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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/36109
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

I have a psychological oddity when it comes to my own writing (particularly fiction, and particularly longer work). Obviously it may just be a personal problem, but perhaps other people have similar issues:

When I am working on my (longer) writing, it seems like the most fantastic thing in the world to me. I think every word is brilliant. But as soon as I finish it, it seems like the most horrible, talentless, unreadable trash. Intellectually, I know neither impression is likely to be correct. But even though I know this is my consistent pattern, it is almost impossible for me to not experience it as truth.

The "_brilliant!_" phase is actually kind of helpful, because it makes me happy and excited to write, and keeps me going. But the "_horrible!_" phase sends me into a depression, and makes it hard for me to edit my work, to let other people read it, to respond appropriately to criticism, or to feel good about submitting the work. Does anyone else deal with this, and if so, have they found a way around it?

Original score: 20