by Dixie Phillips, Award Winning Children’s Author and CES Editor
Read more about Dixie.

From the time I was a little girl, I remember hearing adults speak about ways to encourage reluctant readers to fall in love with books. Times really haven’t changed much. People are still trying to inspire children to read.

Today I’m not going to talk about reluctant readers, but a disorder that is just as crippling—Wary Writer Syndrome! My hope today is to inspire someone reading this post to pick up your pen and start writing the stories God has placed within you.

I’ve suffered from the dreaded Wary Writer Syndrome myself from time to time, and have met some of the most talented and amazing writers, who suddenly stop writing because they were plagued with this dreaded bug. Their writing dreams were snuffed out in an instant because they succumbed to Wary Writer Syndrome.

Whatever you do, don’t stop writing! The way to become a better writer is to write, rewrite, write again, and then write some more.

Wary Writer Syndrome is self-destructive and a type of self-sabotage. The battlefield is in our minds. Inferiority and insecurity, if left unchecked, have the power to end a writing career before it begins.

Here are a few tips to help you stay on the “write” track:

• Pray and ask the Lord to enlarge your writing territory. Ask for His blessings as you sow seeds of hope in your stories. Then start writing the pieces as He directs and prepare for a harvest.
• Don’t compare yourself with others. There will always be more talented writers and there will be less gifted ones. You’ll suffer with a deflated ego or an inflated one. It’s best to just be yourself and write from your heart the stories God has given you.
• Keep honing your writing skills. Never lose a humble, teachable spirit. Remember our wise heavenly Father exalts the humble.
• Prepare for publication. Develop as a writer and submit your best writing to publishers. There will come a day when all your “preparation” will meet “opportunity.” When that day comes, you will be ready and thankful you didn’t give up and succumb to Wary Writer Syndrome.

So what are you waiting for? Dust off the cobwebs from your favorite writing corner. Pick up your pen or fire up your computer and start writing today.