phobia writing essays

Using Psychology

Do you have an essay-writing phobia.

by jmalouff | Sep 30, 2011 | Uncategorized | 87 comments

A few years ago another academic and I were walking with a student (“Kiki”) who said that she always handed in essay assignments two weeks after they are due — the last day before she would receive a 0. Each time she lost 20% of the total possible points due to an automatic penalty of 2% per work day late. Over the long run she was ruining her chances of going on to postgraduate study. The other academic walking with us started to tell Kiki that the university had now extended the penalty period to three weeks with a maximum penalty of 30%, but I elbowed him right away and shook my head. I knew that if Kiki heard this news she would change to submitting three weeks late and suffer an extra 10% penalty. I knew that because I understand phobias, and Kiki had one — essay-writing phobia.

This phobia involves fear and avoidance of writing an assigned essay and/or submitting the essay. In addition to lateness penalties, the avoidance can lead to last-minute writing with its attendant stress, poor quality, and low marks. This phobia is more common than you might think.

What causes essay-writing phobia? The causes are similar for all types of phobias. The main factors likely to contribute here are genetic, biological predispositions to feel anxious, perfectionism in general, setting an unrealistically high goal for the essay, low self-efficacy for writing in general or for the specific essay, and low levels of self-control. Two other possible factors: Avoidance helps the person feel much better in the short run by reducing anxiety, and avoidance with frantic last-minute writing gives the person an ego-protecting excuse for earning a low mark.

So what is the way out of essay-writing phobia? I’ll suggest 10 strategies in order of value for most individuals:

1. Change your goal to something realistic and valuable, like doing your best under the circumstances or submitting on time or ending your avoidance. Put aside goals of being perfect and impressing the heck out of someone.

2. Gradually expose yourself to what you fear. Write the easiest part of the essay first — start with your name or the title. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Then write the next easiest part and so on, all the way to submitting. Praise yourself for courage at each step. Use my favorite definition of courage: Doing the right thing even tho scared. There is a great deal of research evidence that gradual exposure helps eliminate phobias.

3. Discuss your fears with someone who cares about your welfare or write in a journal about your fears. Bringing them out in the open will help you deal with them.

4. Calm yourself thru deep breathing, meditation, or some other means.

5. Focus on the task at hand — tell yourself what to do next on the assignment. Think that you are writing a draft that you will improve later, if necessary. Positive thoughts often lead to positive behavior.

6. Challenge self-defeating thoughts such as “Ï can’t do this” by thinking clearly about what “this” is and by looking for evidence from the past about whether you can do it.

7. Think of times you have written good essays and submitted on time.

8. Think of how you overcame some fear before in your life.

9. Think of individuals you admire who acted bravely.

10. Write in a new location or using a different method, e.g., paper rather than laptop. The change of procedure might give you a new perspective or expectation.

Those are my thoughts. For a case study describing treatment of essay-writing phobia, see http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0005796786900422.

What helps you reduce essay writing fear and avoidance?

John Malouff, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology

[Photo by Tyler Nix on Unsplash]

87 Comments

One of the most effective ways I’ve found to avoid procrastinating is to plan what I’m going to write thoroughly and to break it down into manageable chunks (introduction, arguments, conclusion, for instance). Often, I think we put off writing because we don’t know where to start or we’re afraid of getting lost halfway through. If you have a good plan, you always know what you have to write next, and if you chunk it, the job becomes less daunting, because you can take it a bit at a time.

As professional project managers say: first you need to plan the work, then you need to work the plan.

Dear John I have had this battle for a few years now, although not usually late with assignments, essay induced anxiety levels are high, especially close to submit time. My motto is still working on it – Never give up. So thanks for giving me something to help me “work on it”. I look forward to reading the case study, when, I my essays are finished. Kind regards

This is brilliant! While I have never submitted an assignment late, I do procrastinate and worry every time I start an essay! I have to admit I have phaffed about for half a day over the abstract and introduction for a recent postgrad essay. Years of part-time study and I still agonise! :o)

I have often wondered whether we sometimes set ourselves up for failure so we have an excuse for not doing as well as we could.

Unfortunately though, setting high goals for an essay is often necessary for some students who need to maintain high GPAs in order to be competitive for places in honours and masters programs. I have found that this pressure added to my anxiety levels during my UGRAD. The old saying “You still get degrees with Ps” is true but not really helpful for a stressed out Psych UGRAD!!

I think I have the opposite going on…..I can’t bear to leave an essay to the last minute. I need weeks (or months) to write, reflect, write and rewrite, write, reflect etc etc in order to arrive at a place where I feel ready to submit my work. This is the ONLY way I can handle the pressure of the task. And it actually gets me engaged with the task, and motivated to keep chipping away at it.

I agree, breaking it into chunks works. And on a hard day I’m writing the reference list or something more light on. I know on the next or the next day I’ll feel ready to tackle the bigger stuff………..but in the end it does come down to sheer hard work and putting in the time – including doing the painstaking research, and having enough time for reflection. And the feeling that you’ve put that sort of effort in is satisfying in itself, and even more so if receive a good grade.

Thanks for the article. Having worked in the Australian Public Service for 19 years, writing is not something that scares me – but having returned to post-grad study, the concept of submitting an academic piece of writing has been more confronting. A different sort of pressure! Some great suggestions there – especially no. 10, though my wife might wonder what the heck I am up to tapping away on a keyboard in the buff! 🙂

Thank you for your article. The bodies of the essay seems to be the main part for me. I found if I break this up in chunks, topics are a lot better, ideally. Physically a relaxing massage may trigger more thoughts. Finally organised and finishing the task ahead of time.

Thanks to all of you for your comments. Many of you point to breaking the assignment into manageable parts. That, of course, is what we do in eating. We cut up our food into small chunks and then we chew it into even smaller pieces. Good process!

I like the other ideas too — planning carefully, starting early, getting massages, consistent hard work, persisting, What thoughts do use to combat anxiety about essay performance?

Arguably, the behavioural treatment of “phobias” is one of psychology’s paradigmatic successes. If the problem is with the submission of work, I think that what is required is a program of systematic desensitisation. Treatment could be integrated into an academic course, and as with all such programs would be fairly labout intensive. We would start with the submission of one sentence, delivered immediately upon receipt of the task, and after feedback had been given on that sentence, increase the task demand by an agreed on ‘trivial and immediately deliverable’ amount, give feedback, maintain salience by set a proximal deadline and so on until the task was complete.

Hi tjartz. I also favor gradual exposure treatment for phobias.

Holy crap this is a legitimate phobia? Like, a phobia that is actually recognized by professionals? I’m not just lazy/a neurotic perfectionist? I’m going to look at the link OP provided to the case study because that would explain so much. I am stunned.

Background info: I am taking a year off from my undergraduate studies on account of abysmal grades and burnout. I am not a bad student, per se—I graduated in the top 10% of my high school class and was accepted Early Decision into a prestigious research university—but even since first grade, my experiences with essays and the like have been very similar to Kiki’s.

Hi Miriam. Not only is it a real phobia, it is a common one among university students. I see evidence of that in the many, many individuals who access my posting on the topic. Also I know students who partly defeat themselves by avoiding work on assigned essays.

In the nicest way… I don’t think that there are any illegitimate phobias. Everyone with a phobia is suffering, and often unnecessarily.

You might like to have a look at Carol Dweck’s work on ‘self theories’. In particular how we can be scuppered by implicit beliefs about intelligence and achievement.

Hi there. I agree — there are many different types of stimuli that lead to phobias in at least some people.

This was really helpful. Right now I cannot give up any essays on time and I have a very low GPA. I am therefore gonna seek help and use some of these to help move forward in my academic life. It is also good to know I’m not the only one sufering

Hi CM. You are not alone with that problem. Good luck!

The problem I have is It seems that I can’t write something good without the anxiety spurring me on. It seems to give me some extra ability to focus but also makes me hate the process. I can start writing an essay really early, but the good stuff does not seem to come out until the deadline approaches and the adreniline kicks in! It is really annoying. I would love to sit calmly and write an essay and even enjoy the process, but everything I seem to write is trite until I am backed into a corner. It is so frustrating!

Hi Davenwillow. It seems that you need challenge or high arousal to write your best. If you use your imagination, you find find other ways than an impending deadline to create challenge or high arousal when writing. Please write again if you find an alternative that works for you.

My writing anxieties are beyond paralyzing. I become physically ill from the start of my writing, until my grade is posted. This information is so helpful, thank you!

It is really nice to see someone acknowledge the topic of essay phobia in students. I have been struggling with phobia for taking tests and writing papers for a while now. During my school years I feared preparing for my final exams but now that I am in college I have a strong fear of writing papers. I have tried making outlines, setting concrete time limits, writing from the body of the paper, taking anxiety medication but none of these methods help to counter my anxiety/phobia. I know this might seem like excuses to prevent myself from writing academic papers but this is truly how it is for me. I try to talk about my writing problems with psychologists however it is hard for them to grasp just how bad it is for me and they chose to focus on other problems instead.

