Writers struggle to find inspiration and motivation

“At this point I may quit this book. It's been 10 years! I have deleted so many drafts; the story almost doesn't feel the same anymore. I recently tried to honor the first draft and make a mix of all the alterations I did in those 10+ years. Now, I stumble upon a wish to make this universe bigger and more complex. But it would be taking another different turn for the 100th time! Have y'all experienced this with histories that are for so long unwritten/incomplete? submitted by &#”

“I'll admit there was a period between 2021-2023 where I wasn't reading at all, not out of laziness but from being stuck in a dark spot of depression - even my writing habits died during that period. 2023 to 2025 was a stutter period where I was reading sporadically but not as much as I could be. But this year that appetite to engage with books as absolutely hit a positive streak. I forgot how deeply I can get invested in whatever is placed before me and I'm enjoying the variety. What”

submitted by /u/Pollotelokote [link] [comments]

“Admittedly it's a little bit of a self-brag, but I've noticed so many writers on here lamenting about barely ever writing or taking several hours to write 100 words. Not disrespecting them at all, everyone has their own style and pace. But a while ago I started a writing log because I never measured my progress before, and was surprised at the results. I started a second column because I was tired of scrolling so far down. I would consider it pretty decent stuff, like it's not just f”

“A few months ago, during the summer, I suddenly got the extremely strong urge to write a novel. Why, I don't know. I probably saw a video out of the corner of my eye and subconsciously registered it as something to store in short-term memory for a while. I went through the usual steps of watching various YouTube tutorials about how to actually write well, articles about the novel making process, different software you can use for writing, etc. etc. Essentially, I was doing anything to learn”

“Heyo! As a young and (for the most part) incompetent writer, I've struggled to devote myself to any stories I've tried to write. So far, I probably have over 100 unfinished projects accumulated over the years. And, no, I wasn't actually writing them. Just daydreaming them. Now, I've simply decided that I am NOT going to torture myself with the expectations of writing a full 300+ page novel. I will be finishing my story in 100 pages or less. Thing is, I've chosen a genre that”

“I'm writing a philosophical literary YA dystopian (IK, weird description, but it's the most accurate I can get) with the goal of maybe publishing it. I'm about 17k words in, 7 chapters, and I'm just really struggling to do anything. I really like this story and am always thinking about things I'll write when I get to them, but I'm really struggling to get to them. The plot feels a bit choppy and whenever I'm writing things that are relevant to the plot I just go blank”

“I’m not asking about actual time so please don’t comment something like “we don’t know how often you write, it could take you 2 years or 3 months” I mean it in the sense that, once you started writing down the words, how many proofreads have you done before you were finally happy? How many line edits, drafts did you go through before you thought ‘Yep this is the one’? Were there chapters that you edited less? Were there chapters you’ve completely deleted? Basically what i’m asking it, which ‘dra”

“I think I’m finally getting to the point where I want to stop procrastinating, stop letting fear run the show, and actually put myself out there as a writer. I’ve always loved writing and, in my own opinion lol, I’ve always been good at it. There was also pretty strong outside evidence of that growing up. By third grade I was reading and writing at a twelfth-grade level, and I ended up getting pushed into STEM because I was academically advanced. The writing itself isn’t really the scary part. I”

“Don't give up. Keep on writing. This is your hobby, but it's also your calling. I wrote two novels (neither of them published) and put them out on the internet. Almost nobody read them, but I got ONE positive review from a complete stranger. That meant a lot to me. This year, I started writing a third novel, and I thought it would be a great idea to "educate" myself by watching and listening to online videos and pods from people such as Brandon Sanderson and James Thayer. Big m”

“I have been writing for a very long time in some way or another, and I am still very insecure. The most difficult part is forming a habit mostly because I'm worried that won't fix my problem. I am a writer who struggles to write. Has anyone been in this situation and pulled themself through to the otherside? submitted by /u/bluefluffyhippo [link] [comments]”

“I spent the last few days writing. 6.3k words in a chapter. I'm proud of myself, but most of it is lacking descriptions of the world around the characters (just dialogue & internal monologue). I'm struggling really hard with white room syndrome. I used to be good at writing descriptions (according to readers) but I've had a skill regression. Seeing a lot of discourse surrounding there being "too many descriptions" in books was a big reason why I started getting writers”

