Steven Pressfield, in his book “The War of Art” says this:-
“If you find yourself asking yourself (and your friends), “Am I really a writer? Am I really an artist?” Chances are, you are.
The counterfeit innovator is wildly self-confident. The real one is scared to death.”
Now I have no idea what the hell a “counterfeit innovator” might be (by definition, an innovator produces original work and therefore is not a counterfeiter), but I am sure that this is the purest bovine ordure.
I’m a good writer. On occasion I’m very good. I know this (nor is it just my opinion), and have every confidence in my ability, and my grasp of the English language – were this not so, I couldn’t write.** I cannot write if consumed by fear – I seriously doubt anyone can. And I’m talking about normal people now, not those who are actually in fear for their lives, and who write because their lives might well depend on it, or it is, perhaps, their last act on this earth.
**Or, rather, I wouldn’t write. I don’t do anything I can’t do well – that’s just the way I am.
If I were to be “scared to death” I wouldn’t be doing this, because I wouldn’t be able to. Or, at least, not as well as I do. But I have to ask – exactly why would I be afraid of writing? There are many things I am afraid of, not least my shortening lifespan, and spiders, but where, exactly, is the fear in writing? Or in art for that matter?
What, exactly, am I supposed to be “scared to death” about? The fact that what I write might not be well received? I’ve no idea, he doesn’t say, at least not in that quotation, which is all I have. (Source) Sometimes what I write isn’t well received – it’s a fact of life for anyone who writes, for a living or as a hobby. If the criticism is sensible, I take it on board. If it’s someone just seeking to undermine me (and they do, for reasons beast known to themselves), they’re wasting their time. I have, on a couple of occasions, had a comment saying “You can’t write,” which is so self-evidently bollocks I need waste no time on it (especially as these people are always anonymous – if you want to criticise me, have the balls to do so under your own name).
I am not afraid of writing, and I do so with the utmost confidence. I don’t consciously write to please people, mostly I do so to make a point, or to impart information or, on occasion, just for the sheer pleasure of putting words on a page, and – all too often of late – to criticise some aspect of government fuck-uppery. That, at times, I do please people is a bonus. Fear has no place anywhere in this process. This does not, as Pressfield seems to think, make me a fake – that’s a lunatic idea. Everything I write, from the longest blog post to the shortest email is invested with the same degree of commitment.
Take this a stage further. Is Pressfield saying that the greatest writers and artists of all time were not supremely confident in what they were doing, but actually fearful? I don’t believe it – had they been, they couldn’t have done what they did. Their masterworks are absolutely brimming with confidence – it shines from every page, every brush stroke, every touch of a chisel – these works simply could not have been produced from a foundation of fear. Probably the only worry they had was whether they’d get paid.
There are writers – bloggers – out there who are not wildly confident, or skilled, maybe they’re even fearful, and it shows in their writing. They never take risks, they never take a stand, they never write anything that might piss someone off. Their writing is so terribly anodyne it’s barely worth reading.
That’s not to say everyone who is confident can write well, some of the most confident writers are utterly crap – they are confident because they can’t see how abysmal they are. Have a scout around the blogosphere if you don’t believe me.
Nevertheless, good writers are both skilled and confident in their use of those skills (and perceptive enough to realise that, which should not be confused with arrogance). If you have both, you will write well. If you are “scared to death” with very rare exceptions**, you will not.
**I can’t think of anyone, but by the law of averages, such work must surely exist.
If, indeed, you do find yourself asking “Am I really a writer?” my answer would be “If you need to ask, probably not.”
One of my old coaches used to say, “You are either getting better or getting worse”. I idea is you need to strive to get better at whatever you are trying to do.
I think you could argue those that are confident are less likely to push themselves, whilst those that are fearful are constantly trying to get better. I’m not fearful that I’m not a good writer, I’m fearful that I will never get to write all the things I want to. I don’t think that makes me a better or worse writer.
Interesting subject & great post!
Thanks!
To be honest, though, I think those who are confident will almost always push themselves, at least to maintain their standards (though some will be content to rest on their laurels), and if possible to improve. I’m not convinced that those who are fearful will strive, not least because fear is a destructive emotion which doesn’t lend itself to creativity.
[...] read a great post that asked the question, What makes a good writer?, and it included a great quote. The quote was “If you find yourself asking yourself (and your [...]