So… starting to feel like that black sheep over there?
Yeah, right now is about the time where hundreds of people gearing up for #PitchWars are starting to feel the same way. Mentee hopefuls and mentors alike. Even me… glancing at my growing pile of edits and prioritizing which ones need to be done first, which are necessary, and which will and won’t effect submission day.
But there’s a bigger problem with Imposter Syndrome. It’s that sudden feeling of: shit, I’m not nearly good enough for this. I suck at contests, mentors are going to laugh, my story is dumpster fire, I should never have written this tripe.
STOP!
Right there.
I. YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH
You wrote a book, worked your ass off getting it whipped into shape. Edited. Edited some more. Had it critiqued, edited it again. You. Are. Good. Enough. Period.
II. MENTORS LOVE WHAT THEY LOVE
None of our stories are perfect. Over the last two weeks, I’ve read more than a dozen first chapters and none are perfect, but all of them are strong and engaging and fantastic. The level of talent in these chapters is staggering. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed the strong voice and concept of each one. Yes, two stood out (no, I’m not telling), but it was only because of one thing: my subjective opinion. I identified with these two stories in different ways, and both took me utterly by surprise. It had nothing to do with the writing, editing, author, etc.
It’s because I connected to the story.
What I’m saying is, don’t self reject. Your story may not be where you want it to be yet, but it COULD be the one a mentor falls head-over-heels in love with. Why not give it a shot?
And here’s a secret: white sheep or black sheep doesn’t matter. We’re ALL barnyard animals. Every writer ever feels imposter syndrome. Want Proof?
Chuck Wendig
Neil Gaiman
Colleen Halverson
Lindsey Stirling
Do I really need to go on?
III. BE BRAVE
Find your inner courage. Scoring a PitchWars mentor may happen or it may not, but that doesn’t mean your story isn’t fantastic. You love your story. Your CPs probably love your story. An agent somewhere out there might be waiting eagerly to get grabby hands on your story. A mentor might clutch your story in one hand, a club in the other and beat off other mentors.
You don’t know… so don’t count yourself out without giving your story a real shot.
Oh, and if I still haven’t convinced you, try this: go dig up your very first draft of the story. Compare.
Yeah, that’s right. Look at how much your story kicks ass today.
Now go set some goals.
Do some more editing.
And get ready to pitch.
🙂
