Autumn Irene 🌕

“Fear is the mind killer.” – Frank Herbert, Dune

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I’ve been writing my first novel since 2018 and I am just now approaching the finish line. I believe every piece of writing is written in its own time, however, there are traps of our own making that we writers can fall into, causing our very own unnecessary delays. These are the traps I’ve found myself falling into most often, and how I’ve managed to claw my way out.

🧠 Defeatist Mindset

When I first started writing, there was a wicked little voice always telling me I’m not good enough, or “why would anyone want to read this?” It did a great job of stopping me before I even started, and was especially easy to succumb to in the age of social media, where comparison is easy to do.

Overcoming this was like breaking a bad habit, but what I found works best for me is reframing the invented negativity into something positive and real. Rather than allowing the voice to tell me, “I’m not good enough,” I turned in into, “I am learning and improving with every word I write.” Affirmation journaling has a gone a long way for me in this journey, replacing the defeatist dialogue with a growth one.

As a new writer comparing your drafts to someone else’s finished masterpiece can also cause you to fall into the trap of defeatism. Comparison is the thief of joy, and also the thief of progress! Your draft is just a part of the process, and the books we find on shelves also endeavored the journey required to get there. This is where I found celebrating my milestones along the way to be very helpful. From word count goals to completing a difficult scene, a win is a win! Everyone starts somewhere, everyone has their own progress and pace not to be compared to others. The end goal is a finished piece to share with an audience that will appreciate your work, the journey is where the real pride comes in. Think of all it took for you to get there!

Past failures and unfinished drafts may make you wonder if you’re meant for this or if you’ll ever finish anything at all. But every writer carries a trail of abandoned ideas and messy beginnings, it’s part of the creative journey. What matters isn’t how many times you’ve started, but your willingness to start again. This is where practicing detachment becomes essential. Your worth isn’t defined by a single story, chapter or draft, and the past isn’t waiting for you in the future. Let it go, and focus on what’s in front of you; the blank page, the thrill of a new idea, and the opportunity to create without the weight of yesterday’s doubts.

Writer’s block can also bring on a defeatist mindset and it’s easy to fall into the idea that being blocked is a permanent state rather than a passing one. I wrote a post here that talks about some of my strategies for overcoming writer’s block. We all go through it, it’s how you show up for yourself and work through it that matters.

🌀 Lack of Creative Discipline

I have so many ideas, so many stories I long to tell and share, but having the discipline to complete them has been another thing entirely 🙃

Lack of Creative Discipline can look like a few things:

• Waiting for inspiration to strike instead of showing up regularly to write
• Not protecting your writing time and treating it as optional instead of necessary
• Letting distractions (social media, chores, other people’s demands) overshadow creative focus
• Refusing to set realistic, manageable goals that build consistency
• Mistaking productivity tools or planning for actual writing time

Discipline is a skill that requires dedication and sacrifice. Inspiration doesn’t always find us when we want it, which is why we have to create the conditions to push our stories forward even without it. That means showing up even when the words feel stuck, when you’re tired, or when you’re convinced it won’t be any good. Protect your writing time like any other serious commitment; treat it as a sacred, non-negotiable space just for you and your creativity. Set small, achievable goals that build momentum over time: a page a day, a 20-minute sprint, or even one paragraph you can be proud of. These steps strengthen the muscle of creative discipline.

Eliminate distraction where you can by silencing your phone or using productivity apps with a blocking feature (I use Opal for this), close those extra tabs that have been open for three years and turn them into a bookmark, set up your workspace the night before and write down some goals for the next day that get you closer to that finish line ✅

Avoid the trap of spending too much time planning instead of writing. Productivity tools can help, but, news flash, they’re not a substitute for actual words on the page 🥲. The more often you show up and push through, the more you train your creative mind to meet you there. Over time, you stop waiting for inspiration and start realizing it lives on the other side of consistency.

🔏 Over-Editing

This is probably the biggest reason why I’ve taken so long to finish my drafts. Over-editing is an insidious habit that keeps you in a loop of faux productivity. Over-editing can look like:

• Editing the same paragraph or sentence endlessly instead of moving forward
• Trying to perfect language before the ideas are fully formed
• Letting the inner critic become the main voice during drafting, rather than revising
• Feeling paralyzed by the belief that every word must be “perfect” the first time
• Never finishing because the draft never feels “good enough” to declare done

To overcome over-editing you have to separate the writing phase from the revising phase. Drafting is about exploration, momentum, and getting the raw material out. Editing is about shaping and refining. When you try to perfect every sentence before the full picture is clear, you slow yourself down and lose the momentum that comes from flow. Give yourself permission to write badly on the first pass; messy doesn’t mean meaningless, what’s important is making it exist in the first place. If you find yourself stuck on one paragraph, mark it and move on, come back later with fresh eyes. Try using writing sprints or timers to force forward motion and quiet your inner critic during the drafting phase. You can’t edit what doesn’t exist, and progress happens when you value completion over perfection. The magic often comes in revision, but only if you first allow the draft to live and breathe first!

😰 Fear

Raise your hand if fear is your final boss 🙋🏾‍♀️ Whether it’s fear of failure (what if it’s bad and everyone knows?), fear of success (what if it’s good and everything changes?), or fear of vulnerability (this feels too personal to share), many of us find ourselves frozen before we even begin. All this coupled with the fear of being misunderstood, judged, or not knowing where the story is headed, and it’s no wonder we might delay or abandon our work. But fear is a beacon, not a stop sign. Sometimes, the very thing we’re afraid to write is where our most powerful stories live.

Start by sharing your work in safe spaces as a way to ease the pressure and build confidence, this can be a trusted friend or a local writing group. Reframe fear as fuel, if a subject scares you, explore it further. That discomfort often means you’ve hit something real. And when you feel overwhelmed by the what-ifs, try visualizing the moment you finish, the pride, the growth, the proof that you did it anyway! Fear is the mind-killer, don’t let it keep you in cycles of doubt and unfinished work, you need that space in your brain for the creativity to thrive!

The road to completion is rarely straightforward, but with discipline and creative courage, you can navigate every trap and reach those two lovely fated words in your own perfect time.

THE END 🕺🏾