this post was submitted on 15 Jun 2023
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Learning to love writing again? (beehaw.org)
submitted 2 years ago by TranceReduction@beehaw.org to c/writing@beehaw.org
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Hey all.

I've been writing a novel recently - I'm only 2200 words in. It feels like so little and so much at the same time.

Until I graduated college, I loved writing. Reading, too. Then, it feels like my ADHD got much worse and I lost all the passion I had for both. I had about a year of really intense depression while trying to find my first job during COVID. I had basically written nothing for almost three years up until recently. I started, and did not finish, a short story, and am working now on this "novel". The problem is that I love writing in the abstract, I love putting words together in interesting ways and telling a story. But I can't stop looking at the word count and feeling hopeless. I can't stop feeling like there's no point to any of it because my writing is shit. I feel like all of my passion has just left and I don't know how to get it back, but I desperately want it back.

This isn't a question, really, despite the title. I guess I needed to vent and know if I'm not alone in having experienced this.

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[โ€“] TranceReduction@beehaw.org 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Thank you for the advice! I think part of the problem is that I've never been able to just write. I always take a ton of time for each sentence. I know that's something that I need to get over because it slows me down immensely.

[โ€“] Zagaroth@beehaw.org 2 points 2 years ago

Oh, ouch. yes. Write first, edit later.

Following up on my much longer post, I use a combo of ProWritingAid (which works with Libre Office) and Grammarly (as a Chrome plugin) to double-check things, but I also ignore a lot of their suggestions. But at the very least, it means I do not have to worry about missing minor grammar issues and typos (those are the suggestions I accept).

Dithering is the bane of writers. Though at least when I dither, I try and side-track to other places like here instead of staring at the page.