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The INSECURITY barrier; tips for beginners

My email "newcomers and insecurity" struck plenty of chords, apparently. 
 As is often the case, when one person speaks up, there are lots of 
others dealing with the same feelings and problems.

It's come up off list, so I thought I would comment here on the general 
issue of insecurity when it comes to the writing itself.

I NEVER think I know enough to write anything about anything.  Even when 
I think I am the best person to write a certain piece, I still never 
think I know as much as I would like.  There are always good reasons for 
writing the story next year or five years from now (when I will know 
more) instead of now.  I have to get past these feelings, or I would 
never write anything at all.  This is probably true for most writers.  
In the scientific world, there are some people who do the same 
experiment over and over again because the results are never perfect 
enough and there are always unanswered questions.  They spend their 
entire careers doing just one experiment.  These days, such people tend 
not to keep their jobs, but such perfectionism has it's place.  It's 
just that perfectionism has to be restrained.  At some point you have to 
just write it.  (And for books at least, I tell myself, there are always 
second editions.)  

Here are a few tricks I use to get myself beyond the "I don't KNOW 
ENOUGH about xxxx why did I ever agree to do this I must have been out 
of my everloving mind" barrier.  

1)  I ask myself what three things I would tell to a totally beginning 
gardener who wanted to do the thing I am writing about.  What three 
things would be enough so that he or she would have a pretty good chance 
of going out and doing it and getting it right the first time?  What 
would I tell to someone who didn't know ANYTHING?  I list those things.  
(And then the things I think of as I think of those.)
2)  I ask myself to think of one thing I know about the subject that not 
very many people do -- something I've figured out myself, for example.  
Then I also list everything else I think most people don't know about it 
that I do that I think of while thinking of the first thing.
3)  I talley in my mind the major garden experiences I've had that are 
relevant and the major things that happened that taught me.  I like to 
explain technical and scientific stuff by weaving it together with 
stories about plants and people and gardens.  So, basically, I list the 
relevant "stories."  
4)  I ask myself what things I have heard or seen that I consider wrong. 
 That is, what are the common misconceptions?  And how do most people go 
wrong?  I list those.

By this time I've really cheered myself up.  "Hey, I might not know as 
much as I would like to about this," I say, "but I know enough to be 
useful.  I really think I do have something to say about this."  

So then I look through my list of stuff and choose something on the list 
that I can see just how to write.  I don't care whether it is the 
beginning or not, just so long as it is important enough so that it 
belongs and I'm excited about it.  And I write that.  Then I choose 
something else.  Pretty soon I have snips of finished stuff and an 
article that is well on the way.  At some point, I find myself writing 
or thinking of good beginnings and endings.  If I had to think of them 
before I started writing I would never start.  So I let them come when 
they want to come.

Pretty soon I have an article with a beginning and end and most 
essentials.  But there will be a few holes -- things that I am least 
enthusiastic about writing or that I know least about.  Usually it will 
turn out I can get out of writing those at all.  They aren't actually 
necessary beyond a comment and a reference to somewhere else.  Fact is, 
there is no such thing as a complete magazine article or book chapter.  

When an article or chapter is well on the way, there is still the 
intimidation you sometimes feel when you start again first thing in the 
day.  There are standard tricks for dealing with it that work well for 
me.  For example, I read the part I've written already.  Or I just 
reread or even retype the last paragraph.  Fiction authors use these 
tricks routinely.  

Another couple of tricks that help me -- When I quit for the day, I try 
to quit somewhat before I'm totally worn out.  I exercise restraint 
instead of marathoning just because the writing is going well and I can. 
 This makes me much more eager to restart the next day.  When I work to 
exhaustion, I'm not likely to write at all the next day, and may skip 
several days (unless there is a deadline that gives me no option.)  
Also, before I quit, I list the thoughts and ideas that I'm going to 
cover next (that have me so ready to continue beyond exhaustion).  
Usually, I'll forget them unless I write them down.  But if I write them 
down I can pick up where I left off and I know this.  So it makes me 
eager to sit down and write again the next day.

Carol Deppe
Author of BREED YOUR OWN VEGETABLE VARIETIES:  THE GARDENER'S AND 
FARMER'S GUIDE TO PLANT BREEDING AND SEED SAVING (See table of contents, 
excerpts, & reviews at http://www.chelseagreen.com.)  

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