Push Past Writing Resistance

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War

During the last 2 weeks, I’ve been focusing on finishing my book, Promises In The Dark: One Woman’s Search for Authentic Love.

I began writing the book last year, and have encountered major writing resistance. Resistance wants to keep us from doing the work that God has called us to do.

“The Resistance stands between the life we live and the unlived life within, ” Brian writes in his post from his gleanings of the book, The War of Art: Break Through The Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles.

When it’s time to sit down and write, writers find all kinds of ways to resist it. I resist by:

• spending too much time on Facebook or Twitter;
• organizing my office
• doing laundry 
• cleaning the house (I know, right?!)
• going into town for Sonic’s Happy Hour and/or chocolate
• watching a good chic flic
• checking email.
• ____________ (Fill in the blank for your own resistance tactics.)

I’ve resisted writing this new book because it contains a LOT of biography. It is the most transparent, revealing book I’ve ever written.

It’s aeons past my comfort zone. I feel raw. Naked.

But if it will help to bring the light and hope of God’s unconditional love and forgiveness to one woman in darkness, I will take the risk.

Writing this book is sort of like facing a ravenous lion or tiger, like the ones I frequently dream about. Usually in my dream, the wild big cat can smell my scent and is about to go for the kill. I feel afraid, and am trying to get away, knowing I’m about to be attacked. So far I always safely wake up. 🙂  (I actually love lions, tigers and big wild cats…from a distance!)

In writing this new book, I’m having to push past fears, insecurities, and self-doubts like:

• This is too long, self-indulgent, and boring.
• This will hurt people I love if I write it.
• My family is going to stop speaking to me.
• My friends and biz peers are going to judge, criticize, and reject me if I write this book.
• That’s embarrassing to write.
• I don’t have anything to say.
• What if nobody buys my book?

I’m not alone with these thoughts. Today on my Facebook wall, my friend Dana Arcuri said she related to my mixed emotions about writing and publishing a book, battling them last year when she wrote her memoir, Harvest of Hope: Living Victoriously Through Adversity.

These obtrusive thoughts are all part of The Resistance. But I’m happy to say that the book is nearly finished.

My wonderful graphic designer, Christine Dupre, designed an amazing, beautiful cover, which I can’t wait to show you, and I’m having her design the back cover and the spine, too.

This week I’m doing the final edits, and my next step is buying the ISBN and barcode. You can buy an individual ISBN or a package. The more ISBN’s you buy, the better the deal.

I’m using Create Space for my POD company and will have the ebook available on Amazon. I’m planning a book launch party, too. Whoo-hoo!

There’s a lot of work involved in writing and publishing a book. The greatest work is getting started and conquering The Resistance.

Have you encountered writing resistance? What did you do to overcome it? Leave your comments below. 

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