Hi Sadbot. I know a student who describes her avoidance much as you do. If you solve the problem for yourself, tell the world how you did it — you could help many individuals.

Thanks for your thoughts, John, and everyone. I may have a ‘phobia’ now, but I didn’t start out that way. I’m an adult who returned to college 25 years after leaving, so learning how to write academically after years of e-mailing and Facebooking conversationally, has been really difficult. I think my phobia has grown out of my self-imposed perfectionism and the tedium in attempting it. Everything I write TAKES ME SO LONG. But, I agree that breaking into chunks, however one chooses to do it, is very helpful. Graphic organizers would be helpful, but I have yet to find a program that’s really cooperative with a newb. I spend all day trying to learn the program rather than getting started on my writing. Ugh. I’m sorry you all struggle, but it’s nice to know I’m not alone.

Hi Tracy. Albert Bandura would say that low self-efficacy about doing an assignment adequately is at the heart of essay-writing phobia. For students with a phobia, a better goal than doing the assignment adequately (which to some of them means perfectly) is to do the assignment as a good (or perfect!) student does: following a preparation/writing schedule, starting early, making continual progress, and submitting on time or early. In the long run of a career, timeliness in writing is more important than perfection.

I’m so glad I came across this discussion. But I wish I saw this 5 years ago.

I’ve always had problems submitting essays on time back in my college days. I majored in both Psychology and Linguistics, and took a bunch of other social science electives so understandably there were a lot of writing to do. At some stage I gave up on myself and thought I was just a lazy ass procrastinator who will never amount to much.

Before I start on an essay I would spend a lot of effort doing my readings, planning my structure, and extracting the relevant information. But when it comes to typing out the actual essay, I get stuck. The untitled word document can sit on my laptop screen for days and we just stare at each other until its finally a week overdue. Consequentially, I usually get a good raw grade for content but the late penalty takes it down to a mediocre grade.

Fast-forward until today, I have worked in a stressful(but boring) corporate environment for a while and never had a problem with time-management or punctually. A possible explanation I’ve thought of is that, ironically, I cared more about the quality of my college assignments than the tasks at my current job.

Lately, I’ve been thinking of going back to pursue a Master’s Degree but my undergrad grades make me weep with regret. How could I possibly tell the admission panel that my subpar GPA was due to late assignments and expect them to wave their wands of forgiveness? I probably can’t…

Thank you John and everyone here for sharing your thoughts and sorry for my long post in secondlanguage-English!

Hi CQ. You are not alone in suffering consequences of essay-writing phobia. You write well — look for a way ahead.

Wow- sums me up to a T! I’m doing my second undergrad, but my first one almost never got finished because I wouldn’t submit a thesis…it’s not that it wasn’t written, it was. In fact I wrote it one night but then spent the majority of the term “tweaking” it…which really just meant trying to fact check and double fact check, look for grammar problems and pick it apart to peices for no reason 🙁 I went as far as ruining my computer with some weird virus and was so relieved that I had a LEGIT reason not to hand in HAHA. My cousin is a computer whiz so that didn’t last for long. I took it to him to get it fixed but he was aware of the situation and ran my document through some of his editor friends then printed and submitted it for me omg! I got an A, but I felt robbed of my intellectual property- does that make sense?! I forgot about it for a while, but now I’m writing papers again and I can’t help but feel the same feelings as before. I know I have a problem with submitting papers but was too embarrassed to tell anyone. I finally did and thankfully my school has counsellors who are totally aware of this problem so now I get extensions and stuff but I try my hardest not to take too much advantage of that because I know in real life there are no extensions 🙁 I wanna “fix” this problem so bad…sooooo exposure exposure exposure! I may just try that writing naked tip too HAHAHA! Thanks for the great post and all the lovely dialogue going on here. Makes me feel a lot better about this 🙂

Thanks for your comment, NWM. Persistence is important in changing a habit.

Hi! I just wanted to say I really liked this article – I’m so glad I finally have a name for what I’m going through! I hate, hate writing essays; when I’m faced with a deadline, I’m sometimes tempted to grab a hammer and smash my head or hand in just so I won’t have to write it. The weird thing is, I didn’t always have this phobia or feel terribly anxious about my essays. I did pretty well for my first 2 years of college, I would submit my essays at the deadline or maybe a day or a few hours late and get maybe an A- or a B+ with a late penalty. I’m in my fourth and final honours semester now, and for the past 2 years, I can’t seem to meet any of the deadlines. My procrastination has gotten really bad – I sometimes submit in my essays one week late. For every day I’m late, my profs dock my grade by one half grade, so an A becomes an A-. I start crying almost uncontrollably when I know I have an essay due; I go into denial mode and consider quite seriously jumping out of the window to make the task of writing an essay go away and I start to seriously consider the benefits of jumping since it would mean that I would never have to do another essay again. I know this is absurd, it is my last semester and after this, I’ll never have to write another academic paper again. I also know that once I’m done with my paper, I’ll feel really happy and totally at peace and in love with the world and I will no longer want to jump. I don’t think I’m a bad student, I’m actually quite academically inclined and really like sitting in classes, listening to the profs teach. If I keep my grades up, I’ll likely graduate with a second upper class honours which is crucial for me if I want to enter my country’s civil service. But I am so scared that I won’t be able to make it because I keep submitting my essays in late. Every essay is a living hell I have to go through :(.

Hi jtxz. I sense your suffering — I feel sad thinking about it. Part of your suffering comes from an approach-avoidance conflict (I think that you want to complete your assignment and get a good grade but you feel anxious about doing the work). If avoidance of writing assignments is your only avoidance, your problems will soon end when you graduate — you will be free!

i cant write my essay. i just cant. im in college i should be able to write aa paper by myself.

Hi Moe. Phobias, though irrational, are common. I used to have a phobia of diving into water. I also had a phobia of public speaking. I am happy to say that I have left these phobias behind.

If the strategies in my blog don’t help you overcome the problem, consult a psychologist on campus. Phobia treatment usully works well.

it’s a relief to know that i’m not the only one. I failed a course in April because of this problem. now i’m taking it for the second time but the same thing is happening. the dateline was yesterday. and to avoid myself from thinking about the penalty, i play game on the smartphone. it is so hard to overcome this kind of problem. i wish i never do this master degree. i hope the lecturer still accept my essay assignment although i know there is no chance coz he is so strict kind of person. thank you for this post anyway. i will continue my essay now.

Hi Liza. Persistence often pays off in overcoming a phobia or any other type of problem.

This hits close to home, so close that even my nickname is Kiki! And as I am writing this comment, my deadline for a 1500 word essay is in 23 minute and I haven’t started >.< I have no problem studying for exams and doing assignments that do not include academic writing but just the thought of writing academic essays makes me break out in sweats! I have always either submitted my essays in late at uni or submitted in essays that only reached half the word limit. I would procrastinate until the last possible minute to start because usually the pressure of deadlines makes me less inclined to be perfect with my writing and just produce anything. In saying this, I have never failed an essay but also rarely ever achieved a great mark. My friends are always baffled by my phobia as I am an avid reader so they assume this means I am a great writer. My new years resolution to tackle this phobia is to write more. I will try to give myself things that I am interested in to research and write about. Hopefully I will be able to go through with this resolution!

Hi Kiki. You are a member of a large group (millions worldwide?) of individuals who fear and avoid academic writing. To leave the group, go right on Courage Street and then right again on Persistence Boulevard. If you submit a written assignment on time, with a proper word count, after starting early, and earn a high grade, your improved student behavior will be reinforced by the grade. If the grade is not so good, you may learn that you are not harmed by receiving a mediocre grade for maximum performance.

I ended up reading this blog because I have an essay due tomorrow which I haven’t yet started. I’ve done all the background reading and research, and even written a detailed outline, but I have a complete block on writing the essay itself until I’m almost out of time.

I used to think it was something to do with the adrenaline kick when I finish something half an hour before deadline (I’ve never actually missed one, but at my college being five minutes late means the mark is capped at 40% – if the policy was 2% deduction a day, I’d be even worse) – now, though, I’ve realised that it absolutely is perfectionism gone horribly wrong. I know my writing isn’t anywhere near the quality of published work, therefore it’s automatically terrible and the marker will think I’m an academic failure (and a failure of a person, too, because why stop there?) Writing it all at the last minute gives me a protective excuse for submitting something imperfect.

I’m trying to overcome this, but when I do start early I agonise over every single sentence and an assignment that should take a day or two of solid work takes weeks instead, with the bulk of it still being written at the last minute! It’s an improvement on high school, which I dropped out of after missing literally every deadline I had there, but still.