“Hey all, I've finished my first draft during covid and have been working on it on and off these past couple of years. And I have found myself trapped in a loop re-writing the first 4-6 chapters over and over again. But I want to break free and finally finish this story. This is because I can't seem to fully commit to any ideas at all. I had one idea and went with it, got a new idea, re-wrote the damn thing and then got another idea, and so on and so forth. For my own paranormal urban fan”

“Has anyone else found a small change to have an outsized impact on there productivity? This is my second novel attempt. Last year on my first attempt (different premise) . I stalled at the 30k mark. Really lost motivation. Now I'm really happy I've managed to hit 60k on my second! and I'm a couple of weeks out from finishing my first draft. I kept reading advice about how you need discipline for when the motivation stops and you need to write everyday. So on my first attempt I set a”

“I’ll admit that I started writing in order to be published. That’s it. I knew what I wanted and I went for it. Five books later, ten years down, and I still wasn’t. Sure, most of the earlier books was practice. I've no desire to salvage those. Nor do I believe they deserved to be published. But more important, I didn’t hate writing those five books. I had fun doing it. I think I even cried at one point? I think I fell in love with writing. But that love was chipped at by this desire to be pu”

“125,283 words done and dusted! Surely it will need de-bloating during editing, but I have a true sense of accomplishment after finishing it. I started writing it in June, and it is a loose prequel for two other stories I have written. The story is titled Scorpius, and is about a freed slave gladiator, a king made a slave, and the moon goddess who might control an empire's destiny. That's it. Not bragging. Just very pleased to have finished and wanted to share. Good fortune finishing to e”

“I finished my first novel (first draft, anyway). Gonna take a day, then start re-reading and editing. Keep grinding! Took me long enough, but I finally got to type THOSE WORDS submitted by /u/Ranseler [link] [comments]”

“Hi team, first post here, apologies for the novel. I've been trying to come to terms with the state of the industry, the quality of my work, and what my next steps should be. For context, I began my writing career +15 years ago when I was far too young to be writing the kind of stuff I was writing. I had a dark indie spec that surprisingly won a few of the screenwriting competitions that were relevant back in the day, and this landed me a manager who sent me out on a million general meetings”

“I have been writing as a hobby for about a decade. Some of it has been good, some of it has been bad, but all of it has been unfinished. Even the ones that i have finished have never really felt satisfyingly concluded to me. I wish I had some foolproof formula. I can come up with ideas, but i wish i had a process that lead me from the start of an idea, to an end that feels relevant to the core message of the story, not just something that ties up loose ends. I know the story circle, but that jus”

“Anyone else read through their completed manuscripts but then realize there are massive chunks of untold stories that need to be added and told? I finished my first manuscript a few months ago, and took a few months for a mental break. Now after rereading it I have realized that I have so many plot holes regarding certain characters and their stories. Now this changes so many different chapters. submitted by /u/MrNiceGuy233012 [link] [comments]”

“The more I talk with people, the more it discourages me from writing and just kind of kills the magic for me. I guess everyone's so worried about being historically accurate and making sure everything is historically proper and everything. What's they're just taking away from the fun from fictional writing like I don't wanna write historically, accurate books all the time. I just wanna have fun and write the books that made me interested in. As a kid and as a young adult, but peo”

“I’ve been writting my first book for a while now due to having a full time job and just never getting much writing done at home. I admit it is definitely going to be a bigger book than most would want from a debut author, but nothing crazy like Manacled lol. While I do love my debut, it’s a sci-fi comedy akin to “hitchhikers guide to the galaxy” type of book , I just can’t stop thinking about my second one. It’s not a sequel and will have absolutely nothing to do with the first book (other than”

“I few weeks ago I was in a complete drought as an author. I could not write a single worthwhile paragraph to save my life. But right now I have written the best 100 pages of my long fic in \ checks notes\ eight days, and I cant stop. WHAT IS HAPPENNING TO ME? submitted by /u/Cruel_Kindness [link] [comments]”

