The idea of writing a book has been idealized even among newbie writers as the greatest goldmine, yet there are several reasons you are stuck writing your first book and unable to live that dream.
Capturing your ideas, experiences, and knowledge into a book poses you as knowledgeable and an authority in whatever genre you choose to write in; however, several new writers never make it past the idea stage and many get stuck writing their first book.
The excitement has worn off and pressure is beginning to set in. Some may eventually conclude that writing a book to completion is tedious, demanding, and unachievable.
In essence, they quit writing and give up pursuing their creative passion barely a mile into the race.
Outlined below are the 5 reasons you are stuck writing your first book as a newbie writer.
You Have No Writing Experience
It’s quite easy to belittle a task until you are faced with the same. ‘Writing a book is easy, you might say,’ but in reality, it’s not as easy.
Writing takes a lot of mental hard work, research, and the ability to convey your message in a way your reader understands and can relate to – that’s definitely not for the weak.
As a newbie writer, jumping to write a book because you’ve got some fantastic ideas, without first practicing how to write the right way is like putting the cart before the horse.
It’s doomed to fail! That is a possible reason you are stuck writing your first book.
Gather momentum, start with writing consistently on your social media pages, develop your writing skill, and then launch into your book project.
These simple writing habits and processes prepare you for success as a newbie writer.
Perfectionism
Being a perfectionist has its perks and as good as that may sound, it does quite the opposite in writing. As a newbie writer, your first book might not be perfect, the earlier you accept this, the better.
No one; absolutely no one had their first attempt at writing a book perfectly (that’s not an excuse to write crap though). But focusing more on polishing your book will only stall the process.
Truth is, your growth is more important and that only happens when you consistently practice. The more you write, the more you are criticized, and then the better you become.
Edit, edit, edit, and then it’ll go into the trash because you end up feeling like it’s not good enough. Do not fall for that trap and cut your editor some slack. They’ll do the perfecting for you.
Editing While Writing
Nothing slows you down or distracts you more than trying to edit while writing especially as a newbie writer. This will not only break your creative flow, but it will also take you a long time to finish your book.
It is better to take time out to write and finish your first draft before diving into editing in detail. This gives you the opportunity to capture all your ideas uninterrupted.
As tempting as it might be to jump into the editing process as you write, I advise you to quell the urge to do so, especially as a newbie, because it’ll slow down your writing progress.
Juggling Multiple Book Projects
As a newbie writer, resist the temptation to write multiple books at the same time. Taking up multiple projects gets your attention divided, drained, and confused as hell and you’d end up with half-written books.
Resist this as much as you can.
When Ideas might drop randomly as you write, store them up on your notepads or whatever device you choose and refer to them later. These ideas can be developed into beautiful and captivating stories that can serve as your next book project.
This doesn’t mean you can’t juggle essays, short stories, and articles. The emphasis is on lengthy book projects.
Lack Of Discipline
Getting the story idea or any idea whatsoever is the most thrilling part of writing a book, but soon enough the whole excitement begins to dwindle and the reality of the task ahead begins to settle in.
Every author has had to go through this, so you are not alone.
What would take you through to the end is discipline. Discipline helps you focus more on your end goal (to become an author) and less on any distractions. It also applies to your personal life. No discipline, no achievements, right?
Did you know only 80% of books started by authors are completed by consistently showing up?
You should do the same. Set deadlines — daily, weekly, and monthly and meet them. This is the best way to measure your progress as a writer.
Showing up constantly isn’t easy and requires extraordinary discipline, but when you carefully master the art of consistently showing up, completing your book project becomes achievable.
