Today, I want to discuss the concept of overwhelm, and how it can be particularly frustrating for creatives, specifically writers.
As a child, I often found myself overwhelmed and paralyzed by everything happening around me. From this paralysis, I learned many important skills. I learned how to observe, how to quickly shift my thoughts, how to distract myself when there was nothing to do, how to deal with boredom, and how to fill my mind with creative things. These are skills I now use as a writer.
But every once in a while, my coping mechanisms fail, and I find myself in a state of overwhelm, where there’s simply too much going on, or at least too many thoughts in my head. Creatives are particularly vulnerable to this state of overwhelm, especially when producing creative work or building something large and difficult, like a novel. Writing a novel is a daunting task, and no matter how many times you do it, it remains challenging.
There are points in our creative life where we feel like we’re operating at the edge of our abilities. It’s like being a surfer riding the perfect wave. The writing of your story can be a magical experience. But then there are days when the water is cold, the wind is bitter, and the waves are uncooperative. Despite knowing how wonderful it feels to ride the wave, we struggle to catch a good one.
That’s when the voices start to creep in. Are you sure you’re a good writer? Does anyone want to read this? Is this what you should be doing? Isn’t this boring? You’ve written books already. Why would anyone want to read this one? These voices have a disturbing tendency to grow louder over time.
Sometimes, they’re not even about me or my writing. Sometimes it’s just, why does this book feel so long? Why is it so hard to get through these words? Wouldn’t it be better to do something else with your time? These are the voices that can be the most damaging.
Writing can be improved. I can write something, admit that it’s not very good, then go back and edit it. I can give it to other people, and they can edit it. But when the voice starts attacking my motivation to actually sit down and write, that’s when things can get dangerous. That’s when feelings of overwhelm can really set in.
So, what do I do about it? The fact that I’m still here, still writing, is significant. I was talking to someone the other day and realized it’s been three years since I became a full-time writer, which means it’s been six years since I started writing. The fact that I’m still here is important. It disproves the voice. Whether or not the story I’m working on will be a masterpiece, I know it’s better than what I started with. I know my writing has improved. I know that if I keep showing up every day, I will finish.
I mean, I have over thirty books to prove it. Books that were written one word at a time, because that’s how you write books. So, when I’m in that state of overwhelm, feeling like everything is just too much, and I can’t keep writing, it’s helpful to remember that. It’s helpful to put into perspective what is true and what is not.
What is true is that my writing is better than it was. What is true is that if I just sit down and write, I will make progress towards my goal. What is true is that if I am feeling overwhelmed by what I’m trying to do, I can break it down into smaller steps. What’s true is that I can clarify my goals and objectives one at a time. What’s true is that I don’t have to be good at writing, because I can improve. And I’ve demonstrated that over time.
What’s true is that if I just tackle one small thing, if I just write one sentence, if I just pick one scene, if I just write a few hundred words, that’s okay, as long as I keep going. See, the big danger of being overwhelmed is that we stop. Stephen Pressfield, in his book ‘The War of Art‘, talks about resistance as an opposite force to the muse, this sort of cosmic suppressive entity that wants to keep our creativity from shining through.
I don’t really buy into the sort of spiritual language that he uses to discuss the muse and the resistance, but I do think he’s onto something. He’s describing this universal experience that we have where we, for all sorts of reasons, just have trouble starting, just have trouble beginning to write.
And so that’s where I am. I’m in the midst of that resistance. I’m in the midst of this unbelievable weight where every time I try to sit down and write, my brain is like, ‘Hey, how about not? How about I throw things at you so fast that there’s too much for you to do, all while having that little nagging voice in the back shouting about how this probably isn’t a good idea anyways. You probably shouldn’t even be doing this.’
But that’s okay. Because I’ve been here before, and I’ll be here again. This isn’t the last time I’m going to be in this state. See, if you’re a writer, then you probably know this all too well. And if you haven’t experienced it yet, you’re going to. This is a stage, this is a piece of creativity, and it’s unbelievably uncomfortable.
I would love for it to be over as soon as possible. But there’s also something really magical that happens in this space. This is where true creativity is catalyzed. This is where words start to coalesce in a way that they couldn’t if you didn’t have a bit of this angst and frustration in your life.
Every single time that I’ve been in this position, it has been uncomfortable. And this time is no different. But that’s okay. Because I always come out of it. There’s always a peak after the valley. You don’t stay down here forever.
And I think it’s really important to have that perspective. Because sometimes it feels like today is going to be the same as tomorrow, which is going to be the same as the day after that. But, and I’m sure you’ve heard me say this before if you’ve watched my videos, the only true constant is that nothing is constant. Everything changes.
And so tomorrow is not going to be the same as today. Tomorrow is going to be better than today. Because I’m going to learn and I’m going to grow. And I’m going to do my best to deal with this state of overwhelm. And I’m going to try to continue writing. And I’m going to work on paring things down, getting back to the small unit, focusing on writing just a little bit to continue walking forward.
I wish I could say that writing was all sunshine and roses and that a creative life is just endlessly fulfilling. But no, sometimes it sucks. And for whatever reason, I’m now in that place. You know, and it sucks. But that’s okay.
This isn’t meant to be a depressing blog, though it probably is. It’s more just a chance to be real and to talk about where I am. You know, I’m going to move back to this high intensity writing because I want to. Because I’m excited about doing it. And I’m going to get back there, right? I’m just not there right now.
And I think it’s important, you know, to help everybody understand that that’s okay. This is part of life too. Just because I go through periods of being able to write at this really high production pace doesn’t mean I’m always going to stay there.
And these periods of lower production or no production are actually often the fuel that allow me to stay in high production mode longer. This last period of three months was the longest I’ve ever done it. The most successful I’ve ever been.
And so I’m really excited because I think my next cycle of this is going to be equally good. If not better. I’m going to take what I have learned during this lower and slower period. I’m going to be more effective at fighting the voices in my head that tell me that I’m a bad creative. I’m going to be more effective at fighting through overwhelm. I’m going to be more effective at being able to maintain the level of production that I want.
YouTube Video Link: https://youtu.be/FkxBQYH83zE
Thanks for reading and watching.
Want in on all the secrets of writing compelling books? Have burning questions for Seth about the business side of being an author? Join the email list for up to date info on the latest videos!
Leave a Reply