“so I’m 50k words and 10 chapters in with a 22 chapter goal . I’ve been writing this book for 2 years and I’m so desperate to finish soooon. As in this week. Does anyone have any tips? submitted by /u/PinkPapers1 [link] [comments]”

“Im writing a book, and im on draft on (of many, haha!) but some days I’ll read what I’ve written so far and absolutely hate it, and some days I think it seems okay. Should I rewrite it or just keep going and then just edit over time. Since it’s my first book I’d love to know your guys tips, etc. submitted by /u/Socialanxietyyay12 [link] [comments]”

“I’ve been writing since I was 13 on Wattpad now I’m 23 and still enjoy writing fanfiction. However in recent weeks I went over to the writing advice sub Reddit looking for a little help with an opening to a story, and I felt like I was being shot. Of course I’m not blaming anyone for my feeling being hurt, but they revealed several issues with my writing. One being constant changing of tenses from past and present sometimes in the same sentence one person pointed out. Another asked If English wa”

“I've been trying to write for the better part of 3 months now. And I've got a lot of planning and world building down. I have two hangups that are getting in the way (probably just getting in my own way mostly). I just wanna know if others deal with this too and if so what's the best course of action, what works for you? Issue 1 is the actual writing part, not necessarily that I don't know what to write but more. That I'm horrified of my writing style flagging artificially ge”

“It's probably garbage, but it's more garbage than I had yesterday. And, I think I want to try again tomorrow. submitted by /u/UpintheWolfTrap [link] [comments]”

“Hi folks. I'm interested in writing, have been world building for years (mostly in my head), have at least half a dozen ideas/concepts, and would love to actually start writing. But the few times that I've actually sat down and tried, I get too in my head, thinking about character names, if it should be first or third person, things like that. Small things that are important, but keep me from getting into the flow of writing. It feels like a hurdle preventing me from getting to the inter”

“For the last two weeks, I've hit around 3000 words a day on a fiction project that started out as a short story, but grew to love the plot development arc and saw it play out into much more. Excitedly found my way into a fourth novel. Today? Three sentences in four hours. submitted by /u/ElvisTheBoyCat [link] [comments]”

“Yup it says what it says, I'm here to share what I have learnt over the years as an aspiring author. Now hold on. No eye rolls. I'm not out here typing out an entire memoir on the dos and don'ts of writing, just two off the top of my head. Anyways I have been writing for 6 years, am 23M, so nothing I say is set in stone, or at least no stones that you should string around your neck. No advice, however mainstream or conventional, should bend the spine of your creativity. This is the f”

“as the title says, writer's block has hit me like a truck for the mountain of supplementals I have to write. I've finished my personal statement, which came to me in a "eureka" moment (lol) but I am finding that is not the case for the supplementals. I've tried brainstorming, writing and rewriting, but have ended up scrapping most of them. I'm not sure what the issue is. has anyone else faced this same issue, where the personal statement came easy but supplementals didn”

“After almost two years of drafts and finally my manuscript, I'm almost ready to publish. I should be publishing soon, so I'll make a post when I do. submitted by /u/DaAuthorGuy [link] [comments]”

“Two years ago, I told everyone I was three months away from finishing. Last year, I said I just needed one more revision. Six months ago, I said I was polishing the final draft. Yesterday, someone asked how the book was going and I heard myself say, "Almost there." I've been almost there for two years. I know every excuse. The ending needs work. The middle sags. I need to research one more thing. I need to read it once more with fresh eyes. But here's what I'm starting to s”

“Hey there ! I've had an idea for a book but it's quite complex (especially for a noob writer as I am ^^" ) so I checked if it has been done and now I'm in the world-building phase. Then after that I planned on telling the story so make the characters and all The question is, when do I start writing ? Do I build up the WHOLE universe ? Is there a rule ? Do I have to write it in chronological order ? Am I already starting on the wrong foot ? Those question may sound silly but for”

“I’ve written 15,000 words and I was getting really into it and then I read my story back and it sounds awful. Is this a normal feeling when you hit 15,000 words?? I feel like I’ve written a lot but I also have so much to go and I’m starting to doubt myself submitted by /u/HelicopterNo3534 [link] [comments]”

