How to Face and Overcome Your Failure to Write or Produce Art

Maybe It’s Time to Follow Your Bliss

Help. I can’t write. I want to write, but I’m having the toughest time putting meaningful words together on a digital page.

I’m giving writing my best shot right now, and there’s a part of me wondering if I should paint or shoot sunrise photographs, or another video, instead. That’s because when the pandemic locked the planet down and into the confines of our homes, condos, apartments, and vans, I taught myself how to sketch, draw, and paint.

Because of this newfound joy, it seems I can’t write for myself lately. Every article I’ve tried to hack and edit for Medium and my blog has failed. The drafts sit in my Drafts folder collecting digital dust. A part of me thinks they all suck, but in fact, it is my Imposter Syndrome sucking at my soul, and I battle with it daily; “Is my stuff good enough to put out there?”

Then, my muse suggests, “Go paint.” And when I do, it seems easier than writing.

The Difference Between Writing and Painting

Unlike when I write, edit, and publish a new book or article of my own, the process seems easier to produce work that gives job.

Also, engagement with my artwork is off the charts compared to my writing. The positive feedback I get about my art on social media blows me away. People comment and message me the most encouraging words. They…