Reading time: About 3 minutes
Have you been misled into thinking that writing improvement is always linear — moving forward in a predictable way?
A recent email from a client started me thinking about the lies we tell ourselves about progress.
Here, in part, is what she said:
“I am a proficient writer. I don’t produce the same number of words or the same quality of writing every day. The next day does not ‘have to be’ better than yesterday when it comes to my writing. And if it isn’t, I don’t quit writing or throw in the towel.
“Yet, in other areas of my life — running and sewing, for example — I have such different expectations. If my next run or my next sewing project is not better than the previous run time or previous garment I sewed, then I say to myself, ‘I am not talented and I should stop wasting time and resources and abandon the activity.’ As I type these words, I realize how incredibly stupid and illogical they sound, and how this idea has not served me at all in my life.”
I share my client’s thoughts here (with her permission) because I bet there are plenty of you out there who expect your writing progress to be a straight line.
In other words, you want to be better on day two than day one. And better on day three than day two. And by day 52 (or sooner — please, sooner!), you think you should feel completely confident about writing your blog post, book or dissertation.
Most of us expect a steady improvement with our writing, and we hope it will be as straightforward as climbing a staircase, even if the stairs are rather steep. We don’t anticipate setbacks or problems. And we assume our paths will be even and predictable. If only life worked like a video game where each level unlocks the next one in perfect order.
But here’s what happens in the real world of actual humans trying to string words together:
- Progress fluctuates: We go through times of improvement and times of falling back. One day writing is easy — the words seem to fly off our fingers and we’re typing as rapidly as we humanly can. The next day we stare at our blank screens until beads of blood form on our foreheads and our cursors blink mockingly at us, like tiny digital metronomes of doom.
- We face unexpected challenges. Who knew that the research material we really needed was going to be impossible to obtain? Why did our boss ask for another report on top of everything else we’re already writing? Why did our dishwasher spring a leak, meaning our writing is going to be disturbed by a service call? Life, it seems, has zero respect for our writing plans.
This is real life, and it’s messier than a toddler’s art project. So how do we navigate the chaos? Here are seven suggestions:
1-Celebrate small wins
You finish a chapter, or a section, or a page or even a paragraph. That is a WIN! Make sure you give yourself plenty of credit for having the moxie to write. It’s difficult. Seriously, treat yourself like you just climbed Mount Everest, even if you wrote only a single sentence at the top of a blank page. A single sentence is still progress!
2-Be willing to pivot
When things don’t go the way you’d planned — for example, the person you’d intended to interview about a crucial point just isn’t available — ask yourself what you can learn from this situation. Ask, “What is this teaching me?” Always look for the silver lining.
3-View failure as feedback, not defeat
Failing is usually a gift, not a problem. We all learn more from failures than wins. Think of failure as that brutally honest friend who tells you when you have spinach in your teeth — annoying in the moment but ultimately helpful. Your rejected manuscript or your stumblebum sentence isn’t a personal attack; it’s just spinach.
4-Stop seeking approval from others
We all get into trouble when we try to please someone else. Instead, focus on what you can control. You can’t control whether your Aunt Martha thinks your romance novel is “too spicy,” but you can control whether you keep writing paragraphs that make your characters come to life. Write for your ideal reader, not your judgmental relatives.
5-Stop comparing yourself to others
And while we’re talking about others, stop comparing yourself to them, too. Think of yourself in a gigantic yoga class. Pay attention to what’s happening on YOUR mat and ignore what’s going on anywhere else.
6-See challenges as opportunities for growth
Writing is hard. Life is hard. But it’s the hard things that give us the chance to grow. Every page you struggle to fill, every sentence that refuses to cooperate, every research rabbit hole that leads nowhere — these aren’t bugs in the system, they’re features. They’re making you a stronger, more resourceful writer.
7-Anchor yourself in the present
When you stay focused on how much better you want to be, it’s so easy to become discouraged. Instead, take your work one step at a time. This will make progress feel more manageable, and it will be a lot less overwhelming for you.
The messy truth about writing progress
The main idea? Your writing journey is going to look more like a Jackson Pollock painting than a neat, straight line from Point A to Point B. Embrace the splatter. Trust the process. And remember that even the most successful authors had days when they stared at their keyboards wondering if they should have become accountants instead. The difference is they kept typing anyway — one gloriously imperfect word at a time.
If you liked this post, you’ll also like 7 obvious and not-so-obvious ways to become a better writer.
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Need some help developing a better, more sustainable writing or editing routine? Learn about my three-month accountability program called Get It Done. There is turn-over each month, and priority will go to those who have applied first. You can go directly to the application form and you’ll hear back from me within 24 hours.
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My video podcast last week addressed how teachers differ from “real” writers. You can watch the video or read the transcript, and you can also subscribe to my YouTube channel.
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How do you visualize the concept of writing improvement? We can all learn from each other, so please, share your thoughts with my readers and me in the comments section below. If you comment on today’s post (or any others) by Sept. 30/25, I’ll put you in a draw for a digital copy of my first book, 8 1/2 Steps to Writing Faster, Better. To enter, please scroll down to the comments, directly underneath the related posts links, below. You don’t have to join Disqus to post! Read my tutorial to learn how to post as a guest. (It’s easy!)
