One of the most daunting parts of the writing experience is sharing your work. It feels exposed and like sharing a vulnerable part of yourself. I remember the first time I let someone read my work.
It wasn’t even my whole book, but just the first chapter. I emailed it to a friend and then immediately regretted it. What if they hated it? I felt embarrassed and I immediately wanted to take it back before they even had a chance to read it. That fear is real. Writing can be very personal and come from a vulnerable place. Letting someone else read it feels like handing them a piece of your heart rather than paper. This causes so many writers to keep their work hidden away for months, or even years out of fear of embarrassment and vulnerability.
Because I couldn’t unsend my email, I felt so nervous the entire time I waited for my friend to read it. And when she did, nothing bad happened. I asked for initial thoughts, where she thought the story was going, and things she would correct. After that, I didn’t feel nearly as embarrassed as before, but actually empowered to improve my story. This helped me realize that most readers aren’t looking for perfection, but they’re looking for stories that they can connect with and make them feel something. These stories don’t have to be perfect to be meaningful or enjoyable.
Additionally, having fresh eyes on a story helps you catch things you never would have realized otherwise, simply because you’ve spent too long with your work. For example, there were instances where I used the word “severe” instead of the correct word “sever.” These issues weren’t caught by Grammar.ly or any other editing tool I used, and if I hadn’t ask someone else to read it, I may have never noticed.
I learned that keeping my writing to myself didn’t make it any better. In fact, the feedback I got from my story made it stronger and helped me the feel more confident. Overtime, I felt like I could share my story. The first people to fully read my manuscript were my high school librarians, and the feedback I got from them was invaluable.
If sharing your writing terrifies you, you can always start small. You can start by showing it to one trusted person. This can be a friend, a sibling, even a teacher or librarian you trust. Share with them a short story or even a single scene and each time you do, it gets easier.
Your words deserve to be seen, even if they’re not perfect yet. And if you keep hiding them, you’ll never know the impact they could have and the way it can boost your confidence.