If you’re a new author struggling with low confidence plus recurring doubts and fears about your writing skills, you're in the right place.

Maybe you’ve always wanted to write a book but it was just a dream until you decided to do something about it recently. Next, you jumped in with both feet and started writing with a lot of passion and excitement.

Within a short time however, your confidence began to drop because:

• You're no longer sure your writing is good enough.
• You think too many writers out there are better than you.
• You believe people will laugh at you and your writing.
• You now feel overwhelmed with the whole writing process.

 Want to know a secret? You are not alone!

 According to Joanna Penn, a fiction and non-fiction author:

“Self-doubt and impostor syndrome happen to pretty much every writer, even the bestselling authors at the top of their field. Impostor syndrome is an extension of self-doubt and is rife in the author community. It appears that wherever we are on the writer’s journey, self-doubt will come along for the ride.”

Even so, Joanna Penn has written 30+ books and sold over 600,000 books in 162 countries and 6 languages. Not only does she write non-fiction for authors but she is also an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author known as J.F.Penn.

The point here is that having doubts or losing confidence from time to time is normal, whether you are a new author or a successful writer but it does not mean you should give up and stop writing.

Instead, you need to develop more confidence as a new author so you can continue writing and improving, regardless of all your fears and doubts, until you reach your goal or achieve your dream.

Ready to learn how?

Keep reading to discover 6 steps you can take to develop more confidence when you’re a new author.

1. Decide to Write Every Day

One of the best decisions you can make as a new author is choosing to write on a daily basis. When you do, you'll practice your writing, but it doesn't end there.

Writing every day can also help you to:

• Produce new ideas constantly.
• Write and communicate in a more persuasive manner.
• Think and reflect more on your life and your decisions.
• Become a better writer.

Not sure where to start? That’s okay.

Here are some tips you can use to start and keep to a daily writing habit: 

• Write at the same time every day, if possible.
• Have a time limit for your daily writing sessions like 20, 30 or 45 minutes or even more or less.
• Set a daily word count goal such as 100 or 300 words and so on.
• Identify your writing space in advance.
• Monitor and track your results.
• Reward yourself when you meet your writing goals.

In essence, write every day so you can practice your writing, improve it and gain more confidence as a result.

2. Gain More Knowledge About Writing.

You can develop more confidence as a new author when you learn more about writing.

Even though you can do this in various ways, reading is a good place to start. This means reading physical books, eBooks, blog posts, articles, case studies, special reports and so on, especially those written by successful authors and writing experts.

When you read more about writing as a new author, you will:

• Learn various aspects of the writing craft from different authors
• Know and understand different writing styles
• Improve your grammar and expand your vocabulary
• Encounter ideas and strategies that are new to you

Curious about some of the best books on writing?

Here are some of them, according to Jerry Jenkins, author of 21 New York Times bestsellers and nearly 200 books with over 72 million copies sold: 

• “On Writing” by Stephen King
• “How to write bestselling fiction” by Dean Koontz
• “On Writing Well” by William Zinsser
• “The Elements of Style” by William Strunk, Jnr. & E.B. White
• “Plot & Structure” by James Scott Bell

In addition to reading, you can also learn more about writing when you: 

• Attend online trainings, courses and webinars about writing
• Listen to audiobooks and podcasts on writing
• Participate in online writing conferences and events 

Make time to gain more knowledge about writing on a regular basis. The more you learn and use that knowledge to improve your writing, the higher your confidence level will soar.

3. Participate in Writing Contests

Many writing contests and competitions are open to both new and experienced authors.

In fact, you can find them in almost every type of writing niche and genre such as non-fiction, novels, essays, short stories, poems, flash fiction, novellas, film scripts and so on. While some charge an entry fee, there are also plenty of free writing contests.

As a new author, you can take part in relevant writing contests and develop more confidence when you go home with a prize. But your confidence level can also go up even when you don’t win, because you’ve learned how to:

• Write until you create something that’s good enough to submit
• Study and follow contest guidelines and submission process
• Write and submit by a deadline
• Write based on a specific theme or prompt in some cases
• Move on, continue writing and enter other contests

Don’t forget that some contests also provide quality feedback you can use to improve your writing. 

When you participate in writing contests on a regular basis as a new author, you will learn a lot, practice your writing more, stand a chance of winning a prize and gain more confidence faster than you can imagine.

4. Find and Join a Writing Community.

You can gain more confidence as a new author when you find and join a writing community or group that’s a good fit for you.

In simple terms, a writing community refers to a group of writers and authors who meet on a regular basis to achieve various goals and objectives that are relevant to them.

These can vary from one group to another and may include reading, discussing and sharing ideas about the craft and business of writing, and providing feedback on members’ drafts, among other things.

Because such groups usually have members with varying levels of expertise and success, new authors in their midst usually enjoy many of the following benefits:

• Access to more experienced authors who can answer their questions about writing and publishing
• Improved knowledge and understanding of the craft and business of writing
• Motivation and inspiration to increase their writing productivity
• Access to honest reviews and actionable feedback to improve their writing
• Support and encouragement to overcome writing challenges like self-doubt, lack of confidence, impostor syndrome, writer's block, rejection and so on.

5. Work with a Writing Coach.

Another effective method you can use to develop more confidence when you are a new author is by working with a writing coach

Similar to other types of coaches, a writing coach can be described as a guide who works with both new and experienced writers and authors so as to help them achieve a writing goal or break into a new niche/genre or improve their writing skills or even take their writing business to a higher level, among others.

Estelle Erasmus is a professional writing coach, instructor and former magazine editor-in-chief of five national consumer publications. In an article she wrote for Writers Digest, she explained that writing coaches can

• Help develop story structure and polish prose
• Offer accountability and goal setting
• Share editor and agent information
• Help you learn faster by reducing the learning curve
• Help you overcome writing obstacles and challenges

To get best results from a writing coach, always work with one that: 

• Has solid credentials that can be verified
• Possesses up to date experience in the niche or genre you are interested in
• Has testimonials from current and past students along with their names and contact details
• Provides a trial coaching session to determine a good fit on both sides

Some writing coaches provide one-on-one coaching services while others provide group coaching, but you can also find those who provide both.

With the support and encouragement of a writing coach, it’s possible to quickly develop confidence and produce a fantastic first draft or achieve any of your goals as a new author.

6. Get Feedback from a Professional Editor.

One of the best ways to develop more confidence as a new author is by hiring an editor so you can get professional feedback on your draft or manuscript.

Editors are professionals who use their knowledge, expertise and experience to search for mistakes and errors in your draft so they can suggest ways to fix them and make your writing shine. Some of these could be mistakes in grammar, spelling, punctuation, structure and organization, tone and voice, word choice and so on.

Various types of editing are necessary at different stages of the writing process and they include:

• Developmental editing
• Evaluation editing
• Content editing
• Line editing
• Copy editing
• Proofreading

Most professional editors specialize in one or two types but editing agencies and companies are known to provide all types of editing since they usually have a team of editors with different specialties

By hiring a professional editor, not only will you learn a lot and become a better writer, but you’ll also develop more confidence and increase your chances of getting your book published, even though you are still a new author.

Believe it or not, having fears, doubts and low confidence is all part of being a writer, whether you are new, experienced or even successful.

You’ll feel more confident about your skill as a writer when you write on a daily basis, gain more knowledge about writing and take part in writing contests and competitions.

You can also work with a writing coach, find and join a writing community that’s a good fit for you and get feedback on your drafts from a professional editor.

Have you used some of these ideas before? How did you overcome your fears and doubts when you first started writing?

Please comment and share with us below!