But why do we keep signing up for more courses when we already know the basics and the fundamentals of writing?

It’s because it gives us a feeling of safety.

Watch the video to find out more.

Hello my lovely writers.

Are you addicted to writing courses? I am. I’m particularly an online course junkie. I love an online course and there’s a little bit of me that thinks, if I won the lottery and I did not have to work for a living and had infinite cash, one of the things I would do would be one online course after another. I love them. 

But I’m on a hiatus at the moment. I have given myself this new resolution that, for the next twelve months, I am not going to buy any more online courses. I’m feeling a bit itchy about this because I would love to buy another course. If I’ve got a new problem, or there’s something I’m thinking about, the first thing I want to do is go to an online course and find out all about it. 

Why are we addicted to writing courses?

But as I’ve been thinking about this and going back through the courses I’ve already got, I’ve realised the reason I want to do online courses so often is because it feels safe. I can feel I’m making progress. I can feel I’m learning something new without actually doing the thing I need to do. 

I wonder if you’re a little bit like this with your writing? It might be that you have been thinking about a story in your head. You’re thinking about story structure, but you feel there’s something missing and you need to know more about story structure so, if you read another book or do another course, you’ll feel like you’re learning and moving forwards with your craft. But you’re not actually doing the writing. 

It’s the same with character development. Maybe you’re a workshop junkie and you’re doing another series of prompts around how to develop character and you feel like you’re learning and moving forward and taking action but you’re still not actually writing the book you want to write. 

It comes down to a lack of confidence

What it ultimately comes down to is a lack of confidence. This need to keep learning, keep going over things you already know how to do and things you already have the skills for, is because it feels much safer and doesn’t threaten your security. It doesn’t threaten the level of imposter syndrome we’ve got around doing the writing itself. 

Something I always say is, the best way to learn to write a book is to write a book. That really is how you uplevel your craft. My guess is you have done a lot of courses, you’ve read a lot of books and you’ve attended the workshops. You know the craft. You know all the fundamentals. You’ve got the foundations. What you don’t have is the security within yourself to put those into action. You don’t have the trust in yourself to actually do the work of writing the book. 

It might be that you get to the first quarter of the book and then you stop. It might be that you get to the muddy middle of the book and then you stop. You’re not trusting yourself that you’ve got what it takes to figure the storyline out, to figure the plotline out, to figure the characters out and get to the end of the book. 

I know there are a lot of you out there who are going round and round in circles and never finishing the book. For some of you, you have been writing that same story for decades and never getting any further forward. It’s not because you don’t have the craft, it’s because you don’t have the self-belief. 

21 Days of Writing Inspiration

I want to help you get there. I want to help you get over that hump of not having that self-belief. I want you to sign up for my 21 Days of Writing Inspiration. 

For 21 days, I will send you a little video that’s going to give you the motivation and inspiration to get you going and to get you over that little hump and move you on to the next step of your writing. 

You can do it. You can absolutely do it. You’ve just got to believe in yourself and sometimes we need someone else to galvanise us. Someone else to remind us that we’ve got what it takes. Sign up today and let me help you on your journey. 

Emma xx

Emma Dhesi

Emma Dhesi is a Certified Author Accelerator Book Coach and bestselling author who helps writers let go of perfectionism, self-doubt and writer's block through her signature programme, Unlock Your Creative Block.

She is the host of the YouTube Channel, Emma Dhesi, where she interviews debut and experienced authors alike.

Through her 1:1 coaching programme, Emma helps new authors start and finish their first novel.

Emma provides personal written feedback on their pages and guides them through the emotional rollercoaster that is writing a novel!