From talking to many, many authors over the years, and from experiencing it myself, I know that imposter syndrome is perhaps the one universal thing that every writer, every creative has in common. (Please tell me if you DON’T suffer from imposter syndrome, you beautiful unicorn. What’s that like??)
Imposter syndrome is a liar who lies because it's scary to try something new and take on the risks as well as the potential reward, and it's much less scary to keep doing what you've always done. So it tells you you’re a fraud, that you don’t know what you’re doing, that you have no right to even consider yourself an author, that you look ridiculous even trying, that you’re not good enough. And it’s really, really good at producing the receipts that seem to confirm all of those things. Imposter syndrome is the shitty boyfriend who gaslights you and is just charming enough to make you think that maybe he’s right. (But he’s a shitty boyfriend; of course he’s not right!)
But it's always much easier to think of the bad things about ourselves, and it’s a hell of a lot harder to think of the good things—especially if you’ve been conditioned to minimize your achievements and your talents. Imposter syndrome gloms on to that feeling and teaches you to minimize your goals too—don’t want too much, don’t try so hard, don’t aim high so you’re not disappointed if things don’t work out.
Not only does it prevent us from making big moves, it also prevents us making small moves or any kind of move, if we’re paralyzed with fear and self-doubt. There is so much that imposter syndrome can hold us back from if we let it, whether it's starting to write at all, getting feedback, publishing, and creating big plans for your writing career.
I, sadly, do not have a nice easy hack that can promise to get rid of your imposter syndrome forever. I don’t really think it ever totally goes away—your confidence can and will grow as you write more and put out more books so it may not always be so intense, but that little voice will still pipe up every now and then, often when you are feeling the most confident. “Should you really be so confident? Do you really think you know what you’re doing?”
But there are ways to shut imposter syndrome up:
Stop and take the time to identify when you’re getting imposter syndrome-y—what’s coming up for you in this moment? Are you trying something new? Are you just about to release a book or start writing a new one? No surprise it’s cropping up, but if you name it and tell yourself that you’ve been here before and gotten through it, it might feel a bit more manageable.
What do you know, deep down in your soul, that you do well? If you write incredible chemistry or you world-build like a champ, for example, be proud of those things and shout them out over the other things imposter syndrome is telling you you don’t do as well.
So often with imposter syndrome, we think in the negative: what if you do this thing and everything goes to shit? Let’s reframe: what if something even better than what you expect happens? Or, what would you potentially miss out on if you didn’t do the thing? (Don’t underestimate the FOMO!)
If you do fail, so what? What is the worst thing that could happen? You make a mistake and you learn from it for the next time? Imposter syndrome magnifies the possibilities around our mistakes, but in reality, usually those mistakes are things that people don’t even notice and that can be something you grow from.
Don’t let imposter syndrome stop you from realizing your goals and your dreams. If you’re reading this, I know you care about your writing and the potential that it holds for you and for your readers. Every story has its reader and someone out there needs your story—it would be a shame if imposter syndrome prevented your words from getting out into the world.