#cswriterssupportgroup

“Sometimes I just feel invisible.”

“I wish I could just delete everything I’ve ever written.”

These are all things I have said and felt.

Many of my other writer friends have as well.

I’m not telling you this for sympathy:

I’m telling you to remind you that others feel this way too.

Everyone wants to give up sometimes.

Everyone struggles sometimes.

Because writing is personal, it is your soul on a page.

Naturally, we want people to love it. 

And we are discouraged if they don’t.

It’s okay to want that validation, my loves.

It’s okay.

I guess what I’m trying to say is,

you are a damn talented writer.

I don’t care if you make mistakes,

or if you get told your stuff is trash.

You are a damn talented writer. 

So, don’t let those voices overwhelm you- 

Hey writers! 

@profoundlyfadedprincess left this request

Hi Writer’s Support, I wondered if you could rally me some support - I’ve been bitten by a huge fluffy angry plot bunny, and the outline has turned into a Swan Lake/Tangled fusion Captain Swan fanfic, but I really need some folk to bounce the idea around with to hone some elements. 

I am sure we have all experienced the excitement of a fun new idea AND the frustration of getting lost in the weeds when we try to turn that idea into a plot! If this strikes your interest send them a message or reblog to signal boost to your followers. 

it can be easy to feel like you aren’t worthy.

Like you are a pretender.

But you aren’t. 

You sweat and you toil looking for just the right words.

You have a style that is yours and yours alone.

So, no matter how many notes you get, 

or how many followers you acquire.

You can be proud. 

You are not being silly! There is a real fear when you have a great idea that you won’t be able to do it justice. So don’t feel bad for being intimidated or worrying about bringing your idea to life I think we all do that! You are totally normal. 

So don’t stress but also WRITE THE THING! 

The best part of writing is when you are excited about the story and can’t wait to tell it. Don’t miss out on all that fun because you are stressed that it won’t be good enough. Write it and enjoy writing it and forget about anyone else reading it. Tell yourself you don’t have to post it or let anyone see it. Let it be crazy and self-indulgent and just fun. Even if you just do a really detailed outline I think you should get the story out while you are excited. 

Then later after you have had all that fun you can go back through and worry about it being good. You can do it yourself or get a beta who will love helping you improve it. Editing and taking a story from good to great is can be fun too! The fact that you see your own areas for improvement means you will be able to do the same with your wild and crazy draft once you finish it. 

You can write an amazing and good story with your idea but first you just need to write it!

First off congrats on taking on such a big project! Those can be intimidating and definitely difficult! Opening scenes are so important so I understand why it might be giving you trouble. Without knowing specifics about your fic here are some ideas. 

Find a beta. A good beta can look at your scene and help you figure out why it’s not working or how you can fix it. If you have a fellow writer friend ask them. Or approach one of your fav writers and see if they have the time. There is also the @csbetanetwork where you can request a beta from a group of Captain Swan writers. Not all betas work for all writers so if the first one is a bad fit don’t give up! Having a good beta really does make a world of difference!

Try and see if instead of having the scene up front if you can place it somewhere else and dribble the information out slowly during the other chapters. You mention it is necessary to get to the real plot but maybe there are other ways to get that information to the reader. A little mystery isn’t a bad thing in a fic!

Use some writers block techniques. Rewrite the scene with a different POV. Change the location of the scene. Ask yourself what is the worst thing that could happen and write it. Use a completely different style. Tell the story like you would to a child. You may not use any of the stuff you write but looking at it from different angles will change how you see the scene and help you realize why it’s not working. 

You said you hate the scene. Take a minute and write down the reasons why you hate it and then see if you can remove those elements from the scene. 

Forget about the scene and just write. Sometimes the solution will present itself as you work through the rest of the fic. The reasons why scenes didn’t work becomes clear and you are better able to see what the opening scene really needs. 

Most importantly don’t let the one scene kill your love for your fic! Go read a scene you love and remind yourself why you wanted to write the idea in the first place! 

Answer:  This is an interesting phenomenon. 

Characters can always be wrong. They can always grow. I think that’s actually necessary for characters!

This is just a little reminder for you lovelies that this is a safe space.

If you have something to talk about, to vent about, that’s why we are here.

No judgments.

We will do our best to help and comfort you. 

We love you and we want this fandom to be a positive place to grow as authors.

Please, send us an ask!  

Fight it with every breath in your body.

Because you are precious. 

Your words are yours alone.

No one can write them for you.

If you can’t do it by yourself, find a friend to share the burden. 

Because you are an artist.