You Should Quit Writing: Coexisting with the Naysayers in Your Head

By Sylvia Whitman, @SylviaWhitman

Part of The Writer's Life Series

JH: I think most writers struggle with self-doubt and fear at some point in their careers. It's a tough job in a tough industry. Sylvia Whitman takes the podium today to share some thoughts and exercises on calming those fears and getting back to our days.

 

Sylvia Whitman lives in Sarasota, Florida, and teaches writing as a visiting instructor at Ringling College of Art and Design. She has published hundreds of articles for adults and children, a dozen books for young readers, and a handful of short stories in magazines ranging from Redbook to The Florida Review. Her books include Under the Ramadan Moon (Albert Whitman) and aYA novel The Milk of Birds (Atheneum). A finalist for the 2014 Amelia Walden Award, The Milk of Birds also earned a spot on the Amelia Bloomer Project List, the International Reading Association’s Notable Books for a Global Society and Bank Street College’s Best Children’s Books of Year.

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Take it away Sylvia...

Battling the Doubt Monster: Ignoring Nellie the Naysayer

By Aliza Mann, @AlizaMannAuthor

Part of The Writer’s Life Series

JH: Self-doubt happens to most writers, but there are things we can do to get past it. Please welcome Aliza Mann to the lecture hall today to learn how to banish the doubt and get on with our writing.

Having developed a preoccupation with reading as a small child, Aliza’s mother would literally have to bribe her to go outside and play with her friends. After finding her first romance novel abandoned at a Detroit bus stop when she was fourteen (probably a little too young, but nevertheless), Aliza read it and was instantly hooked. Aliza lives in Michigan with the man of her dreams. Her youngest son is living in Ohio on a college campus, where he had obviously lost his mother’s phone number. Her smart and kind daughter is an entrepreneur and runs several businesses alongside her husband, a wonderful man who loves Harry Potter. When Aliza is not writing, she can usually be found on Twitter or taking hikes through her neighborhood. She loves trucks, movies that bring her to tears, baking, and Scrabble. Aliza is represented by Sara Megibow of KT Literary.

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Take it away Aliza…