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It’s easy for writers to get a bad case of “perfectionism” and think that their copy is not good enough.
If you’ve ever written, and rewritten, and rewritten the same piece of writing again and again because it just didn’t seem right to you–then you know what I mean.
While I’m definitely in favor of editing your work (got to nip those nasty typos in the bud wherever we can), I think writers are often too hard on themselves.
It’s easy to over think corrections. At least, I know I’ve been guilty of this (and I suspect other writers have been too).
Here’s a few quick fixes if you find yourself overworking a piece of copy:
- Let it breathe. Stop working on it-preferably for a day or so. When you come back, you’ll realize that what you’ve written is better than you thought.
- Let someone else review it. Not only will they be able to read your copy with a fresh eye, it’s proven that it’s easier to catch someone else’s typos and spelling errors.
- Review the requirements for the copy. You’ll probably find that you met or exceeded the requirements.
If you’re still hesitating to call the piece done, remember that you have to finish it sometime. Despite the perceived flaws in what you’ve written, it’s probably good enough. You’re a better writer than you think you are.
Oh, and if you do find that you’ve in fact written something terrible–forgive yourself. Okay? You’ll do better next time.
How about you? Do you struggle with perfectionist tendencies when it comes to your own writing?
Share your comments below.
14 responses so far ↓
1 Ronda Levine // Feb 1, 2012 at
It is hard to be objective when it comes to my own writing. I think that’s a good thing, though. I always do project close-out reports. There, I can write what I think I could do better. That way, when I go to work on my next project, I can be aware of problems I’ve had.
2 Laura Spencer // Feb 1, 2012 at
Ronda Levine–You’re exactly right, it is hard to be objective about your own work. It pays to be careful, but be careful not to be so careful that you can’t finish your work. 🙂 It sounds like you’ve got a good handle on the situation.
3 Stephanie // Feb 1, 2012 at
This post couldn’t have come at a better time.
I’ve been feeling down lately because a new editor I’m working with always finds something wrong with my work, no matter how hard I’ve written, rewritten, and scrutinized over it to make sure it’s good enough. Sometimes edits that aren’t necessary are made and published. In the end, my articles have lost my personal voice.
My previous editor didn’t have any problems with my writing style, so it’s been quite a shock for me to see so many red comments since working with this new editor.
Sorry for the rant. Your post brought out the sad little writer in me. 😉
4 Laura Spencer // Feb 2, 2012 at
Hi Stephanie!
Wow! Dealing with an editor CAN be a challenge, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing. A writer can a learn a lot from an editor. When you find yourself getting down about the editor’s comments, just remember that writing is partly subjective (then check out this post again).
5 Lucy Smith // Feb 2, 2012 at
I have TOTALLY done this before. Then I realised that clients hire you because they think you can do a better job than they can. And that’s all you need to do – write better copy than they could do themselves. That isn’t usually too difficult. After that, it’s just a question of how much better your copy is.
Not all copy has to win awards – it just has to get the job done. And, while I wouldn’t send off anything I wasn’t completely happy with, sometimes there’s no point in agonising over that last 5%, when the copy’s 95% right. Especially when there are deadlines.
6 All Freelance Writing Weekly Roundup - February 3, 2012 // Feb 3, 2012 at
[…] You Are a Better Writer Than You Think You Are – Laura Spencer at Writing Thoughts […]
7 Laura Spencer // Feb 3, 2012 at
Thanks Lucy!
It’s so easy to be hard on ourselves. In fact, most of us have a double standard–we judge ourselves more harshly than we judge others. As you rightly point out, there are deadlines to be met. 🙂
8 Debra Stang // Feb 4, 2012 at
I started my freelancing career working for content mills. Up until then I’d been a perfectionist who could spend an hour working on the same sentence. But the content mill deadlines were so tight, I had quickly had to learn that good enough was…well, good enough. Although I’m not fond of the way the mills exploit writers, I have to admit, I learned a lot from them.
Debra
9 Laura Spencer // Feb 4, 2012 at
Debra Stang–Thanks for stopping by. That makes a lot of sense. If you have to write fast to earn money you can’t be a perfectionist. 🙂
10 Krysha Thayer // Feb 5, 2012 at
I find that I hold myself to a much higher standards than my clients do, or even my editor does. It can make it hard to send work off to them when I don’t feel it’s good enough for myself, even though I know it’s exceeded their expectations. Great advice here and some that I will have to follow myself.
11 Laura Spencer // Feb 13, 2012 at
Thanks Krysha!
I think your experience is common for writers. We tend to be perfectionists.
12 Derry // May 11, 2012 at
My main problem I think is actually sitting down to write. Maybe it’s finding the time to write. I find my best time is at night when the kids are in bed, no phone calls coming through, nobody calling to the office etc. The problem then is I end up getting sleepy and my perfectionist tendencies go out the window.
13 Durie // May 29, 2012 at
Its really hard for me to get started but onces I have the topic I am off like a rabbit and cant stop. LOL I spend hours just trying to get to the writer starting block. Just like Derry a phone or some one calling my name just stops me in my tracks.
Thanks for sharing your comments everyone will be back to study more posts and comments.
14 All Freelance Writing Weekly Roundup - February 3, 2012 - All Freelance Writing // Nov 14, 2012 at
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