Summary

The article provides guidance on persevering with writing despite feelings of discouragement and the temptation to quit.

Abstract

The article "What To Do When You Feel Like Quitting" addresses the common struggle among writers who face discouragement and consider giving up on their craft. It emphasizes the importance of daily routines, such as reading and writing, and the necessity of making a conscious decision to write rather than quit. The author encourages writers to start with small steps, writing one word, sentence, or paragraph at a time, and to keep going even when the writing feels subpar. The article highlights the value of editing and refining one's work, and the importance of publishing and sharing it without obsessing over its reception. The author concludes by urging writers not to let discouragement lead to quitting, advocating for the fulfillment that comes from expressing one's story and sharing it with the world.

Opinions

The author acknowledges the discouragement that can come from reading about others' writing successes.
The act of writing itself is presented as a source of vitality and fulfillment, regardless of immediate success or recognition.
The article suggests that the decision to write or quit is a pivotal moment that writers face daily.
Persistence and hard work are underscored as essential components of writing success, echoing Stephen King's sentiment that talent alone is insufficient.
Writing consistently, even when the output seems poor, is seen as the only path to producing good work.
The importance of editing is highlighted as a means to transform rough drafts into polished pieces.
The author advises writers to publish their work and then detach from the outcome, avoiding the trap of obsessing over performance metrics.
The article concludes with a call to action, encouraging writers to embrace their craft and share their stories, rather than succumbing to the urge to quit.

What To Do When You Feel Like Quitting

Because you probably feel like quitting every day

Every morning I start my day reading through other writer’s blog posts.

Most of the time, I find it very discouraging.

I read about 20-somethings making $10k last month with their writing. Or how so and so made $1,000 on their first-month writing on a new platform.

Most of the time, it makes me want to quit writing.

Then I sit down at my computer, coffee in hand, pen, and paper beside me and I start pouring my heart and soul on the page. Ten people might read my post, or a hundred. If I’m lucky, even a thousand.

Yet, I find myself coming alive as a writer. Even if I’m not making $10,000 a month.

Most writers struggle with their writing. Finding ideas, communicating them, and then getting them in front of people can be exhausting. We have hopes and dreams for our writing and our life, but how do we get there?

We’ve all read the Stephen King quote:

“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.”

So we all know it is going to take a lot of hard work. Hell, most of us have been putting in the hard work every day for years. But, what else is it going to take?

Don’t Quit! Do This Instead

“Never, never, never, never give up.” — Winston Churchill

Every morning, I do the same things. I get coffee, read, and then start writing. Sometimes I try some new productivity techniques. Or I will do an exercise to help jumpstart my writing.

In the end, the three things that I don’t change is coffee, reading, and writing.

No matter how much you feel discouraged about your writing, you need to do one thing when you sit down to write. It is simple, but it gets hard when things aren’t going your way. What’s that one thing?

We need to decide if we want to write today or quit today.

When someone quits writing they try to tell themselves and others it was a slow progression. But it isn’t. It started with one decision, to write or not to write.

When we face this decision, it is a little scary. We could throw in the towel in a second. Or we can start killing ourselves, but at least we will be loving it along the way. Again, Stephen King puts it best:

“The scariest moment is always just before you start. After that, things can only get better.”

You don’t need to quit writing today. In fact, you need to decide to keep writing today.

No matter how discouraged or frustrated you are at the moment. It is scary to think that you might give up something you enjoy so much in one decision made in a moment of weakness.

What do we do after that? How do we give ourselves the lift we need to keep writing once we decide not to quit?

Write A Word, A Sentence, A Paragraph

“All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.” — Ernest Hemingway

We find ourselves coming back to this common quote. This is the only place to start when you want to quit. We must start with writing. Start with a word, a sentence, then a paragraph.

That true sentence might come to you in a minute. Or it might take you a full hour. Yet, we have to write, we have to put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard, ideas to screen, and keep going.

We need to keep going.

“You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.” — Ray Bradbury

Once I start writing, I have to keep going until I exhaust myself. Or until my children interrupt me and I can no longer concentrate (let’s be honest). If we want to keep writing, we have to go until we cannot anymore.

“Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.” — Louis L’Amour

It’s in these moments of forced writing where we turn on the faucet of our souls and the floodwaters will begin to flow. We will start to feel the rush of writing and communicating that has drawn us to writing in the beginning.

But, we must start with a drip, one word, one sentence, one paragraph.

“A word after a word after a word is power.” -Margaret Atwood

It May Be Bad, But It’s The Only Way To Do Anything Well

I have to remind myself that some mornings I will write something good. And other mornings, it may be absolutely horrible. It is also important to note that what we see as bad may actually be amazing to others.

So, we need to get our writing out of us. Like William Falkner says:

“Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.”

The first draft is always the first draft. As we edit and come back to our writing, we will begin to refine that raw material into fine workmanship. It is in the editing process that you will start to feel good again.

Even if you think your writing is garbage, or terrible.

You have a chance to edit it into a masterpiece. You can get rid of the bad, add in something better, and begin to shine again. And you never know, this might be the piece that will pop?

Publish, Share, And Walk Away

“All I must do now was stay sound and good in my head until morning when I would start to work again.” — Ernest Hemingway

This is the hardest part for me. Sometimes, I will work on something so completely that once I hit the ‘publish’ button, I cannot help but refresh the stats over and over again.

You and I cannot fall into this trap.

Once we have published our writing, we need to share it and then walk away. Otherwise, we will get in our heads and land right back where we started, if not in a worse place.

This is the time we need to walk away on the writer's high. Enjoy the fact that you have completed something and that it is out in the world. Don’t fantasize about how many views it might get, enjoy that it is done.

You cannot control how well it will perform after you publish it. All you can do is publish it and share it.

Final Thought

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”― Maya Angelou

If you decide to quit, then you will be stuck with this hunger and sadness within you. It might be a story. It might be something you could do to help someone else. And it might simply be a part of you that needs to get out into the world.

Don’t let discouragement force you into believing you need to quit. Pick yourself up, start writing, get your writing into the world, and walk away knowing you didn’t quit and you did something good today. Whether it is for you or for the world.

What do you do when you feel like quitting? Share in the responses below.

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