Interestingly, this isn’t the case with written reports and evaluations I’ve had to do at work – because my manager either just thanks me for them or, if necessary, asks for revisions. It’s the grading that’s the trouble for me, as if the entirely of my self is being reduced to a number. Of course that’s going to be stressful, even if the number isn’t a disappointingly low one.

Thank you for this post! I know it’s a few years old now, but at least I know that I’m not alone.

Hi Leksa. You are not alone. I hope that at some point you will care much less what markers think of you — you are not on this earth to please markers, or to be perfect.

Thank you for this article. I have struggled to explain my writing anxiety to others but when I do, I become frustrated because they don’t seem to understand. And I can’t make sense of it either. This has been an academic struggle for me going back to grade school. It has even negatively impacted my professional career.

I graduated a semester late from college because I didn’t turn in a paper and had to retake a class. Attempted to get my masters but after twice trying to complete my thesis class I gave up. It is not that I can’t write it is just such a difficult task…it is mentally and emotionally exhausting. I know that it has to do on some level with perfectionism and a fear of criticism. Like many I have the mindset that if I don’t try then I didn’t succeed by choice. Not sure were the mindset originated from but that is the inner voice that I battle with. This is the only area academically that I struggle with, I excel in all others.

I am currently back in school and picked an academic track that isn’t heavy on written assignments. Thought that with less writing that I could “will” my way through the writing but it is so bad that I look at the syllabus to determine how much a written assignment is weighted to determine if I will turn it in late or even at all. Which means that I have to work harder to sustain grades that can sustain the loss of points.

My issue isn’t organizing my thoughts because I can create an outline, have everything in order and can verbally recite the contents of the paper if asked. But when I put my fingers on the keys I feel like I am going into battle. It is a horrible experience that sometimes I just choose not to fight.

Hi Juanita. I can feel your suffering. I hope you will try psychological strategies or see a psychologist — anything that might help you overcome the problem.

oh dear… Could I use this as an ‘extenuating circumstance’ to stop my essay being capped at 40%?

My university is totally draconian. 1 minute late and its capped at 40%!

The ironic thing was that it was the first time I started an essay early, I chipped at it slowly and got over my fear. I was 1 minute late to submit and all the effort I made dealing with my ‘issue’ was in vain. It’s really discouraging to want to start something early again.

I was under so much stress, i pretty much skipped Christmas celebrations to work on my frigging essay that drove me to tears and unexplained increased heart rate for three weeks!

I still submitted something subpar because I broke it into too many little chunks that took me beyond the submission date so i still pulled a 42 hour all nighter to reach the word count by the date. Imagine my blood shot, teary eyes when the woman told me I am a minute late.

God I am crying now remembering it now (This was three days ago). And I am on this website because I am back to my essay avoiding ways. Sigh.

Jaappy, you suffered mightily due to be slightly tardy in submitting. Although you did not receive the grade reward you wanted, you did show yourself that you can start early and submit at about the due time. Your next step is to start early and submit early. You are very close to that level of performance, which may gain you the grade you want and positive emotions.

Thank you so much for this article! I’ve been struggle with this problem for years (since high school). And I feel like it has gotten worse as each semester goes by. I meant have to graduated from my undergrad degree last semester but I failed a subject (which wasn’t even meant to be hard in the first place) due to the exact same problem as Kiki in this article, in that I have this bad habit of submitting assignments a week or two weeks after the due date. I think it has a lot to do with my perfectionism which I have trouble dealing with, like I’m always re-writing and correcting everything before I even get to the rest of the essay. Even as I am writing this comment, I’m constantly either correcting myself or rewording my sentences.

But I also think I have a problem with academic writing in general – I found that my ideas lack coherence and/or depth (or they’re simply all over the place). I also have problems paraphrasing an author’s words or explaining particular concepts, as well as putting forward my own arguments. Often my teachers comment on how I’m just summarising what these writers are saying. It seems that I’m really terrible at critical analysis.

Everytime I have to do a journal article/literature review, research project or a combination of both, I get extremely anxious. But generally whenever I have to do an assignment, I get anxious, even just reading the subject guide which outlines the assessment tasks for the semester stresses me out.

I’m really tired of making excuses and apologies for having to submit assignments after the due date. I’ve gone to three different counselors in the past about this and I didn’t feel like they were very helpful. I feel like I need a personal academic tutor or something. At the same time, I feel really embarrassed about it. I also think I need to learn how to stand on my own and not rely or depend on other people all the time. Every time I ask help from people and end up getting good marks for a specific task, I feel like the credit’s not mine to take. It doesn’t help that I’m slow and disorganised (mentally and physically)…

I might have to give couseling another shot for this problem is literally starting to drive me insane. I hope what I’ve written here makes sense (I’m almost tempted to discard this comment but I’m going to leave it here because I think I need to get this off my chest).

Many thanks again! 🙂

Hi Anonyme. Many other individuals share your difficulties. Persistence in overcoming the problem is your best bet.

Thanks, John! I really appreciate your comment. (Just realised, I have a few typos on my post, e.g. *I’ve been struggling)

I did not notice any typos.

I feel so identified with this! I’ve had a big problem sitting down studying since high school, difficulties to find and stick to topics, organize myself and, well, I’m afraid of writing essays. During my undergrads I kind of managed to either hand in on time and get ok grades or hand in late and get (very) good grades. My university didn’t mind, but my sense of self-worth really suffered! I’m not really motivated to hand in some last-minute crap anymore (if I even had something written) when I know that in theory I could do so much better. I do try to sit down early, I love to learn, I love all the academic environment etc. It just doesn’t help. Last autumn I started a Masters, which is really heavy on writing papers and this university is much more strict than my former one. From the beginning I felt inferior (which adds to my anxieties) due to how late I handed in my papers during my undergrads. Result is that until now I haven’t managed to submit even one (of many), am blocked from future courses and scared to be kicked out. Should I talk to someone about it and whom? I always feel that this is my battle that I gotta go through alone and not bother University staff with inappropriate requests :/ In fact, a couple of months ago I contacted my University’s psychologist who sent me to a psychiatrist who told me that I’m lazy, a fake student (procrastinator!), not made for studying and should stop torturing myself and instead look for a job (knowing myself I would do the same in a job). I was supposed to have more consultations but this one crushed me so much (and increased my fears and reduced my self-worth even more) that I promised to myself to battle it alone. Now I have realized that I can’t do this alone and contacted another psychologist, but I don’t know if it’s too late to save my studies, especially since my university doesn’t seem supportive. Anyway, I was so glad to read your post and to know that I’m not the only one suffering through this. I’m determined to win this fight and learn to love my papers, though I don’t yet know how…

Hi Nina. I can sense your frustration. I am glad that you have sought help from another psychologist and that you are working toward overcoming your problem.

You seem to have low self-efficacy about writing essays. The comment you wrote on this blog shows excellent writing ability.

You could try the methods I suggest in my blog. Also, you could read this book and try some of its suggestions: You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life Paperback – April 23, 2013 by Jen Sincero

Best wishes, John

Wow, I’m feeling anxious just reading these comments. I’m searching for help for my college-age son, who is extremely bright but can barely write a word without intense self-loathing (and I know he inherited that from me).

He’s worked with therapists and tutors but still he suffers to the point where he drops classes if he feels he can’t manage the writing–which is all too often. His last tutor said he needs to be on anxiety medication, but we’re wary of side effects. I’m wondering if anyone’s tried hypnotism?

Hi Worried Mom. He might benefit from using the methods I describe. If those fail, next he could consult a psychologist who provides cognitive-behavioral therapy. After that: a psychiatrist, who might prescribe an anti-depressant or an anti-anxiety drug. Hypnotherapy might help, but i wold not bet on it.

I have an extreme case. I have very unrealistic goals when it comes to essay writing and perfectionism issues. I usually end up doing well in everything like tests and exams except writing essays. I fail courses and have been on academic probation and kicked out of university twice now. Once in 1994 and once now in 2016. My problem is that when it comes to writing an essay, I spend alot of time researching the material and trying to come up with great ideas and a great thesis. I have sleep disturbances during the time when the essay is assigned and due. I do all the leg work but have nothing to show. I can get 70 percent in a course without the essay component that is worth 20 percent of mark. But without handing in the essay, I fail the course.

The very few times that I have handed in my essay, they have been late and I have received penalties. I can’t even say I procrastinate. I have fail of failure and don’t want to hand in a crappy essay but also am plagued with this phobia I guess.

Background is that I have been diagnosed with bipolar since 2004 and am on meds. However, when it’s time to write essays, it effects my sleep and mood. I see people with mediocre grades getting through the programs, not to insult them at the least, while I am failing. I have spent so much time and money and have more than enough credits to have two degrees by now. However, I have none to my name.

