5 Addictions That Secretly Sabotage Your Writing

Is your writing in a slump? Even though you’re doing all the right things. Maybe it’s too much of a good thing. This post is about 5 addictions that secretly sabotage your writing.

5 Addictions That Secretly Sabotage Your Writing

Sometimes our mind does weird things. We think we’re doing well. We think we’re doing everything we’re supposed to. But dosage makes the poison, right? Before you know it, you’re addicted. It happens easily. Because writing itself starts with being obsessed.

Obsessed By Writing?

Of course! You’d have to be! Why else would sensible people sit down after a hard day’s work and commit themselves to hours of unpaid labour (unless you’re a bestseller author)? We’re in it for the sheer joy of writing. And we just can’t get enough. It’s an obsession we thrive on. That’s the opposite of the effect of the four addictions I’ll want to talk about.

The addictions raise their ugly heads within the process of writing. There are many tasks involved; at each step, writers can stray off the path. What starts as an interest becomes a pet peeve, then a quirk, and finally, we’re so engrossed in tasks that should contribute to our writing. But they don’t. They consume so much time and energy. Until we stop writing altogether.

If you’re hooked on any of the following things, you won’t notice at first. But once you do, then you realise you’re not reaching your big goal (which is achieving a finished text). That’s why I call them addictions. Now let’s look at this more closely.

1. Hooked On Writing Theory?

Maybe you’ve dabbled in writing for a while. You’re ready to try something new, a certain genre maybe, or a literary form. First, you need to find out how it works. Enter writing theory. Here’s what happened to me:

I wanted to write a novel. My teacher told me about scenes and chapters, character arcs, word lengths, and when to do what. It was meant to clarify. Its effect was the opposite.

I started to worry more and more. A few words on paper, and doubt kicked in. Would I need an action or a reaction scene? Is the scene long enough? Did my character develop as he should have? Notice how I worried more about formal requirements than my story. I was hooked on writing theory. In the end, it paralysed me.

How did I get out? I took stock of my emotions. All that thinking about theory stifled me. In my mind, I sent all theory to hell (pardon my French) and just wrote the story. I decided to spill a raw diamond onto the page and polish it later. A year later, the first draft was finished! And I was much happier.

Some writers become so hooked on honing their craft that they’re neglecting their own poems and stories. That’s not what you want to do, right?

What You Can Do

This addiction is particularly mean because it can hit you very early in your writing process. Don’t get me wrong: brushing up on theory is always good. But theory isn’t worth a dime if you don’t put it into practice. Only theory makes you a literary scholar. Add some practice to become a writer!

Remember to take bite-sized amounts of theory. The size of the bite you need is smaller than you think. Then, in a second step, you must practice. And practice some more. And some more.

2. Hooked On Research?

Sooner or later, you must do some research. Every writer does. And that’s where the next addiction lurks.

Research never stops! If you do it inside a library, just think of all the books inside that building! Research on the internet is even worse. The sheer amount of knowledge is awe-inspiring, and you need to fact-check everything (again, more research!). You can imagine that this is where the vortex starts.

It’s quite clear that some literary texts require more research than others. Just imagine how much research Dan Brown put into his Da Vinci Code series! Some genres, like historical fiction, want to be so close to reality that the writer needs to know exactly what that historical reality once was. Books about remote locations are the same. Even fantasy and science fiction require enormous research because the writers need to know what already exists to fabricate an alternative reality.

What You Can Do

Research never ends. But it can stop. You, as the writer, are in charge. When will you say ‘stop’?

Remember that works of fiction aren’t guidebooks. They aren’t travel guides, scientific how-tos, political playbooks, or recipe books. A work of fiction is…fiction! You imagine it and you write it down. That’s the basic requirement.

Your story needs just enough research to be believable. Your story doesn’t have to be a blueprint.

3. Hooked On Shiny New Ideas?

In every writing project, there comes a point when your story trickles slowly as molasses. Doubts rise inside you. Maybe your story just isn’t good enough? Maybe you should kick it in the bin? Because there’s this other idea that seems so promising. The more you think about it, the more excited you become. This is called the ‘shiny new idea.’

