Diary of Being a Writer; Week 134

A short writing week but a productive one.

Conquering fear seems to be an overarching theme as I continue along this journey.
So many new skills, new experiences and new challenges and often I find myself feeling scared by the things that lie ahead. Fearful of what I might not be able to do. Worried that I won’t be up to the task.
However, all that is tempered by the thrill I get from learning the new skills, facing the challenges head-on and realising that I am progressing and learning and getting better at this being a writer thing.
None of that has been done alone. Belonging to Dream Author, doing courses, having followers on Medium, supportive friends, and a supportive family has made it possible to keep going. That support has been particularly helpful during the times I have doubted myself and my ability to write anything worthwhile.
Finishing the first draft was a big achievement. In the past, I have scribbled so many lost ideas in notebooks, started writing so many unfinished stories, to actually realise an entire novel of 80,000 words felt fantastic. To then have it really hit home that it was just the beginning of the work was daunting.
So I am about to embark on the next draft. I will be taking the editors comments on board and doing my best to turn this book into something I would love reading. At the moment if I picked it up to read, I would…