I just can’t leave it alone. I love studying and learning and every time I go back to college or university, I think it will be different this time. Somehow, I will be able to hand in the paper even though it is not what is up to “my standard”. I also have a fear of plagiarism as well.

To make the long story short, is there anything you can suggest to help me. My motto seems to be I will die trying. Thanks for reading my comment.

Hi Jane. Your fear of imperfection leads you to fail. Perhaps it is time to view yourself and your writing as imperfect. That is how I think of myself and my writing. With your academic writing, switch your goal from perfect writing to submitting on time. Later you can add the goal of getting a passing grade. Go forward one small step at a time.

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8 Bold Ways to Overcome Your Fear of Writing

by Sarah Gribble | 0 comments

Today I want to talk about fear. Fear of writing, fear of sharing your work, fear of publishing—and how you can overcome it.

Writers face fear on a day-to-day basis.

The self-doubt . The fear of failure. And, oh, the vulnerability.

Writing is hard enough with all the self-evaluation and doubt about your abilities. But then sharing your work with other people so they can critique or review it? CRINGE.

When you sink into that fear it debilitates you. If you let fear hold you back, you’re ensuring you never achieve your goals. You’ll never write that book and you’ll never get published. All because you were too scared.

8 Ways to Overcome Your Fear of Writing

It’s time to stop letting fear control you and get writing. Here’s how:

1. Do what scares you.

When you’re up against something that makes you cringe, ask yourself what the worst-case scenario is. Is it actually  harmful? Unless it’s something like jumping from a bridge into a rocky river or stepping in front of a speeding vehicle, it’s probably not.

Fear is trying to keep you safe. It needs to learn that just because something is scary doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s detrimental to your health. Do what scares you, and keep doing it, and the fear will subside.

This includes fear of our own writing. I'm not saying you have to go write a 90,000 word novel. Start with a short story, or try out some writing prompts.

Aspiring writers might feel intiimdated because they don't think that they are a great writer. The reality is, you can never become a great writer unless you practice—and to practice, you have to write.

Embrace and overcome your fear by putting words down. Start writing, have patience with yourself, and worry about the rest later.

The blank page becomes way less scary as soon as you put words on it.

2. Stop procrastinating.

Your house is already clean enough. That TV show can wait. No, you don’t need to run to the store to pick up a bag of chips.

Figure out when the best time for you to write is and then write.

If you really, truly need a break to clear your mind, set a time limit. Ten minutes of scrubbing the grout with a toothbrush and then get back to your writing.

Ultimately, those who procrastinate will be more prone to writing off procrastination as writer's block—and the more time you spend away from writing, the scary it will become.

3. Learn from criticism.

Criticism is what everyone fears. Not just in writing, but in life. We all want to be liked, to be perfect, to be praised.

Your writing will not please everyone and that’s something you should realize and accept now. Criticism is much easier to take when you go into it knowing that fact.

Don’t just ignore criticism, though. Writing is like everything else in that it requires practice. You don't have to rank #1 on Amazon or make a bestseller list your first go (even though I won't argue that would be fantastic).

The first meal you cooked wasn’t a gourmet meal. The first time you dribbled a basketball wasn’t Lebron-level. Someone was there to point out what you were doing wrong and set you on the right path. They taught you how to get better.

That’s what criticism is: teaching.

It's not  rejecting your work, which might be why some writers fail to share their work: because their fear of rejection is mistakenly associated with getting critiques.

Yes, sometimes it’s mean-spirited, especially in this age of internet trolls. But even in those nasty reviews, there’s normally something to learn from.

Find it. Use it. And do better next time.

4. Stop revising.

You want every sentence in your work to be perfect . I have a secret for you: you’ll never get there.

Your writing will never be perfect. 

Not to you, not to your editors, and not to your readers. It’s impossible, so stop revising ad nauseam. At some point, you have to let it go and put the work out there.

Perfectionism can stunt your creative writing instead of empower it.

To avoid this, set a limit. I prefer three drafts. That’s it. Three and then I let it fly on its own.

What are you writing for? We'll never know unless you decide to share your work.

5. Set goals and move toward them.

Focus on milestones like daily word counts and deadlines (self-imposed or otherwise).

Writing a book is like summiting a mountain: you do it  one step at a time . When you reach the top you might be a little exhausted and out of breath, but you’ll look back at all you’ve accomplished and feel proud.

Without these smaller milestones, it might be hard to finish your piece of writing, or even find the motivation to keep writing each day.

Stories are finished one day at a time, with hard work and a desire to grow your writing process.

Don't sweat the small stuff in your first drafts, like word choice. Instead, set a long term goal of continually learning how to write better and smaller milestones that will help you finish stories you start.

All of this is accomplished word by word, and by turning real and irrational fears into manageable tasks.

6. Embrace the fear of writing.

You’re going to be scared frequently in this business. My stomach still flips every time I submit a short story , even though I’ve submitted hundreds of times. It’s going to happen.

The trick is to acknowledge it and move forward. It didn’t kill you.

In fact, that little tingle of fear should be your signal to celebrate. You did what scared you and that’s amazing.

One book that a lot of writers really love on this subject is The War of Art  by Steven Pressfield. If you're feeling discouraged or swallowed by your fear, check out this book for some motivation.

Even better, find and join a writing group like we have here at The Write Practice. Nothing helps you overcome your fears like a supportive community with a kindred creative spirit.

7. If your character can do it, so can you.

You don’t let your characters sit back on their heels because they’re scared, do you? I hope not, because if you do, you don’t have a story .

Your characters don’t have the luxury of sitting on the bench. They must make decisions and do something about the problem. And so should you.

Don’t let fear of writing take over your writing life. Decide to move forward, to write that book, to send out that manuscript. Decide and then do it.

8. Ask for help if you need it.

Don’t be afraid to ask for time to yourself so that you can write. Your family and friends will understand you need that time because writing is important to you.

Find a group of writers and readers that can go through your story and give constructive feedback. You can't improve in a vacuum.

Need to know what a day in the life of a flight attendant looks like, or the lingo of a truck driver? Ask them. Trust me, you’re not bothering them. People love talking about themselves.

In the same vein, if you need help with research, that’s literally what librarians are for. They’ll be glad to help.

Don’t let fear of asking for help stagnate your writing.

Embrace the Fear

I want to leave you with these words from Carrie Fisher:

Your fears are natural and normal. They're also not the end of the story.

Your task, the challenge for every writer, is to face that fear of writing, acknowledge it, and write, share, publish anyway .

Need extra motivation? Have you checked out The Write Practice’s 100 Day Book program ? It’s the best way to stop letting fear of writing control you and get that book done. Click here to find more information on the course.

What scares you most about writing and/or the business side of writing? What are some steps you can take to overcome that fear?  Let me know in the comments !

Today I want you to spend fifteen minutes writing about a time you were scared to do something but did it anyway. Describe the exact feelings of fear you had. How did you feel after you'd done what scared you?

When you’re finished, share your work in the Pro Practice Workshop here (and if you’re not a member yet, you can join here ).

Sarah Gribble

Sarah Gribble is the author of dozens of short stories that explore uncomfortable situations, basic fears, and the general awe and fascination of the unknown. She just released Surviving Death , her first novel, and is currently working on her next book.

Follow her on Instagram or join her email list for free scares.

Work with Sarah Gribble?

Bestselling author with over five years of coaching experience. Sarah Gribble specializes in working with Dark Fantasy, Fantasy, Horror, Speculative Fiction, and Thriller books. Sound like a good fit for you?

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Writing Anxiety

What this handout is about.

This handout discusses the situational nature of writer’s block and other writing anxiety and suggests things you can try to feel more confident and optimistic about yourself as a writer.

What are writing anxiety and writer’s block?

“Writing anxiety” and “writer’s block” are informal terms for a wide variety of apprehensive and pessimistic feelings about writing. These feelings may not be pervasive in a person’s writing life. For example, you might feel perfectly fine writing a biology lab report but apprehensive about writing a paper on a novel. You may confidently tackle a paper about the sociology of gender but delete and start over twenty times when composing an email to a cute classmate to suggest a coffee date. In other words, writing anxiety and writers’ block are situational (Hjortshoj 7). These terms do NOT describe psychological attributes. People aren’t born anxious writers; rather, they become anxious or blocked through negative or difficult experiences with writing.

When do these negative feelings arise?

Although there is a great deal of variation among individuals, there are also some common experiences that writers in general find stressful.

