Confronting Imposter Syndrome: Am I A Good Writer?

Imposter syndrome is an almost universal experience. What do you do when feelings of inadequacy come knocking? Or when you don't feel capable or deserving? Or when you need to know if you're a good writer? Join me in this video essay as we find out.

P.O. Box 901989 Sandy, UT 84090

0:00 Intro - a question to Neil Gaiman
1:46 What is imposter syndrome?
3:41 Neil Gaiman's advice on imposter syndrome
8:14 How to overcome: keep writing
9:10 Perfection, inspiration, and quantity
12:25 The crap detector and taking what comes
15:03 The need for collaboration
19:33 Outro and announcements

Editor: Khabi Javan

Music:

#literature #neilgaiman #impostersyndrome #writing #creativewriting

[RoughestDrafts]

As per the announcements at the end of this video, here are some important links:

P.O. Box 901989 Sandy, UT 84090

Thanks everyone!

[elmer]

What helps me feel a little better about my own music is remembering that even my favorite artists have made bad albums and even my favorite albums have at least one song I could do without, and that song is probably someone else's favorite

[ivanbrave_]

Brilliant . . . the Neil on Neil anecdote got me in the chest

[robf]

I was trying for a good 4-5 minutes to find the right words to express my feelings for this video, but I'll leave it at this:

thank you

[Sillylittletotebagqueen]

Ive found that reading my work on a different format, usually as an ebook or kindle, helps me see it as something to judge more objectively and not pay attention to the fact that it’s my own work. If i were to read someone else’s published book on a word doc it’s like convincing the brain that it needs improving, so reading stuff in ways where usually published works are presented should help you read it more like an audience member and have an eye for observing it more fairly

[kcsupermom]

I love creating and sharing what I create. I wrote my first poem as soon as I could write and when I'm not writing I craft. In honoring the talent I am honoring the Guiding Force that blessed me. I'm not sure where I heard the saying "Every cloud is perfect, and changing" but it helped me greatly in realizing that perfection exists in everything being just as it is at any one moment and yet is always in transition. I struggle more with people comparing their view of their own imagined inadequacies to my desire to share what I create. In the words of a dear friend, "I am amazed by you and resentful of you at the same time." I have been praised but also accused of showing off. That to me is the greater obstacle to overcome.

[sydneyskousen]

“Perfection is the difference between a living deer and a deer mounted on the wall, which one would you rather observe?” Gonna keep that one in the quote book…thank you, truly, for making this video.

[Kalinicius]

I've been in a weird vortex for a while. In 2018/19 I started and finished a 30-page short story. Then, when the pandemic hit, I thought "hey, maybe I could use that time to turn it into a full novel". Well, it's 2024, and I'm constantly redrafting that thing, changing minor aspects constantly hoping to "fix" whatever new "mistake" I realize I made. It's been a frustrating and also enlightening insight into myself and I hope, truly, I can call it finished soon, even if I have to leave it full of "problems". There are so many other things I want to write too.

[SureTina]

This was such a good video that I had to pause, write a little bit, get lunch and then come back to finish watching it.
I'm not really a writer, I'm more of an illustrator and designer. But I would like to write a book and today I've worked on it thanks to you!

[nier]

I really struggle with this for my own writing.

I may only be a fan fiction writer, but it's still an issue for me.

So... Thank you. Really...

[AGoodVibe]

The deer metaphor literally stopped me in my tracks. Thank you for this video - it was more needed than you know.

[mckenziepearmain]

so excited for how your channel is growing! thanks for this awesome video. it really puts things into perspective and i was especially surprised by that Neil Armstrong story. we all have our strength and weaknesses, but pushing through the hard times and relying on trusted others to help us see ourselves as we truly are and what we can become is so important!

[aniyae]

Thank you for this video, and a special thanks for offering feedback for free, that's really kind.

[noneofyourbusiness]

Thank you, my friend has been immensely struggling with this, and this has helped them immensely. I look forwards to them seeing it.

[sharonoddlyenough]

Thank you. While watching this video, a story came back to me from many years ago, with a new twist that I like.

[noneofyourbusiness]

Thank you for this. Thank you. My close friends have been struggling with this as well. Thank you.

[wingsundersun]

Making your poem the segue into the sponsorship read did make me crack an amused smile. I don't need whatever Aura is but still the add was nice.

[gunsugoncu]

i found your channel through your rupi kaur video and after watching a bunch of your stuff i must say it is so very good! this one goes hard too stay slaying

[jankhambrams]

I greatly enjoyed and appreciated this video. It enriches my sense of comaradery as a creative. When I get stuck with impostor syndrome, I remind myself that I'm doing what I do for self-fulfillment, and the important thing is to keep showing up, seeing what happens, and to have fun with it. It's not about producing something so much as seeing what I can learn from what I make. It often has something I needed to say even if I wasn't sure exactly what that was before I made it.

[Artasticly]

You are really cool, I am a visual artist and educator but I find your videos so relaxing and centering. Thank you for the work you do. Listening to your work has encouraged me to branch out from just visual art to start writing my thesis. Every time I think "I'm a bad writer" I reflect on how I improved at drawing. So thank you for the guidance.