“Recently I've begun working on a new stand alone novel. Since doing so the work has been coming fast and easy in a way that has felt right. Things have just made sense and the story is half writing itself with how the revelations are coming while working. This past week I wrote 4 full chapters of first draft half narrative plotting and half baseline prose. But its just good to get the bones down. I habe the next few chapters plotted and all the major arc rough sketched. All I want to do is w”

“I just finished the first draft of my fourth novel. I don't expect to publish these in the near future. I have other work I love. I'm trying to decouple the urge to hustle my hobbies. Anyway, that's besides the point. I did it! 96000 words, all on my phone (lol), at night after I put the kids to bed or while they are doing their after-school activities. My husband is in a mood so I need to outsource support from lovely people on the internet. I did it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! submitted b”

“I have a manuscript that I’m working on right now that is super exciting and interesting (to me at least). It’s something I think I would read if someone else wrote it which helps me to stay motivated… Until I get to Chapter 7 and panic and think that my interests are weird, no one else would care about this story or plot at all, and why should I even bother continuing with a pet project that will never see the light of day? Logically, I know that I’m turning into my own worst enemy. If I would”

“Good morning, all! Wanted to share my first major milestone for the first draft of my first ever novel. The idea and the world have been rattling around in my brain for the past few years, but I decided to finally put pen to paper in August, after several months of concrete world-building. This morning, I surpassed 20,000 words, and am really getting into the rising action for my first act, and hope to introduce my first antagonist in this next chapter! Excited to share, as I feel like I really”

“How do you keep motivated? I'm an aspiring screenwriter, having written a handful of shorts and features but I find it so hard to stay inspired and motivated. My writing comes in bursts, maybe once a year I will become obsessed with an idea enough to finish it, but between those bursts I start a lot of ideas that I rarely commit to wholeheartedly. I'm not sure if its a confidence thing, an ADHD thing or just lack of discipline. I would love to know what other people do to stay motivated.”

“I really can not think of a bettle tile for this, so, quick background. Been super stressed with grown up stuff this week and for the last two days I've written three chapter that's on paper work in the confines of the novel but I'm not feeling it 100%. I'm at the point in my novel where I'm just under 80k in and I've created a situation that needs to be resolved within a maximum of 20-25k words in order to have enough space to conclude the manuscript and bring it in unde”

“Hello! I'm an aspiring writer and I always struggle with actually executing the stories I come up with. Let's say the first step is coming up with a concept and the last one is executing it on paper, how do you move from the first step to the last? I'm stuck in a constant loop where I will come up with an idea, I try to build something like a story bible for it(idk why...I like something which I can reference). And after I'm done with the story bible, I just don't feel like w”

“I’m a new writer and I’ve been struggling with losing interest in my current projects and always wanting to make something new. It’s like I’ll see a movie or go through some experience and want to write about it but it doesn’t fit in my current projects so I want to pause those and do something else. It makes it hard to finish anything and I feel like it happens when I hit a wall with my current projects and can’t find a way to fix them or finish them. Does anyone have advice about getting throu”

“Every Sunday, we meet and everyone shares their progress. Sarah finished two chapters. Marcus hit 50,000 words. Jenna has a full outline for her next book. And then it's my turn. And I say, "Still working through chapter three. Slow but steady." What I don't say is that I haven't written anything in six months. Not a sentence. Not a note. I open the document, stare at it, close it. Every single day. I've been showing up to group with the same three chapters for half a y”

“I've been trying to write my first short story ever, I only remember writing as a kid, silly stories but they go somewhere. Now though, I find it extremely difficult to even pass the starting point; I can think of "plot ideas", what ifs, but they don't go anywhere, I can't think of a continuation of the plot I have thought about. For example: I would think of a pretty good situation/plot to start with, let's say a man got bit by a spider and now it's spiderman, a su”

“I'm obviously new at writing, and my way of practicing is writing with the idea that it doesn't need to be perfect. That is how I get to write many words and have a good amount of content, then I edit it, change a couple of things, and delete what feels unnecessary. With delicate/hard situations, I can't seem to create this scenario. I don't know which words are better to choose, everything is disorganized, and I can't do anything about it. submitted by /u/Shot-Eq”