For example, you may struggle when you are:

• adjusting to a new form of writing—for example, first year college writing, papers in a new field of study, or longer forms than you are used to (a long research paper, a senior thesis, a master’s thesis, a dissertation) (Hjortshoj 56-76).
• writing for a reader or readers who have been overly critical or demanding in the past.
• remembering negative criticism received in the past—even if the reader who criticized your work won’t be reading your writing this time.
• working with limited time or with a lot of unstructured time.
• responding to an assignment that seems unrelated to academic or life goals.
• dealing with troubling events outside of school.

What are some strategies for handling these feelings?

Get support.

Choose a writing buddy, someone you trust to encourage you in your writing life. Your writing buddy might be a friend or family member, a classmate, a teacher, a colleague, or a Writing Center tutor. Talk to your writing buddy about your ideas, your writing process, your worries, and your successes. Share pieces of your writing. Make checking in with your writing buddy a regular part of your schedule. When you share pieces of writing with your buddy, use our handout on asking for feedback .

In his book Understanding Writing Blocks, Keith Hjortshoj describes how isolation can harm writers, particularly students who are working on long projects not connected with coursework (134-135). He suggests that in addition to connecting with supportive individuals, such students can benefit from forming or joining a writing group, which functions in much the same way as a writing buddy. A group can provide readers, deadlines, support, praise, and constructive criticism. For help starting one, see our handout about writing groups .

Identify your strengths

Often, writers who are experiencing block or anxiety have a worse opinion of their own writing than anyone else! Make a list of the things you do well. You might ask a friend or colleague to help you generate such a list. Here are some possibilities to get you started:

• I explain things well to people.
• I get people’s interest.
• I have strong opinions.
• I listen well.
• I am critical of what I read.
• I see connections.

Choose at least one strength as your starting point. Instead of saying “I can’t write,” say “I am a writer who can …”

Recognize that writing is a complex process

Writing is an attempt to fix meaning on the page, but you know, and your readers know, that there is always more to be said on a topic. The best writers can do is to contribute what they know and feel about a topic at a particular point in time.

Writers often seek “flow,” which usually entails some sort of breakthrough followed by a beautifully coherent outpouring of knowledge. Flow is both a possibility—most people experience it at some point in their writing lives—and a myth. Inevitably, if you write over a long period of time and for many different situations, you will encounter obstacles. As Hjortshoj explains, obstacles are particularly common during times of transition—transitions to new writing roles or to new kinds of writing.

Think of yourself as an apprentice.

If block or apprehension is new for you, take time to understand the situations you are writing in. In particular, try to figure out what has changed in your writing life. Here are some possibilities:

• You are writing in a new format.
• You are writing longer papers than before.
• You are writing for new audiences.
• You are writing about new subject matter.
• You are turning in writing from different stages of the writing process—for example, planning stages or early drafts.

It makes sense to have trouble when dealing with a situation for the first time. It’s also likely that when you confront these new situations, you will learn and grow. Writing in new situations can be rewarding. Not every format or audience will be right for you, but you won’t know which ones might be right until you try them. Think of new writing situations as apprenticeships. When you’re doing a new kind of writing, learn as much as you can about it, gain as many skills in that area as you can, and when you finish the apprenticeship, decide which of the skills you learned will serve you well later on. You might be surprised.

Below are some suggestions for how to learn about new kinds of writing:

• Ask a lot of questions of people who are more experienced with this kind of writing. Here are some of the questions you might ask: What’s the purpose of this kind of writing? Who’s the audience? What are the most important elements to include? What’s not as important? How do you get started? How do you know when what you’ve written is good enough? How did you learn to write this way?
• Ask a lot of questions of the person who assigned you a piece of writing. If you have a paper, the best place to start is with the written assignment itself. For help with this, see our handout on understanding assignments .
• Look for examples of this kind of writing. (You can ask your instructor for a recommended example). Look, especially, for variation. There are often many different ways to write within a particular form. Look for ways that feel familiar to you, approaches that you like. You might want to look for published models or, if this seems too intimidating, look at your classmates’ writing. In either case, ask yourself questions about what these writers are doing, and take notes. How does the writer begin and end? In what order does the writer tell things? How and when does the writer convey their main point? How does the writer bring in other people’s ideas? What is the writer’s purpose? How is that purpose achieved?
• Read our handouts about how to write in specific fields or how to handle specific writing assignments.
• Listen critically to your readers. Before you dismiss or wholeheartedly accept what they say, try to understand them. If a reader has given you written comments, ask yourself questions to figure out the reader’s experience of your paper: What is this reader looking for? What am I doing that satisfies this reader? In what ways is this reader still unsatisfied? If you can’t answer these questions from the reader’s comments, then talk to the reader, or ask someone else to help you interpret the comments.
• Most importantly, don’t try to do everything at once. Start with reasonable expectations. You can’t write like an expert your first time out. Nobody does! Use the criticism you get.

Once you understand what readers want, you are in a better position to decide what to do with their criticisms. There are two extreme possibilities—dismissing the criticisms and accepting them all—but there is also a lot of middle ground. Figure out which criticisms are consistent with your own purposes, and do the hard work of engaging with them. Again, don’t expect an overnight turn-around; recognize that changing writing habits is a process and that papers are steps in the process.

Chances are that at some point in your writing life you will encounter readers who seem to dislike, disagree with, or miss the point of your work. Figuring out what to do with criticism from such readers is an important part of a writer’s growth.

Try new tactics when you get stuck

Often, writing blocks occur at particular stages of the writing process. The writing process is cyclical and variable. For different writers, the process may include reading, brainstorming, drafting, getting feedback, revising, and editing. These stages do not always happen in this order, and once a writer has been through a particular stage, chances are they haven’t seen the last of that stage. For example, brainstorming may occur all along the way.

Figure out what your writing process looks like and whether there’s a particular stage where you tend to get stuck. Perhaps you love researching and taking notes on what you read, and you have a hard time moving from that work to getting started on your own first draft. Or once you have a draft, it seems set in stone and even though readers are asking you questions and making suggestions, you don’t know how to go back in and change it. Or just the opposite may be true; you revise and revise and don’t want to let the paper go.

Wherever you have trouble, take a longer look at what you do and what you might try. Sometimes what you do is working for you; it’s just a slow and difficult process. Other times, what you do may not be working; these are the times when you can look around for other approaches to try:

• Talk to your writing buddy and to other colleagues about what they do at the particular stage that gets you stuck.
• Read about possible new approaches in our handouts on brainstorming and revising .
• Try thinking of yourself as an apprentice to a stage of the writing process and give different strategies a shot.
• Cut your paper into pieces and tape them to the wall, use eight different colors of highlighters, draw a picture of your paper, read your paper out loud in the voice of your favorite movie star….

Okay, we’re kind of kidding with some of those last few suggestions, but there is no limit to what you can try (for some fun writing strategies, check out our online animated demos ). When it comes to conquering a block, give yourself permission to fall flat on your face. Trying and failing will you help you arrive at the thing that works for you.

Celebrate your successes

Start storing up positive experiences with writing. Whatever obstacles you’ve faced, celebrate the occasions when you overcome them. This could be something as simple as getting started, sharing your work with someone besides a teacher, revising a paper for the first time, trying out a new brainstorming strategy, or turning in a paper that has been particularly challenging for you. You define what a success is for you. Keep a log or journal of your writing successes and breakthroughs, how you did it, how you felt. This log can serve as a boost later in your writing life when you face new challenges.

Wait a minute, didn’t we already say that? Yes. It’s worth repeating. Most people find relief for various kinds of anxieties by getting support from others. Sometimes the best person to help you through a spell of worry is someone who’s done that for you before—a family member, a friend, a mentor. Maybe you don’t even need to talk with this person about writing; maybe you just need to be reminded to believe in yourself, that you can do it.

If you don’t know anyone on campus yet whom you have this kind of relationship with, reach out to someone who seems like they could be a good listener and supportive. There are a number of professional resources for you on campus, people you can talk through your ideas or your worries with. A great place to start is the UNC Writing Center. If you know you have a problem with writing anxiety, make an appointment well before the paper is due. You can come to the Writing Center with a draft or even before you’ve started writing. You can also approach your instructor with questions about your writing assignment. If you’re an undergraduate, your academic advisor and your residence hall advisor are other possible resources. Counselors at Counseling and Wellness Services are also available to talk with you about anxieties and concerns that extend beyond writing.

Apprehension about writing is a common condition on college campuses. Because writing is the most common means of sharing our knowledge, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves when we write. This handout has given some suggestions for how to relieve that pressure. Talk with others; realize we’re all learning; take an occasional risk; turn to the people who believe in you. Counter negative experiences by actively creating positive ones.

Even after you have tried all of these strategies and read every Writing Center handout, invariably you will still have negative experiences in your writing life. When you get a paper back with a bad grade on it or when you get a rejection letter from a journal, fend off the negative aspects of that experience. Try not to let them sink in; try not to let your disappointment fester. Instead, jump right back in to some area of the writing process: choose one suggestion the evaluator has made and work on it, or read and discuss the paper with a friend or colleague, or do some writing or revising—on this or any paper—as quickly as possible.

