Working Through Overwhelm

‘Tis the season of the writers conference, both in-person and virtual. Perhaps you’ve just attended one, and you feel as if a mountain of useful information has been placed in your lap. You’re thrilled to have it, it’s what you hoped for, after all—but now what? Feeling stuck and uncertain how to move forward is a common after-conference feeling. There are so many good things to implement, but where to begin? How does each piece of good advice align with you and your current writing journey? Here are a few ideas to help you work through the overwhelm as you dig out from under the pile of tips, tricks, and trends you’ve just gathered:

Take a deep breath

It’s often after a time of intense learning in community that we begin to compare ourselves with peers, and identify the ways we think we’re behind. While others may be ahead or behind us in their writing journey, we must remember that we are exactly where we are supposed to be, for now. There is no such thing as an “overnight success.” There is, however, such a thing as doing what it takes to diligently move forward a step at a time. We do what we can do to make progress, and it takes us as long as it takes.

Start with what makes sense

Out of all the things on your plate that feel overwhelming, which one is the easiest to implement first? Start there. Perhaps you learned that you’ll need to have a social media presence to market your book, but you only have a personal Facebook page. Start by making an Instagram account, and simply getting a feel for the way it works for a few days. Watch a YouTube video about building an audience there.

If you’re staring down a rewrite of your manuscript after a critique, don’t feel pressured to do it all in one day. You can start simply by outlining the changes you want to make. Take a few days to think about them. How will the changes serve your reader? Sometimes, thinking about the reader’s experience is enough to motivate a writer to go back to the drawing board.

Review what is working

Before you overhaul every idea or project you’ve ever had, think about what is currently working. Maybe you have a lead magnet that people love, and it generates email subscriptions. Can you do something else similar to drive traffic and build your platform? What about your manuscript—is the foundational concept a good one, and the format just needs to be tweaked? Is your plot interesting and unique, but the pacing needs to be faster? Focus on your current wins as you consider how you can build upon them.

Remember your why

Sometimes the work of a writer feels like we do everything but writing. We get lost in the work of building a platform, creating an email list, and serving our readers on social media. We do all of this so readers know about and read our work. It all serves a purpose. When you begin to lose sight of what led you to this place, remember this: you write because it’s a gift you feel called to steward and serve others with. The peripheral work can feel daunting, but at the core, it supports your calling. With that in mind, take one assured step after another in a forward direction.

Have you recently learned something that you felt overwhelmed to implement? How did you overcome it? Share with us in the comments so we can learn from you, too!