Unlocking Fear: The Hidden Barriers Every Writer Faces—and How to Break Free
Fear—the sneaky little beast that slinks in just when you’re about to hit “FADE IN.” Ever caught yourself thinking, “Do I really have what it takes to finish this script?” or worse, “What if nobody likes it?” Those jittery thoughts? Yeah, they’re the arch-nemesis of creativity, quietly gnawing away at your confidence. Now, let me ask you—how often have you let fear hold the pen, leaving your story stuck in draft limbo? Writers like Faulkner and Fitzgerald wrestled with it, too—despite their towering reputations. So, how do we wrestle this invisible opponent and still get to the ‘FADE OUT’ without losing our minds? Maybe it’s about flipping fear from foe to fuel or diving so deep into your story’s universe that all the “what ifs” vanish. Whatever your style, ignoring the beast won’t work—action’s the only antidote. Ready to stare down your own creative gremlin? Let’s dive right in.
The single greatest inhibitor to creativity is fear. Do you recognize any of these voices?
I am afraid of typing FADE IN.
I am afraid I won’t be able to finish this script.
I am afraid I don’t have enough talent.
I am afraid the words won’t come.
I am afraid my characters won’t feel real.
I am afraid people won’t like my writing.
I am afraid people won’t like my story.
I am afraid I won’t get an agent.
I am afraid I am wasting my time.
I am afraid I don’t know enough about the craft.
I am afraid people will laugh at me.
I am afraid I won’t make any money writing.
I am afraid of not succeeding.
I’m not a psychologist, but I know enough about the writing process to understand that if you allow these and other like-minded voices to dominate your thoughts, you will have a hard time nurturing your creative self.
So the question on the table is, How to deal with fear? I don’t think there’s any right or wrong approach — a writer will do what they need to do to vanquish or, at least, manage their apprehensions. Some times you may be able to ignore the voice, the doubts, the insecurities — a good way to do that is to go so deeply into your story, your experience in that ‘world’ shuts out your negative thoughts.
Other times, you can use fear as a motivator: If, for example, you make a commitment, to friends and family, whereby you guarantee you will finish this script, your fear of public humiliation can spur you all the way to FADE OUT.
The simple fact is that whatever you do, you must do something, or else fear can devour your creativity.
Two of the greatest American novelists, William Faulkner and F. Scott Fitzgerald, wound their way to Hollywood, and worked as screenwriters. Read these quotes below, and see if you can grasp the palpable sense of fear in their words:
“I think I have had about all of Hollywood I can stand, I feel bad, depressed, dreadful sense of wasting time. I imagine…
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