Failures of various kinds are an inevitable part of the writing process. Without them, it would be difficult if not impossible to grow as a writer. Learning often occurs in the wake of a startling event, something that stirs you up, something that makes you wonder. Use your failures to keep moving.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Hjortshoj, Keith. 2001. Understanding Writing Blocks . New York: Oxford University Press.

This is a particularly excellent resource for advanced undergraduates and graduate students. Hjortshoj writes about his experiences working with university students experiencing block. He explains the transitional nature of most writing blocks and the importance of finding support from others when working on long projects.

Rose, Mike. 1985. When a Writer Can’t Write: Studies in Writer’s Block and Other Composing-Process Problems . New York: Guilford.

This collection of empirical studies is written primarily for writing teachers, researchers, and tutors. Studies focus on writers of various ages, including young children, high school students, and college students.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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When You Write

9 Effective Ways to Overcome Your Fear of Writing

There are several forms of fear that can affect writers. For instance, some people suffer from a fear of failure or criticism, while others experience the more common phobia of public speaking.

However, one type of fear that is often overlooked is an overwhelming sense of terror at just the thought of writing itself. If you find yourself struggling with this problem and dread sitting down to write for any reason whatsoever, there are ways to overcome it so that your life as a writer becomes far easier than before.

Perhaps you have found yourself in front of a blank page wondering what words should come next…

Maybe you’ve sat down to write but all those ideas in your mind seem to be gone now? Whatever your reasons.

How do you overcome this fear of writing? Read on to find out.

Types of Fears of Writing

The extreme type of fears of writing are called Graphophobia and Scriptophobia. But in less extreme cases, there are several fears that writers have that are connected to their fear of people’s judgment, rejection, and lack of belief in their skill or talent.

Before I get to Graphophobia and Scriptophobia, let me mention some of these.

1. “My writing is good enough already” Fear

These types of writers are afraid that publishing their work might make them look stupid or arrogant. They do not want to write for the public, but only for themselves… which is normally a bad idea since if you don’t have anyone to read your work—it won’t improve.

2. Fear of rejection

Some writers fear editors will reject their stories and novels and deny them the opportunity of being published in magazines and books. This fear comes because writers worry that mistakes with formatting, punctuation or spelling, etcetera will lead to their work being rejected.

When writers are afraid that their work will be rejected, they get anxious about their reputation. They fear what people may say behind their back if the writer’s story is not good enough for them to read or it’s too dark, deep, unhappy, et cetera.

3. “Others will not like my writing” Fear

These types of writers fear rejection because they think that other people will be harsh on them… and this makes them not want to publish their work or share it with anyone.

This type of writer fears wasted time and is afraid that publishing his work is going to be a waste of time since—in his opinion—it is not good enough and might never be.

4. Fear of the blank page

One recurring problem in a writer’s life is writer’s block. This is when your mind freezes and cannot give you something worth writing at all.

You cannot write anything, not even a single sentence or word. Sometimes, you just give up and are afraid to go back to a blank page. If it goes on for a long time, you might lose your interest entirely.

Graphophobia and Scriptophobia

Graphophobia is the irrational fear of writing—especially handwriting. Scriptophobia is the extreme fear of writing in public.

People suffering from these conditions are known to avoid writing as the mere thought of writing brings anxiety.  People with graphophobia may experience symptoms similar to other common phobias or social anxiety disorders when they are confronted by writing, and—sometimes—the anxiety is so intense that it develops into a full-blown panic attack as a result of it.

Some common symptoms include a faster heart rate, rapid breathing, sweating and trembling, nausea/upset stomach, dry mouth and difficulty speaking clearly, dizziness, fainting, and feeling light-headedness.

Someone suffering from extreme cases of graphophobia may take avoidance of writing to the extreme by ensuring that they are not exposed to any form of writing. For example, some may avoid going places where there is a lot of writing , such as offices or schools, where it is likely to be seen often.

In some cases, graphophobia can become so severe that a person suffering from it can feel like they can’t get away from writing no matter what he or she does because there is too much writing around them. Hence they may feel trapped when they are in writing-filled environments because they can’t escape writing’s presence.

Causes of Graphophobia and Scriptophobia

There are many causes of Graphophobia or Scriptophobia, but it cannot be medically determined what specific root is responsible for a particular case.

Two of the main causes are genetics and the person’s environment. For instance, a history of mental illness and phobias in the family may increase the chances of developing these conditions.

In some cases, graphophobia is a result of a traumatic experience and for people with genetic predisposition issues, it may only require a minor experience of traumatic event to develop full-blown graphophobia.

We can’t say for sure the definitive causes of graphophobia, but we can say that both genetics and environmental factors are factors in the development of all mental disorders. Therefore, they are the biggest suspects when someone develops graphophobia.

Graphophobia and Scriptophobia Treatments

Because there are no definitive causes of these conditions, there are specific treatments for them.

Be that as it may, there are several forms of treatment that reduce the symptoms of graphophobia. Some of these treatments are cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), exposure therapy, and psychiatric medications.

Does Fear of Writing Exist?

Yes, it does, and it exists in many forms. Naturally, some people might find it difficult to put their thoughts into words because of a lack of self-confidence or a feeling that one’s work isn’t good enough.

But—as you’ll learn later in the article—for others, this fear might be severe and is caused by complicated factors (i.e., Graphophobia and Scriptophobia). That’s why I have written the “types of fears” section to shed more light on the fear of writing.

How to Overcome Your Fear of Writing

1. face and understand your fear.

Think about it, fear is something that hides within you, lurking deep down in your body or mind. Fear doesn’t come in any physical form—it’s neither a person nor an animal. This means that it’s only manifested in our minds and bodies.

Therefore, if you want to overcome your fear of writing, then you must face this fear and deal with the manifestation, the fear lurking underneath the surface, and work to rid your system of this fear of writing.

“You cannot conquer that which you don’t know.” I don’t know who said that, but someone must have said it.

But, to understand how fear works, we have to look into psychology. In general, understanding fear has been one of the psychologists’ goals for years, and they have labored to find out why people are afraid and how they can overcome those fears.

If you discover that your fear of writing originates from simple roots such as lack of self-belief or fear of rejection, then simple solutions such as therapy or boosting your self-esteem can help you overcome it.

But, if the fear of writing has severe causes like Scriptophobia, then therapy is an effective solution.

Just like other forms of phobia, therapy may be advantageous for treating someone with Scriptophobia or graphophobia.

The kind of therapies that work for other phobias also work phobias associated with writing. For instance, exposure therapy is an effective form of treatment for people suffering from Scriptophobia. In this type of therapy, the therapist slowly exposes the patient to their phobia over a certain amount of time.

The underlying concept is that if they frequently expose the patient to that which they fear, the impact of the phobia will lessen over time.

Some may resort to anti-anxiety or antidepressant medication, but without using the doctor’s recommendation or any form of therapy may not be very effective in the long run.

3. Look to Writers You Admire for Inspiration

Sometimes, you’re afraid to write because you’re intimidated by famous writers and are afraid that you’ll never measure up, that is utterly unnecessary.

Instead of envying them or being intimidated by their success, use their stories to inspire yourself. You have to take some time to research them and read their works.

There are a lot of platforms that you can use to learn about writing greats like Hemmingway, Shakespeare, or Dr. Seuss . 

If you fear writing because you’re intimidated by successful writers who publish multiple books each year, don’t compare yourself to them! The more successful they become, the more stressed you’ll be if you’re trying to compete with them.

4. Take Breaks When Writing Gets Hard

It can be extremely frustrating to spend hours working on a new article or book chapter only to find yourself stuck and not knowing how to fix your problem.

To combat this fear and frustration, take regular breaks and stops and give yourself time to think over what you’ve written so far. Come back later with fresh eyes and renewed focus.

5. Stay Away from Social Media for a While

Social media is known as a breeding ground for fear. We see all these beautiful people with perfect lives and no fear, so we fear that we will never be as good as them.

If you fear writing because of your fear of being perceived as inadequate by those around you, stay away from social media for the duration of your project!

6. Never Give Up on Your Story

Almost everyone feels some type of fear when they begin to write their first book or articles for publication.

Either that or you’re too excited!

You can’t let this fear stop you from writing your story, you can’t let it win! The only way to overcome writing fears is to keep going even when it gets hard.

Keep telling yourself that no one will publish your work if it’s not good enough, so give everything you have before giving up completely.

7. Learn to Ignore Your Doubts

No matter how hard you try, you will always have doubts about your ability to succeed as a writer.