“When I started learning writing a year ago, I was driven by curiosity. I wanted to know how to write a story and how to create a story. So I searched on Google and YouTube: “How to write a story?” I found so many documents and videos. I started watching videos, and in those videos, people taught me some formulas and gave me some examples. After watching so many videos, I started writing. But I didn’t feel good or confident about my own creation. Because I soon realized that this was not my creat”

“Hello! I have been writing on and off for the past 3 years, I’m not very good yet. I have a LOT of weak points, but I’m still learning so I’m not going to get into it too much. But does anyone have any good writing tips/advice? Anything is appreciated, thanks! Have a wonderful rest of your day. submitted by /u/ringostarrseyebrow [link] [comments]”

“Hello everybody, I would love to start writing as a hobby. However, I’m lacking in a lot of areas. For example, finding the right words, creating an actual immersive experience through writing, writing something with actual weight and having control of language. I feel like I don’t have the ability to produce powerful sentences. If anyone is willing to give me tips and tricks, I would be really grateful. Thank you! submitted by /u/CompetitiveProfile39 [link] [comments]”

“The cover is a bit under the works still. I’m proud of this, it may not be good but I’m still proud of it. It took a while as school and stuff and different ideas but I did it. Like the inspirations for this story is I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream and Iron Lung. If you want to read it I guess I could make a link. If you do, let me know what you think. It’s definitely bad but it’s a start and I’m open to criticism, I need it for future stories. Stories are art btw right? Okay, here’s the link:”

“This is more of a ponder. Does anyone slow or stop reading while they are writing their first draft? I know reading is one of the best ways to improve your own writing.. but I just can't? I'm so caught up in my story, but it's been months since I last read a book. Does anyone have any tips to help change my focus? Should I even worry about it? submitted by /u/Busy-Temperature-600 [link] [comments]”

“First time reddit user and first time writer as well, that being said I'm in a very painfully difficult place in my writing jounery that makes almost ready to cry and give up. It's been a looonnggg jounery so I'll try to explain all of it short and to the point. I've been writing a Gothic horror/Period drama for the last five years now (balancing my writing life with full time jobs and other personal life events), It's the first novel I've ever written and I had hoped it”

“Writing is harder than it looks. I finally finished a story. I wrote The End. Thought I could celebrate but no, my manuscript decided to show all its uglies to me. I noticed plot inconsistencies. And why did his eyes change color three times? And good lord, his old name made it once inside because the replace all somehow missed that one. Why is everything I’m reading suddenly feeling like garbage? It’s honestly one of the harder creative arts I’ve done. Vs painting, ceramic, graphic design, arch”

“i am having serious writers block right now. i finished my first draft couple months ago, and worked on a second draft for a while before i changed some plot lines to something i view as a better and more intriguing story. the most frustrating part is that, as the author and having the first draft done, i know exactly what will happen and how it will happen(besides some of the things im changing). i am very frustrated with myself and everytime i try to write, i get crazy blocked and give up afte”

“Hello fellow writers! First time poster, long time lurker. I’ve always enjoyed writing, but somehow now, for the first time in my 32 years of life, I am actually writing a novel. I am 30,100 words in as of today, that’s more than I’ve ever written for one single piece. At this juncture in my progress, I find myself asking, “Do I actually know how humans talk to each other other?” Some days are better than others with rereading my work. I have been pleased to feel like I really have something mos”

“As the title says, I've gotten back into writing after a long break. I just can't seem to stay focused; music (lofi) also gets boring real fast. Does anyone have any ideas for this, like Subway Surfers in the background or something of the sort? submitted by /u/Puzzleheaded_Date834 [link] [comments]”

“I struggle with finishing works. I have so many ideas and get so excited about them, and I get halfway through one and get another one and abandon the first one and I don't know how to get better with this but I really want too. Any advice? submitted by /u/Limp-Garlic-6791 [link] [comments]”

“I've never been this fast or consistent in writing. I don't generally like to blow my own trumpet but what the hell. 3 weeks ago I began my second project. I have averaged 971 words a day. I have missed 3 days where I haven't written anything at all. I'm hooked on this story and I can't wait to see how it plays out. I'm a creative writer with just a basic plot line at the start. Quickly worked out it's too small so it's a smaller arc in a wider narrative. It's”