I saw a tweet the other day that said something similar to the title of this post and I got a chuckle out of it.
But right on the heels of the chuckle came doubt…
I do feel some of my writing is good. I also feel some of my writing isn’t as good as I sometimes think it is.
There’s a fairly common cycle of feeling that infects authors’ minds–I’m Great/I Suck/I’m Great/I Suck…
I think the middle portions of the wave, not the peaks and troughs, are where some truth can be garnered.
My dear, departed father instilled in my tender nature a feature of character that I’ve spent many decades trying to root-out–Perfectionism.
To be fair, I also got a large portion of respect for discipline from him.
A perfectionist needs discipline if they want to continue on the road toward the impossible destination–Perfection.
I’m a firm believer that anything I write can be better, even if I reach a decision that it’s near enough to “perfection” to publish.
“A poem is never finished, only abandoned.”
Paul Valery
I’m also a firm believer that discipline can be used to punish yourself when you feel you’re not good enough–pushing your efforts past the point of rest and reflection…
So, if you think you’re a good writer but you don’t think your writing is perfect, you just might be a good writer…
If you think you’re a good writer and also that your writing is perfect, think again………
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I really don’t imagine you feel your writing is perfect but I do suspect you find the I’m Great/I Suck cycle a somewhat familiar visitor. Care to share 🙂
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