Instead of fighting these fears by trying to silence them, learn to ignore them altogether. You can be confident in your ability without knowing that you’ll never fail, but if fear ever comes knocking on the door again, tell it that it’s no longer welcome.

8. Remind Yourself That Everyone a Voice

You may think that you’re the only one who has the fear of writing, but that fear is universal. Billions of people struggle with fear daily and worry that they don’t have what it takes to get their words down on paper.

Even if you fear writing more than most, remember this: so do all the other writers in the world!

So, how do they do it? They know that they can’t write like everyone else, that the uniqueness of their voice is what made them successful. If you recognize this fact, you can overcome more than half of your writing fears.

9. Brainstorm Before Writing

The fear of writing can be attributed to many things. However, the one thing that is clear across all types of writers is how difficult it can be for them to get started with their work.

When you are struggling with finding inspiration or motivation to write , think about what may have caused this feeling, and then try using some techniques like brainstorming ideas ahead of time so you don’t feel overwhelmed when starting your next post.

Writing isn’t easy but taking steps in advance to reduce stress before sitting down at the keyboard should help alleviate any anxiety associated with “writer’s block.”

One difference between successful writers and those who are not can be summed up in one word: fear. 

Those who fear success don’t believe that they deserve to succeed. They fear failure and fear success, so they fear writing. But fear does not create a successful writer. Creating a successful career in writing is a process of overcoming fear.

Remember: most great ideas don’t come from inspiration alone, but perspiration. Be willing to put in the hours and effort, and fear will lose all power over you.

Recommended Reading...

How to get over writers block: 30 ways to unleashing your creative potential, strengths and weaknesses in writing.

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What are some tricks for managing debilitating writing anxiety/phobia?

For the past 4 years, I've developed a severe problem with writing anxiety. It's become so bad, that I had to drop out of my first university because I wasn't able to keep up with the course work. I've tried to manage the problem on my own, but with very limited success. Part of my problem is that the reaction is very visceral. I quite literally feel like throwing up when I approach a writing assignment. I haven't been able to unlearn that reaction.

I suspect a great deal of my anxiety is coming from perfectionism. I know I shouldn't strive to make my first draft perfect, but it's like I can't help it. I have a lot of difficulty bypassing my inner critic when writing first drafts, so it makes the whole process very stress-inducing and unpleasant, which makes me put off the writing entirely, which then leads to binge-writing sessions which are just terrible.

I was wondering if anyone had some tricks for bypassing the inner critic and mitigating the nausea.

• academic-writing
• writers-block

• 10 Go see a therapist. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is perfect for treating this kind of problem. Your symptoms are too severe for self-help. It's already destroying your career, so don't hesitate but get help. All the best! –  user5645 Commented Oct 12, 2014 at 7:29
• I agree with @what. This isn't something you can work around with a listicle of helpful tips. If your anxiety is that severe, you need professional therapy. I also agree that CBT is the right place to start. –  Lauren-Clear-Monica-Ipsum Commented Oct 12, 2014 at 11:57
• If you're struggling to get out to a therapist, in the meantime you may want to check out Mood Gym: moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome , it's an excellent onlione CBT course (though a bit patronising) –  CLockeWork Commented Oct 13, 2014 at 11:27

4 Answers 4

The comments on your post suggest therapy, and I think it is good advice. This is more than just writer's block or procrastination. It sounds like you have serious anxiety that's triggered by writing. Here are some things you might try if you can't afford a therapist.

First, pick a book and copy the text out of it. This will help you get used to the physical activity of typing or writing by hand without being concerned with what you are writing. When you can copy text without feeling anxious, then you are ready to move to the next step.

Second, move around the text you copied. Try rearranging the sentences in paragraph, or taking one sentence out of each paragraph to make a new story with the same words. Don't worry about how legible it is. You're getting used to the feeling of editing. When you feel comfortable moving text around like this, move on to the next part.

Third, play with the text you copied. Take a passage and substitute a few verbs and nouns with a synonym chosen from a thesaurus at random. Rewrite it using different pronouns (instead of third-person "he/she/it/them", write it in second-person "you", for instance). Rearrange the words in the sentences. Remove all the conjunctions. Do some small things like this to help yourself see that the same thing can be expressed in many different ways, and none of these is right or wrong.

Fourth, write something short that's not important. Something that has no deadline or grade or degree attached to it. A fake advertisement for an imaginary product might suffice. Write as much as you can in ten minutes, and then walk away from it. Come back to it in a day or a week, and revise it until you like it, or throw it away if you hate it. Then do it all again next week. From here, work your way into writing some things that carry more baggage.

These steps will hopefully lead you to feel that you are in control of your work. Hopefully, a few exercises like this, and you'll be over the worst parts of your anxiety. You can do this. You wrote this question here, so that's encouraging!

I have struggled with my inner critic for a long time and here are some things that have worked for me:

• Talking to someone you trust about your writing: Everyone writes differently but I don't think anyone gets it how they want it first time. Find someone who is either an avid reader or studying English that you know and trust and show them some of your writing. Seeing someone enjoy your writing can really help reduce anxiety. Someone who is a good critic is always helpful.
• Set short goals: If you are writing for an assignment/dissertation/etc it can be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. When I had to write my PhD thesis my supervisor gave me the advice to set short goals and use bullet points to layout the structure (a bullet point per paragraph with the basic idea).
• Break the monotony: Along with short goals give yourself rewards for achieving them. They don't need to be big. Ones I use include: a nice cup of tea, chocolate, reading a short story, a short walk.

I still struggle with my inner critic but these techniques helped me churn out a nearly 200 page thesis in about half a year. It does get easier once you get going I assure you :)

• If you have tried all these things with limited success then seeking professional help via therapy (as suggested by several commenters) is probably the way forwards.

Gee, I agree with what . You need a specialist. Something that helped me, though (I was a perfectionist, too) is this quote:

"Art is never finished, only abandoned." - Leonardo da Vinci

Give up perfection . Look at your writing as something that improves incrementally rather than something that is fixed. You can always come back and edit later; something that's even easier with all the technology we have today.

Giving up perfectionism is great advice. It's also like blithely telling someone to give up heroin. I tried to overcome my perfectionistic approach to writing fiction by doing some simple writing exercises, only to find that I was just as phobic about doing the exercises. I even spellcheck my own diary! I think the best way to approach this is not to think of it as a writing problem. Begin by being less perfectionistic in other areas of your life. Live with a bit of mess. Don't pay the bills immediately they come in. Go out with greasy hair and notice how little these things really matter. Aim lower in your goals too. Settle for a ten percent improvement rather than 100 percent. Aiming too high can make you feel overwhelmed and paralysed. Aiming lower gives you a can-do feeling and you end up accomplishing more than you expected.

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Writing With Anxiety

Productivity tips, support, and encouragement for writers with anxiety.

Afraid to pursue your writing career? Learn to overcome your fear

Mental Health , Productivity / June 27, 2022 by Allaya Cooks-Campbell

When you imagine yourself as a professional writer, how does it feel?

Chances are good that when you think about starting your writing career, you feel a mix of excitement and terror. You might worry that you’re not disciplined enough, you won’t make any money, or that your writing sucks.

The thing is, if you’re a writer, you can’t not be a writer. Something inside you needs to get out, and it wants to do it on paper. When you see a blank page, you’re never sure if your heart is fluttering or your stomach is sinking.

If you want to be a writer, but you’re scared, you have to take a look in the mirror and decide: Is this something I can’t not do? If you know that — no matter what — you’re going to have that part of you who wants to be a writer, then it’s worth learning how to overcome your fear.

How do you know if you want to be a writer?

If you’re asking yourself this question, you probably already know the answer.

Ever found yourself sitting in a coffee shop or on your couch, mulling over your words, then you are already a writer. If you have ever had someone tell you that your story isn’t good enough, then you are already a writer. If you have ever dreamt of your book being made into a movie, then you are already a writer. 

As I said, some people are just writers. You won’t be able to do anything else. Even if you have fears and insecurities about your writing, you’ll find that it’s the way you think and express yourself the best.

If you’re not sure you’ve got it in you, look at how other people respond to you. Other people tend to spot the writers in the crowd. Your friends, family, and even colleagues probably think of you as the “word person” — even if you don’t.

Still not sure? Here are some ways to know that writing is in your blood.

Sneaky ways to know you’re really a writer:

• You read for fun all the time — books, newspapers, blogs, anything
• You prefer written instructions to video
• People ask you to write or edit things for them
• You mentally correct typos when you come across them in other people’s work
• You always check the bylines of articles you read
• You’re sensitive about the quality of your writing
• You write when you need to think 
• You have a strong opinion on the Oxford comma
• In school, you’d choose to write a paper over a presentation or exam

Whether you hit every point on this list or not, the fact is that you know — deep inside — whether you’re a writer or not.

