forum Perfectionist Writers Support Group

Started January 03, 2019 by @Inspired-Sunrise group

tune

Im a perfectionist writer and wanted to see if others like me would like to share their troubles

BEING AFRAID TO BE PUBLISHED BECAUSE YOU MIGHT FIND A BETTER WAY TO WRITE A SCENE

Afraid that eVEN ONE WORD MIGHT BE ADDING TOO MUCH TO THE SENTENCE AND MAKING IT READ AWFUL AND CLUTTERED

knowing you want to use a word but having no idea where to put it
not writing a scene/chapter because it's not perfect the first time you do it
not publishing literally anything because you see too many minor flaws
abandoning work for months bc you can't get it right
nothing being good enough no matter how many times you edit it

that's what I struggle with the most lmao

Agh! It’s so true! You know what I did just now that I didn’t know would really help? Ya look at a photo you like one that makes ya think and then you write a scene or two about it no editing no looking back (unless you want to or you just REALLY have to edit that one bit I know) and you never have to use it again or ya can if ya want or if you suddenly remember it and it really helped. (Just thought I’d add since I liked that) but seriously it’s really nice seeing people have similar problems to mine. (Sorry it’s long)

that actually sounds like a good idea, considering my brain likes to generate stories whenever I see pictures/artwork/videos/other stories

Yeah and hey if you do try it maybe you could tell me how it goes if you’re comfortable with that

yeah sure, you just gotta remind me lol

Oh yeah by the way I suggest pictures of abandoned or deserted areas

Whoops didn’t see your reply at first sorry if I seemed pushy (just tryin’ to be friendly)

it's fine you don't seem pushy at all
and pictures that inspire me are usually depressing pictures of people, landscapes, abandoned buildings, crowds of people, etc.

This is all so me.

If anyone wants to talk about current projects or complain about them (I hope we can all help each other as that’s the reason I made this) feel free but know I don’t often check this so if you want to talk to me I’m sorry if I make you wait

….Someone called?

Having to research everything in hopes of getting the right amount of detail so nothing goes unexplained so everyone knows what's happening and what the author's rationale for things are and how to make everything realistic despite writing a damn FANTASY NOVEL and–

Yeah. My train of thought gets split between three different tracks going in completely different directions.

oh that brings me to another thing
when I'm writing fantasy, especially magic, I will take MONTHS to make sure that the magic system is fully developed and has solid rules and that all mythical species make perfect sense

Also NAMES
Does it sound nice? What does it mean? Birth date? Might it sound rude in a different language? Is it impossible to spell? Is it impossible to pronounce? Does it sound similar to everything else? Is it gay enough? Can I make a pun out of this? etc etc

Afraid to ever share your writing cause someone close to you made fun of you once three years ago and now you're afraid of ending up the family failure.

That was depressing, sorry

We've all encountered this haven't we
Afraid to start because tHE NAME OF THE KING 2000 YEARS AGO WASN'T THOUGHT OF YET

Looking back on your super old writing and feeling your entire body cringe.

Rewriting a gajillion times because it wasn't pErFEct

Writing something and thinking it’s sort of good, then rereading a few days later and realizing what utter garbage it is

And then deleting it because if it’s not perfect, there’s no point

Refuse to write because you know it will not be that good and missing practising opportunity

Wry, I can relate to that so much