Val Dumond

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Articles on Writing, Grammar, and Publishing
by Val Dumond

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Val writes articles on grammar, the art and science of writing, and publishing, for budding writers and seasoned authors alike. These articles are not only informative and educational, they're entertaining - written as only Val can. Enjoy this latest of her articles:

What Do You Fear?
by Val Dumond
© Copyright 2011

Hey, you sufferers of cherophobia, doxophobia, euphobia, and hedonophobia: this one's for you.

While these words may not be in your dictionary (you need to update), the effects of them are in the heads of many creative people - okay, writers. They mean (in alphabetic order above) fear of happiness, fear of being praised, fear of good news, and fear of pleasure. Yup! Most writers are the breeding grounds for these maladies.

Find me a writer who has been working on a manuscript for years, an article, a story, a book. Ask that writer how they would feel if their work was suddenly picked up by a publisher.

Then watch their face.

Creative people, and especially writers, need affirmation, someone to tell them they are talented, someone to acknowledge their work. We crave it, the attention, recognition as a truly imaginative, artistic, inspired writer. Yet, when we receive it - from a professional - we freeze. Something grips the heart and squeezes.

I call it the Fear of Success (FOS) or, in the case of writers, Fear of Publication (FOP).

FOP manifests itself in the tightly held manuscript. Some writers won't even show their work to anyone. They claim fear of it being stolen; they claim "it isn't finished yet"; they claim "it isn't good enough"; they claim... (fill in the sentence). Do you recognize yourself?

For every artist - writer, painter, sculptor, musician, actor - there comes a time to put up or shut up. While most of these artists are truly talented, they find difficulty in recognizing their own talents. They want the recognition, yet, they fear it - every one of them/us/me/you.

What if I submit this manuscript to an agent and they turn it down?

What if I publish the book myself and nobody buys it?

What if I open a blog on the Internet and no one looks at it?

What if... (again, fill in the blanks with your what-if)?

The time to "put up" comes when you have completed the work, read it over, nodded, and told yourself, "Yes, this is good." What you need to add is this: "Now I want to share this with others." An artist can always find something to fix - a daub of paint here, another sentence there, a couple more chords in the middle.

This is the time to take the leap:

• find an agent to represent you
• seek a way to publish your work
• ask a magazine to print your story
• set up a showing in a gallery
• plan a gig (musical performance)

This is the time to say, "I've done my best; I want others to share my joy."

No artist ever considers their work finished. When you recognize this truism, you can free yourself of another phobia. This one is called eleutherophobia - the fear of freedom. And oh, freedom feels soooo good!

For more fun with choices and opportunities to ask your questions, check into my blog: The Anarchist's Guide to Grammar.

Val has two soon-to-be-published books: The Anarchist's Guide to Grammar and The Creative Instinct. Meanwhile, check her new books on Kindle:

Ahlam's Stories - Stories of life in Iraq as you haven’t seen it. —Love, marriage, children, work and play, pleasures and tragedies, hope and … life— as told through the eyes of a woman who dearly wants the West to know the real Iraq and its people the way it was before…

Elements of Inclusive Language - How to write without excluding others

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Please feel free to contact me. I welcome your comments and any specific questions you may have.