4 Strategies for Quelling Publishing Anxiety
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This might sound corny, but in the spirit of this article I’ll say it anyway:
In my eyes, authors are superheroes.
No, I haven’t seen a writer throw a car over a building (yet), but as a creative professional and book lover, I’m well aware of the strength and resolve it takes to both actually finish writing a book and put yourself out there in the form of publishing it.
On the latter point, we sometimes take for granted the base level of confidence needed to step into the spotlight by publishing a creative work. The vulnerability involved is something easily overlooked by readers — or even by those for whom it comes easily.
If you’re someone who feels that fear, anxiety, or a lack of confidence is getting in your way of publishing your book, you’ve found the right post. Now more than ever, the world needs your stories — so please allow me to cheer you on in the form of four strategies that can help you shift your mindset around the potential fear and anxiety that might thwart your dreams of publishing.
1. Recenter the Spotlight
Publishing a book is an act of vulnerability. No matter the genre in which you’re writing, or the subject you’re writing about, your name (or pseudonym) is on the cover and your words are on the pages. For some, that can seem like you are stepping out on a stage, under the bright lights, completely alone, and being judged by the entire world.
Let’s recenter the spotlight and instead shift the focus from how you look to how you help.
Instead of aiming to please the faceless masses staring at you from the dark, zoom in on the one reader that your book was written and published for. If your book’s purpose resonates with that one person — it’s a success. (This exercise is also very helpful when it comes time to market your book, because you already have an image of your ideal reader in your mind!)
For nonfiction writers, this might mean focusing on the problem you’re solving; for fiction, that focus might be on the entertainment or escape you are providing. No matter your goals for writing or publishing, when you make your book about the value you create for the reader, your ego takes a backseat and the harsh glare of the spotlight lowers immensely.
It’s also worth remembering that you are not your book. Your book may mean more to you than words could ever say, or it may be a deeply personal story, but it’s also something that you created. Worst-case scenario, if someone doesn’t like the thing you created, they don’t dislike you as a human being. This can be easier said than done, but creating a boundary between your self-worth and your manuscript can give you a strong foundation across your writing and publishing journey.
2. Find (and Lean On) Support You Can Trust
In our role as a publishing services provider, “is my manuscript any good?” is one of the first questions we hear from many new writers after they send in their manuscripts.
And this makes complete sense: writing is often a notoriously solitary endeavour, and emerging from the Swamp of Revisions™ can leave you feeling unsure or insecure about if all that effort resulted in something that you can proudly stand by. You might even feel like you’re experiencing imposter syndrome, which thrives on the fear that you’re ‘faking it’.
The good news is that, while writing is a mostly self-directed process, publishing is collaborative. There are several phases of the publishing process that double as opportunities to gather feedback on your book early on. Beyond improving your writing, this feedback can help you get used to the idea of people reading your work within the safety of a structured environment centered around your (and your book’s) needs.
One early step might involve sending your book to a small, trusted group of beta readers. The emphasis on trust is intentional — your beta readers should, ideally, be familiar with your book’s genre or subject matter, and be writers themselves. This process helps you fix glaring issues early on — even before an editor has taken a look. (Click here for an in-depth guide on how to find and get the most out of beta readers!)
Here at FriesenPress, helping authors triumph over imposter syndrome is something we do every day — most directly through our suite of professional editing and book coaching services. We understand how authors’ needs and experience levels vary; our processes are centered around providing the kind of feedback that our authors indicate will be most helpful to get their project where they want it to be. This might be gentler for some and more direct for others, but the ultimate goals are the same: crafting the best book possible and giving you the confidence to publish something that you’re incredibly proud of.
3. Reframe the Sting of Criticism
Having fear or anxiety isn't a sign that you shouldn't publish — in fact, it’s a sign that you care deeply about your work, and that is something to be nurtured and protected.
However, that same caring attitude can make the thought of receiving a 1-star review almost unbearable. This can be further amplified in a market (and, let’s be honest, world) that puts such a high degree of value on the importance of gathering lots of positive reviews.
So, how do we deal? To start: let’s return to our ‘one reader’ rule above. If you’ve written a book that no one dislikes, you’ve also written a book that no one will truly love. Strong reactions — even negative ones — means that you have a strong point of view.
Every successful author has scores of 1-star reviews. (Don’t believe me? Go look up your favourite book on Amazon and Goodreads!) If you get one yourself, try to consider it a badge of honour. It means that you have officially left the realm of “friends and family” and are now really making your way into the market.
However, if you’re still feeling unsure about being able to handle that negative feedback, it’s perfectly acceptable to ask for help. Reach out to a trusted friend or family member to help you scan your reviews for the first month or two. Ask them to pass along the positive feedback and filter out the rest. While we wouldn’t recommend this strategy indefinitely — there are many other ways to help you process any less-than-positive comments — having a trustworthy buffer can help make those early days as celebratory as they should be.
4. Minimize Regret and Manage the "What Ifs"
For our final section, let’s zoom out and consider the big picture again:
When you are 80 years old and looking back on your life, will you regret not publishing this book?
This form of mental modelling — most famously used by Jeff Bezos in his decision to start Amazon — is called ‘regret minimization’. Rather than focusing on all of the reasons not to proceed with publishing in the short term, put yourself in your future shoes. Most people find that the pain of potential regret far outweighs their comparatively small anxieties (like negative reviews) preventing them from living their dreams.
This big picture mindset can also be applied to the many what-if scenarios that might be plaguing your future publishing aspirations.
Someone wrote a mean review? Your book wasn’t accepted by a bookstore? You had disappointing attendance at an author event?
Those things all might sting for a short while, but let the movie play until the end: you will still wake up tomorrow knowing that you are a published author, with people in your life who couldn’t be more proud of you for chasing your dream.
Often, our fear of an event is far worse than the event itself, and the reality is that you are already a success. Writing and publishing a book means that you have written and published a book — a landmark accomplishment that very few people achieve in their lifetime. No one can ever take that away from you.
I’m the first to admit that I’m not a therapist or life coach. But, having worked in this industry for 10+ years, I am someone who has developed a fervent passion for encouraging people to publish their book and share their story with the world.
Teddy Roosevelt’s famed ‘man in the arena’ speech excerpt reminds us that "it is not the critic who counts." The credit belongs to the person who is actually in the arena — whose face is marred by dust and sweat, who strives valiantly, and who dares greatly.
Time and time again, I’ve seen firsthand how impactful the words of encouragement from our consulting team can be. The right support and nurturing hand can be instrumental in helping an author dare greatly and do something they never thought possible — like entering the arena of publishing.
With that in mind, I hope these strategies help you find your way. Your voice matters, your stories have value, and — most importantly — you’re never traveling alone.
Brian Cliffen brings a lifelong passion for the arts to his role as Marketing Manager at FriesenPress. After earning a degree in Popular Culture Studies at Brock University, Brian developed his communications career across a range of industries before finding his calling in 2014 — the year he discovered FriesenPress.
Leading the marketing team affords him many remarkable daily opportunities: creating resources and services that empower authors to share their best stories with the world; growing our 100% employee-owned business; and celebrating the amazing books we work with our authors to create.
Brian lives on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe Nation in eastern Ontario with his wife and dog. In his downtime, you’ll find him organizing his vinyl collection, cheering for his Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Bills, or cycling on the Cataraqui Trail.
