When You’re Not Changing the World with Your Writing: Dealing with Writing Discouragement

You and I aren’t there yet. 

“There” may look different for both of us. You may want to be an author someday or work in the writing industry. Or you may just want to finally finish a draft or finally get some positive feedback.

You’ve been working hard, but you feel like you haven’t made any progress.

You may think that I’m so much further along than you. But the truth is I’m just a girl trying to avoid thinking about her unfinished WIPs and keep up with a school workload that seems to include more studying for biology than it does writing. 

Maybe you’re also dealing with writing discouragement, because you aren’t where you thought you’d be. You tried to indie publish and it flopped. You submitted a short story and it didn’t get selected. You tried to get beta readers and no one volunteered. 

You feel like your writing is worthless. You want to change the world with your writing, truly make a difference, serve well the Lord you love, but you’re starting to wonder if it even matters anymore.

Why keep writing when it seems like instead of getting closer to your goal, you’re getting further and further away?

What can your little pieces of writing do for God?

Friend, in this post, I want to encourage both of us. No matter how many people read our words, edit our work, or even like our stories, our writing is valuable. And surrendered into our Father’s sovereign hands, our words can accomplish great things. 

Discouragement is a liar. Here is the truth. 

The Cure for Discouragement

In all honesty, guys, those facts about discouragement being a liar have been firmly imprinted on my brain. I’ve been surrounded by amazing mentors (including the instructors in the Young Writer’s Workshop), friends, and family members who encourage me to pursue my writing, even when it’s hard.

Not only that, but I’ve done the research. I’ve seen the stats. I know that it’s possible for us, young as we are, to really do this.

Our words can make a difference, and the words of many young writers out there have made a phenomenal difference. (Think of the success of the bestseller Do Hard Things co-written by our very own Brett Harris and you’ll see what I mean.)

But I still get discouraged. Because all the statistics in the world don’t prove to me that my writing is worthwhile.

It’s so easy to either wallow in discouragement because of my inner critic or despair because of well-deserved criticism from others. It’s so easy to look at all the unread words I wrote hoping to shine some light: why did it even matter?

Discouragement runs deeper than just worrying about the future. It can cripple us in the present, making every step forward harder and harder until all we want to do is just give up.

I think we’ve all been there at one point or another, but you and I are here right now, which is why you’re reading this post and I’m writing it. We need to know the cure for our discouragement. We want to stop feeling like our writing doesn’t matter. 

I think the key is simpler than we expect. Not easy, but simple.

Instead of being discouraged, we need to choose gratitude. 

What Do I Have to Be Grateful for?

Right now you may be wondering, “But, Ellie, what do I have to be grateful for when my writing hasn’t ever done anything? I do my best, but I keep failing.

Maybe God doesn’t want me to keep on writing because my writing just isn’t making any difference.” 

I don’t know God’s plan for you. But that feeling of putting time and energy into something that seems worthless is something that I can relate to, and so could Elisabeth Elliot, a missionary to Ecuador in the 1950’s. 

Soon after college, Elisabeth Elliot went down to Ecuador to use her linguistic skills to develop a written alphabet for one of the indigenous peoples in the area.

The end goal was that the Bible could one day be translated into their language. After a year of hard work, she had created an entire note system on the language full of valuable information that later translators could build on.

Those notes were placed in a suitcase, that suitcase was placed in a truck for transport, and the suitcase was promptly snatched by some unknown soul who was hoping to find something more valuable than a year’s worth of loving labor. 

Every bit of translation work. Lost. 

Some fifty years later, I picked up a book written by Elisabeth Elliot called “Made for the Journey.” I read all about that one year journey––from the tears of trying to find someone who was bilingual and could help her with the language, to the joy of finding someone and getting to work on the alphabet, and to the sorrow of the stolen suitcase. 

The book doesn’t end with resolution. Elisabeth Elliot never knew what purpose God had in that failure and discouragement.

But her story about trusting in the sovereignty of God through deep discouragement gave me hope for some of the most broken places in my life as well as for my writing. 

Even if you have never finished a story, even if no one ever reads your words, even if you aren’t changing the world with your writing, your surrender in faith of your words can still be used by God to do great things.

You may never see it.

But whatever happens, you and I can trust in a sovereign God who has purpose in everything that He does and be grateful for what writing is already doing in our lives. 

Because even when no one is reading your work, your writing is changing you.

When you’re working on a story, with every line you write, with every minute of time that you put in, you are making yourself a better writer. You’re learning things about patience, craftsmanship, and yourself. 

The Lord is using it to shape and teach you. That’s valuable even if no one ever reads what you’ve written.

And on the flip side, if not as many people are reading your work as you may want, there is still beauty in putting yourself out there and trying to bless others with your words.

And even if one person reads it, that one person still put in valuable time and energy to read your words. 

That’s a gift that writers often take for granted.

What if you are getting readers and they don’t like your work? Your writing is worth more than the opinions of others. Learn from it, and move on, knowing that your growth is more important than the perfection of this one piece.

Whether you’re receiving a little bit of positive feedback or a big chunk of criticism, be grateful for the little things. It’s easy to get caught up in all the things people didn’t say or the negative things they did say without embracing the positive. 

Dealing With Writing Discouragement

Look back on your work from a couple years or even a couple months ago. See how you’ve grown. Take a look back at old notes and realize how much you have learned. Even if you aren’t “there” yet, you have come so far. There is so much to be grateful for:

• • The last words you wrote. Whether on an academic paper or a project just for fun, the ability to write is a gift. 
  • The people in your life who read your work. That could be your parents, your siblings, your friends, or even followers online who took time to read through the caption. Every single one is a gift. 
  • Technology. The things that allow you to write more quickly and to share your words in online communities. 
  • Inspiration. The beauty of new story ideas
  • Your family. Their wisdom, grace, and support. 
  • The little wins. Maybe you’ve finished a whole WIP or maybe you’ve only completed a chapter. Maybe you got someone to thrill over your project, or maybe it was a simple “Good job”. Whatever that win looks like and no matter how big it feels, it is something to celebrate. 
  • The Savior. The One who took on human flesh and died on a cross for your sake and mine is the same One who is working together every part of your story, including the parts that discourage you. He is good, and you can trust Him. 

What to Do Next

Now, you have been reminded of the goodness of God’s sovereign work and you have some ideas that will help you practice gratitude, no matter what situation your writing is in. But what should you do right now? What are some practical ways that you can cultivate this gratitude and fight discouragement?

Here are a few ideas:

• Make that List. You know the things you thought of to be grateful for from that last section? Write them down. And then keep writing them down. There can be other, non-writing related things too, as big as a birthday and as small as the smell of the first snow. Whatever it is, keeping a list of things you are thankful for is the simplest and most powerful thing I know to fight discouragement!
• Consider Next Steps. Don’t allow gratitude to cause you to become complacent where you are. That story still needs to be finished after all! Use this time to make small, measurable goals that you can achieve within the next weeks as well as a large overall goal that you can accomplish in the upcoming months. Gratitude energizes you to…
• Keep on Going. Most of all, continue fighting discouragement. Keep choosing gratitude. The God we serve is bigger than any failures or struggles that we face, and He is working all things out for our good and His glory. Trust Him and keep moving forward. He is doing better things than we can ever imagine. 

P.S. If you want to learn more about how you as a young writer can change the world and write well for the glory of God, I highly suggest the Young Writer’s Workshop’s free course on the Young Writer Revolution!