Writing Anxiety

1
Writing Anxiety

• Powerpoint created by Ms. Cason
• Information provided by The Writing Center at
  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• http//www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/

2
What are writing anxiety and writers block?

• Informal terms for a variety of apprehensive and
  pessimistic feelings about writing
• Situational generally not pervasive in a
  persons writing life
• NOT psychological attributes
• Experienced in particular contexts
• Not born anxious writers, become anxious through
  negative experience

3
When do these negative feelings arise?

• Adjusting to new form of writing
• Writing for a reader who has been overly critical
  or demanding in the past
• Remembering negative criticism from the past
• Working with limited time or unstructured time
• Responding to assignment that seems unrelated to
  academic or life goals
• Dealing with troubling events outside of school

4
What are some strategies for handling these
feelings?
5
Get support

• Isolation can harm writers
• Choose writing buddy
• Someone you trust to encourage you in your
  writing
• Friend, family member, classmate, teacher,
  colleague, or tutor
• Talk to them about ideas, writing process,
  worries, and successes
• Share pieces of your writing
• Join writing group

6
Identify your strengths

• Make a list of the things you do well
• Some possibilities to get started
• I explain things well to people
• I get peoples interest
• I have strong opinions
• I listen well
• I am critical of what I read
• I see connections
• Instead of saying I cant write, say I am a
  writer who can

7
Recognize that writing is a complex process

• The best writers can do is contribute what they
  know and feel about a topic at a particular point
  in time.
• Writers seek flow beautifully coherent
  outpouring of knowledge
• Flow is a possibility and a myth
• If you write long enough, you will encounter
  obstacles
• Common during times of transition new writing
  roles or new kinds of writing

8
Think of yourself as an apprentice

• Take time to understand the situations you are
  writing in
• What has changed in your writing life?
• You are writing in a new format.
• You are writing longer papers than before.
• You are writing for new audiences.
• You are writing about new subject matter.
• You are turning in writing from different states
  of the writing process (ex planning stages or
  early drafts)

9
Think of yourself as an apprentice

• Not every format or audience will be right for
  you, but you wont know until you try.
• When doing a new kind of writing, learn as much
  as you can about it and gain as many skills as
  you can.
• When finished, decide which skills will serve you
  later on.

10
How to learn about new kinds of writing

• Ask a lot of questions of those more experienced
• Ask a lot of questions of the person who assigned
  the piece of writing.
• Look for examples of this kind of writing. Look,
  especially, for variation.
• Read handouts about how to write in specific
  fields or handling specific assignments
• Dont try to do everything at once.
• Listen critically to your readers dont dismiss
  or accept ALL criticisms

11
Try new tactics when you get stuck

• What does your writing process look like? Is
  there a particular stage where you tend to get
  stuck?
• Is your process working for you? If not, look for
  other approaches.
• Talk to a writing buddy or others about what to
  do when stuck
• Read about possible new approaches
• Give different strategies a shot
• Cut your paper into pieces and tape them to a
  wall, use different colored highlighters, draw a
  comic strip of your paper, read your paper out
  loud in the voice of your favorite movie
  starjust kidding, but do try different things
  and find what works for you.
• Give yourself permission to fall flat on your
  face. Trying and failing will help you find what
  works for you.

12
Celebrate your successes

• Start storing up positive experience with writing
• Celebrate the occasions when you overcome your
  obstacles
• You define what is a success for you
• Keep a log or journal of your writing successes
  and breakthroughs, how you did it, how you felt.
  This can be a boost later when you face new
  challenges.

13
Get Support

• Yes, its worth repeating.
• Most people find relief for various anxieties by
  getting support from others
• Maybe you dont even need to talk about writing
  maybe you just need to be reminded that you can
  do it.

14
Conclusion

• Apprehension about writing is common
• Talk with others
• Realize we are ALL learning
• Take an occasional risk
• Turn to people who believe in you
• Counter negative experiences by actively creating
  positive ones

15

• Even after you have tried all these strategies,
  you will probably still have negative experiences
  in your writing life
• Try not to let them sink in
• Choose one suggestion the evaluator has made and
  work on it
• Revise

16

• Failures of various kinds are an inevitable part
  of the writing process. Without them it would be
  impossible to grow as a writer.
• Use your failures to keep moving.