Time for our next monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Hosted as ever by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the aim of the group is to offer a safe space where writers can share doubts and insecurities without fear of being judged. This month's co-hosts are Diedre Knight, Tonya Drecker, Bish Denham, Olga Godim and JQ Rose.
Sorry I missed last month's meet! It just snuck up on me for some reason. Leaving that aside, let's turn to this month's IWSG question, which is an interesting one: Have you ever read a line in novel or a clever plot twist that caused you to have author envy?
I'm sure most writers have had that sort of moment where you think "I wish I'd thought of that" or even "I'll never write anything as clever as that." And probably on multiple occasions - I'd struggle to pick out specific examples. Envy is a strong word though and not one I'd probably use to describe that feeling. It's more a sense of healthy competition that spurs you on to do better. We're all learning all the time and probably every book we read has something to teach us. Envy doesn't go anywhere - it means we want what others have, but only that author could have written that book. By the same token, no one else could have written the books we write, either. So, be amazed, be inspired by others' accomplishments, and funnel that inspiration into doing what you do best!
In other news, I've got some slightly nervous insecurity as things will start to roll out for my debut trad pub release in August. I've been told my proofs are on the way, so I will finally get to "hold my book in my hands", and there should be a cover and blurb reveal in the next few weeks. It's a good kind of nerves, I suppose, there's just always that tingling anticipation at how it will all go down.
For more takes on this month's question and to see what other authors are up to, check out the list here.
