The Writer’s Greatest Hurdle {Day 11}

I sat bolt upright in bed when I read this by Ruth Vaughn, 'Write to Discover Yourself' and had to catch my breath:

“For the greatest hurdle a beginning writer must overcome is the one he sets for himself: perfection.”

Yes, that’s it! It raises its ugly head even in my writing!

Perfectionism freezes my fingers and stifles my spirit.

I remember this in writing in my journal for high school English teachers. I was so concerned that my grammar, handwriting, and spelling were correct I crushed any hope of creativity.

I could write a research paper and usually give exactly what was expected in college, but when I came across some of these essays when unpacking in recent years I realized how uncreative they were!

It is still my struggle.

Yet, as I scratch away in journals because I find that I need to write to spill out inner struggles and thoughts and emotions, I see I have begun to do what I read here:

“My challenge to you is to approach the diary/Journal as your best friend in the world. You can pour out things here you might not dare to say to anyone else . . . Just pound out whatever comes to mind as quickly as you can. And the more you write, the better: the more release it will give you; the more insight it will provide; the more accurate will be the record when you come back later to reread and learn from it truths that will enrich self-understanding and that you may be able to share with others.”

~Ruth Vaughn, 'Write to Discover Yourself'

This is part of a series, linking up with Nester, for the month of October.

You will find the rest of the series, Write to Discover Yourself: My Story His Glory, here. 

It is a series of posts of sharing what I am learning in Ruth Vaughn’s book, 'Write to Discover Yourself'.