Experienced and Clueless

June 18, 2026

I became a member of The Novelry in 2020. In that year, I learned how to write a novel, which was something I'd wanted to do for a very long time. Since completing my courses in 2021, I've written another three novels in stealth mode. Meaning, not getting an agent or published but working my ass off on trying to write good books.

Lately, I've been wondering whether to stay with an online writing community.

A friend settled it for me, or tried to. You no longer need training wheels, he said. And it's true, in a way. After a few novels, you've built up enough instinct to know how a story works. You know things without knowing how you know them. But here's what's also true: every time I face a blank page, I know nothing. I have to invent these people from scratch, conjure a whole world, and trust that something will come. It humbles me every single time. Not in a romantic way. In a slightly nauseating and wtf-am-I-doing way.

So which is it? Am I experienced, or am I new? Both, I think. And the trick, what I'm still learning, is to hold both at once. To trust my instincts while staying loose enough to be surprised by them. To know enough not to panic, and to panic just enough to stay honest.

I don't need another how-to-write-a-novel course. I need to get on with the work. But I also still need coaches, workshops, conversations that crack something open. Not because I'm a beginner. Because the work keeps getting harder the better you get at it. That feeling of not knowing what you're doing? Don't lose it. It's not a weakness. It's how the good stuff gets in.

I'm keeping my writing community.