“Who wants to read what you write anyway?” That’s what I hear lately. I just grit my teeth and write anyway. Great post, Jim. Makes me laugh.
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Thanks Pamela, so glad you enjoyed it!
http://rebootingworship.com/ Jamie Kocur

This thing is too big, you’ll never be able to pull it together. That’s the current fear I’m facing as I try to write a book. It’s so big and overwhelming it’s crazy.

Nom, nom, nom…
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  I feel that one too. A book is a VERY imposing thing. But you need to just write it one word at a time. One sentence at a time. One paragraph at a time. One page at a time. I know you can do it Jamie!!!!!
http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde

I’m not knowledgeable…. That lie keeps getting beat down every time I meet with one of my new friends. He’s amazed at what I know about blogging and WordPress. He keeps telling me that I’m an expert to him.
- http://unknownjim.com/ Jim Woods
  
  Love that Joe, you ARE an expert compared to a beginner. That has to help you feel better doesn’t it!!!!!
  - http://www.jmlalonde.com Joe Lalonde
    
    It helps but it’s an odd position to be in… To feel that lack of knowledge but know someone is looking up to you. That can be the encouragement to push forward on those rough days.