Comment

Comment by Valerie Brooks on November 19, 2011 at 2:57pm

@Kathy-Don't you just love how they "head-bangingly" put their energy into titles? I bet you can't wait to drop some of that teaching load and immerse in the writing. What a gift! A well-deserved, hard-earned gift. Let us know when the title meisters come up with something brilliant.

Comment by Regina Y. Swint on November 19, 2011 at 1:14pm

Well said, Courtney and Laura.  A little envy is all a valid part of our processes/journeys to get to some place of accomplishment.  I'm going to read Kristen Lamb's article, now.  Thanks! 

And like Andrea said, some envy can get out of hand and cause people to want to block someone else's success; but in most cases, I think envy is an indicator that someone else is doing something right, and should serve as a motivator for us to do better for ourselves.

Comment by Starla Ramcy on November 19, 2011 at 11:29am

Andrea,

I'm from The Netherlands and I write in English. But unlike you, I live in the USA. Finding out you actually live in Denmark, surrounded by non-english speaking people, gives me even more admiration for your accomplishment.

I wrote several novels in Dutch and my latest in English, but I would have never dared to self-publish it without the help of a professional editor. I know my English is pretty good, but not that good.

How did you perfect your English so much that you can write an English novel? Incredible. You must have a real talent for languages (and writing of course).

Starla Ramcy

Comment by Laura McHugh on November 19, 2011 at 10:57am

Farzana,

I do feel envy creeping in now and then. I deal with it by reminding myself of a few things. 1) I'm on my own journey and not in competition with other writers. 2) Every one of us had to work hard to get where we are--how can I be envious of my friend, whose upcoming novel is already getting great reviews, when I've seen how hard she worked for it? It just makes me work even harder on my own writing. 3) I can learn from the success of other writers, and often they are willing to help the rest of us succeed. 4) It truly feels good to be happy for someone else (even if you have to forcibly shove that envy aside to do so). :)

Comment by Andrea Heiberg on November 19, 2011 at 10:39am

What island? I sit on Sejer Island in Denmark and I love that it is possible that the world comes to me like this. Thank you.

Comment by Andrea Heiberg on November 19, 2011 at 10:30am

WRITER'S ENVY: There is writer's envy and you don't question anything when you're hit by it - because you'll know that you met someone who really wants to stop you. 

Comment by Regina Y. Swint on November 19, 2011 at 10:21am

Hi, farzana!

To answer your question for myself about writer's envy, I don't have it as an issue. I've found that as each of us moves along in our journeys as writers, we grow from the experiences and accomplishments of others.  That's one reason why I enjoy this forum so much. 

To keep the writer envy from discouraging you and de-motivating you, you just have to grow up and recognize that there will always be someone out there who is a stronger writer, better story-teller, and more popular/successful for any number of reasons.  Often, the other person's popularity and success are aided by his/her skills and abilities to reach readers by not only developing and writing good work, but also by putting in a lot of effort and hard work.

If you ever believed that you're a writer, you shouldn't lose that easily.  Seeing and reading what someone else can accomplish should only motivate you to accomplish just as much.   

I suggest that you continue to connect yourself to other writers and ask questions and share information and lessons.  Find people who are willing to show you what they know, people who will help you move forward and avoid any pitfalls that they may have encountered along the way.  Trust me, there are lots of folks out there who are willing to help. 

When I first started seriously considering publishing my book, I came across tons of people who were just full of information.  Some of the information was very valuable.  Some of it, not so much.  But in any case, you may be surprised the connections that you make just by reaching out.  If you have questions or doubt about the validity of a piece of info or a resource, just ask questions.  Someone, usually several people, on some thread in some writing group will have an answer for you.

As for productivity, it comes and goes, with or without writer envy.  For me, lack of productivity is a discipline and time-management issue.

Please let me know if I can be of any kind of assistance.  Although I've been writing and developing as a writer for many years, I've only published one book, and it's indie-published with a POD publisher, but it was a good experience for me.  I'm learning more and more about the worlds of self-publishing and traditional publishing as I go along from a lot of better-established, more seasoned writers and authors.  Many are right here on She Writes.

Good luck to you!

Comment by farzana on November 19, 2011 at 8:33am

this discussion makes me wonder about how people deal with writer envy? is this an issue for anyone? i would imagine that it is like any other profession when you are surrounded by others who are in the same field (and there is always someone "better" more accomplished, further ahead, than you no matter what) - how do you keep those feelings from keeping you from getting discouraged and plowing through to being productive and maintaining your belief in yourself? especially if you are unpublished and just starting out?

Comment by Lynne Favreau on November 19, 2011 at 7:37am

That's what I needed to hear about–happy productive writers! When you share your accomplishments it gives hope to the rest of us. Nothing more inspiring when you need a little boost. Congratulations to everyone celebrating successes, even the little ones count!

Comment by Lisa Nieman on November 19, 2011 at 5:52am

@Andrea - what tiny island are you speaking of? I too get a lot of encouragement from everyone on the site. I've had a few days this week of 0 words, however, I needed to rest my tennis elbow. I'm pretty happy with the direction my book is going in. Gives me some additional plot points to work from. Write on!

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