Shiny and new is all that they are. They’re not the answer. The only time they come up is when your writing is in a spot of trouble. If you were to engage in that shiny new idea, there’d be a new spot of trouble, and a second shiny new idea would appear, telling you it could save your day. And so on. See the pattern?

What You Can Do

Shiny new ideas are a beacon, not a saviour. Ask yourself: What is bothering you at this particular point in your process? Did your plot take an unexpected turn? Did you write yourself into a corner? Then explore a different version of your story. Let your characters do something weird. Go back to your manuscript and see where you might take a different turn.

The problem could also be within yourself. Does the story hit a nerve? Is it an issue you’re uncomfortable with? You might find exploring it in a story useful for your personal growth.

Whatever the case, shiny new ideas shouldn’t lead you away from your text. They prevent your creative growth. Use them as pointers to show you what’s not going well. Resolve the issue and continue writing.

4. Hooked On Editing?

We write our scene, we read through it, and tweak it here and there. No harm done, right? Unless…we can’t let it go. We edit and edit, going through all the stages of editing, until the first draft is done. Then comes the second draft, and the third… And yet another one. Before we know it, our story will never be polished enough, good enough, finished enough for us to send it out to a magazine or an agent.

Before you know it, you’re hooked on editing. You feel that your text isn’t good enough, because you, as a writer, aren’t good enough.

What You Can Do

Here’s something we can learn from journalism. It’s a profession where deadlines loom over every text. Every journalist knows that texts are never finished; you just stop writing. The inevitable truth is that texts can never be perfect – they just need to be polished enough for the editor (and the reporter) not to be ashamed of them.

Ask yourself these questions: Have you gone through the different phases of editing (here’s an editing checklist for you)? Have you given it your best shot? If your answer is yes, then send the text out to magazines or publishers. Stop doubting yourself or your text.

5. Hooked On Chasing Inspiration?

We all believe we need a good idea to get our writing started. We need to get into the flow. Writers have all kinds of rituals to get them into the right mood. That’s ok. You’re allowed to choose where you write and the tool you write with. If you need to light a candle and have a fresh flower on your desk, fine, too. But you can easily go overboard.

When the ritual itself has too much importance and it occupies more time than writing, it needs to go. Because what started as a tool is growing into a habit, and an addiction.

What You Can Do

This is all about the fairytale of the muse kissing the artist. The rituals are supposed to make the muse appear. Here’s the hard truth: you don’t need a muse to write. Here are some ideas about how to write without the muse.

If you still believe in the muse, you’re not accepting responsibility for your writing. Because you think like this: ‘If the muse doesn’t come, I can’t write. If I do write, it’s terrible, because the muse didn’t kiss me.’ See? You’re shifting the blame.

All you need is the habit of sitting down and starting to write. It’s something you can do anywhere and anytime. Just write.

What All These Addictions Have In Common

All these addictions are a form of self-sabotage. They appeal to the perfectionist inside us. That little voice is telling us we’re not good enough.

These addictions are also grand schemes to procrastinate. We delay the important decisions because we’re afraid to make them. We might not trust our initial idea or our talent as a storyteller. We might not trust that our writing is good enough to publish.

These addictions keep us from doing what we love most. That’s why we need to get rid of them.

The Last Word

If you recognise yourself in this blog, please don’t beat yourself up about it. I hope this blog has given you some ideas about what to do.

What you need now is empowerment. Writers Write is here to tell you that you are enough. You are a writer. So, write.

Don’t let anyone or anything keep you from doing what you truly love.

By Susanne Bennett. Susanne is a German-American writer who is a journalist by trade and a writer by heart. After years of working at German public radio and an online news portal, she has decided to accept challenges by Deadlines for Writers. Currently she is writing her first novel with them. She is known for overweight purses and carrying a novel everywhere. Follow her on Facebook.

5 Addictions That Secretly Sabotage Your Writing