The good news? There’s only one qualification you really need to be a writer, and that’s to write. The bad news? Actually sitting down to write can be a lot harder than it sounds. 

What gets in the way? If you want to write, but you don’t seem to be able to, there’s likely a (conscious or unconscious) fear of writing in the way.

What is the fear of writing called?

The fear of writing is called graphophobia .

Of course, most writers are not actually afraid of writing , per se. They’re really worried about something else — whether it be judgment, sharing their work, or not being good enough.

Sharing our writing with others can be an extremely vulnerable process. Even if you’ve been told over and over that you’re a great writer, anxiety can strike every time you start — or share — a writing project.

What causes fear in writing?

Biologically, humans experience fear as a kind of alarm system. The emotion of fear (or anxiety) is meant to let us know that something in our environment is a potential threat.

Fear comes in many forms, but it’s all rooted in the same thing: our perception of danger. It might manifest as a feeling of dread, an emotional response to something that could cause us harm, or an instinctive dash toward safety.

When we’re afraid of sharing our writing, it’s often because we worry about being rejected. When someone doesn’t like a writer’s work, it’s hard not to feel like they don’t like you . Many of us have collapsed people’s opinions of our work with their opinions of us.

When we’re afraid of actually writing — putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboard — it’s usually the work of a harsh inner critic. We’re so worried about writing something good that we can’t seem to write anything at all. This becomes a vicious cycle: the worse the self-criticism is, the less inspired and creative we feel, and the more writer’s block takes hold .

You could think of it this way: fear of putting our writing “out there” is anxiety about what others will think, while fear of writing is anxiety about what we ourselves think.

Fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of the unknown — these are all fears that every writer experiences in their work. Experiencing them doesn’t make you less capable or have to get in your way. Getting familiar with the common fears that writers experience can help you recognize and overcome them for yourself.

Common fears that every writer has

“I want to be a writer, but I’m scared.”

Sound familiar?

The fear of writing can cause a lot of distress in our lives — especially if you are, or hope to be, a professional writer. When we feel stuck and can’t move forward, it’s often a specific fear that’s holding us back. 

Writers have a ton of fears, but there are some that are more common than others. Here are five worries that every writer has at some point in their career (or, y’know, every day):

1. Where do I start?

There are two ways that not knowing where to start freaks writers out. The first is that they don’t know how to actually get their ideas on paper and turn them into a finished product. The story, blog post, dissertation, or even email that’s in their head won’t seem to come out.

The second is that getting from your laptop to actually getting paid to be a writer seems daunting. They’re not sure how to get a job as a writer, or if it’s even possible to make money as one.

2. What if they hate my work?

Writers are almost always worried that their audience — whether an editor, a professor, an academic journal, or their readers — will hate their work. It doesn’t matter how much they’ve written, how experienced they are, or their particular field. Everyone goes through this at some point or another.

At its root, this fear of rejection stems from insecurities about the quality of the work and fear of criticism. If the stakes are high, like a dissertation, first novel, or test assignment for a writing job, you might be completely frozen by the thought of a poor response.

3. What if I can’t finish the project?

Writers are often plagued with the idea that they won’t be able to finish their work. They may be worried about the quality of their work, or the amount of time it will take them to complete. They may be worried about how they will manage to write consistently when they don’t feel like it.

As a writer with ADHD, I worry about this every time I take on a new project. Before getting diagnosed, I felt like it was almost impossible to complete assignments. Getting systems in place (and giving myself a little compassion) worked wonders in helping me overcome this fear.

4. What will they think of me?

Writers everywhere have a fear that if they share their work, they’ll be judged. It’s not just about the writing, though that’s a big part of it. If you’re sharing your words, you’re also sharing yourself. 

Your writing is informed by your thoughts, feelings, perspectives, memories, and life experiences. Whether you’re sharing a memoir, a research article, an opinion piece, or even a short story, you’re putting some part of yourself out there.

5. What if my writing sucks?

Many writers are worried that they don’t have the skills to produce quality copy. They feel uncertain about their language skills, grammar, or even whether they understand a topic well enough to write about it. 

Each time a writer takes on a new challenge, the fear of “not being good enough” can pop up all over again. You might feel it before you submit your novel, pitch a publication, write a blog post, or start your first writing job.

How do I get over my fear of writing?

Writers are often faced with a lot of fears when they sit down to write. Fortunately, overcoming your writing anxiety is like building a muscle. There are a lot of different ways to overcome your fear of writing, and no matter which one you choose they all make you a stronger writer.

The more you practice managing the uncomfortable symptoms of writing anxiety , the better prepared you’ll be to pursue your writing career. Here are 9 ways to overcome your fear of writing:

1. Find ways to make writing easier

Sit down and think about what happens when you try to write. Where do you get stopped? Do you get frozen by the blank page, stuck on the first few lines, or pulled into a rabbit hole of research?

Whatever it is, brainstorm ways to make it easier. For example, I start all of my blog posts with an outline. Knowing where I’m going helps me organize my thoughts, and I can jump to different sections when I get stuck.

Start with the basics of your writing project. Write short sentences, jot down ideas that interest you, or talk through your ideas with a writing partner. You can also try talking through your ideas by yourself, with a tape recorder. Apps like Just Press Record will transcribe your thoughts so you can organize them later.

It also helps to break a larger project into bite-sized chunks. You can set smaller goals for the day or even the hour, instead of feeling like you have to tackle the entire project at once.

2. Perfect your own process

People are creatures of habit, and everyone needs some sort of routine in order to thrive. If you need to write every day, you need to develop a process that helps you get the words out. There’s no one answer to this, as long as it puts you in the mindset to do your best work.

You might be a fast writer, slow writer, or somewhere in between. Or you might need absolute silence, or the buzz of a coffee shop. You may outline meticulously or write off-the-cuff. It all depends on what works for you as a writer. 

As an example, I do my best writing in the morning, when I’m the most focused. I outline my projects and do the research (usually with a cup of coffee in hand) until I start to feel out the voice of my piece. And then I write.

I stay in flow best with some light music on in the background. I really like brain.fm for this, since it incorporates neuroscience research to help you focus better.

Note: The above brain.fm link gets you a month for just $1, if you want to try it out!

3. Manage the feelings

The uncomfortable feelings of anxiety can trigger a cycle that’s hard to escape. When you feel those tell-tale symptoms sneak up, you start feeling powerless against them. The more anxious you feel, the less you want to write. The less you write, the more the anxiety takes over.

You might feel like the best course of action is to keep pushing through the anxious feelings, particularly if you’re up against a deadline. The trouble is, those feelings don’t just go away. Trying to work past them might even make them worse. Anxiety tends to get more and more insistent until you just deal with it.

Instead of trying to push through, take a break. Cultivate a list of self-care practices that help you manage your stress. Don’t forget about basic needs, like food, water, and getting enough sleep. You’ll be a much more effective writer if you take some time for yourself first. The more you practice this skill, the easier it will become to identify these feelings and ease them.

4. Realize that no one is perfect

You are not the only one who has insecurities when it comes to writing. In fact, you’re in good company with other successful writers.

She said: ‘We all spend our twenties and thirties trying so hard to be perfect, because we’re so worried about what people will think of us. Then we get into our forties and fifties, and we finally start to be free, because we decide that we don’t give a damn what anyone thinks of us. But you won’t be completely free until you reach your sixties and seventies, when you finally realize this liberating truth — nobody was ever thinking about you, anyhow.’ Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic

One of the beautiful things about writing is that the process involves being imperfect. You write, you draft, you edit, you ask for feedback, and you write some more. You get rejected and you move people to tears. 

And honestly — it never has to be perfect. Some of the best books in history aren’t, and neither are the writers. I’m quite possibly the biggest Lord of the Rings fan around, and even I recognize that Tolkien never met a run-on sentence he didn’t like.

Embrace the revisions as part of the process. It doesn’t have to be perfect, and neither do you.

5. Learn to love a deadline

I know. You’re trying to be less anxious about writing, and here I am talking about deadlines.

Though it can be hard, it is always better to write when you have a deadline — even if it’s a self-imposed one. Give yourself the time and motivation you need to get into the mindset of writing. Having a deadline is one of the best ways to push past perfectionism, procrastination, and insecurity about what others think of you.

Embrace the attitude that done is better than perfect. You can always revisit, revise, and even retract if necessary. Set milestones along the way so you can keep your momentum high and anxiety low.

6. Embrace what inspires you 

Writers are often looking for inspiration; if they’re not, they usually struggle with where to go next. It’s important to create an environment where you feel inspired and ready to create.

You don’t have to go full Walden here — just think about how you need to feel in order to write. I need to be comfortable, focused, and reasonably happy. I have a few spots that make me feel that way (my desk, various cafes, etc) so I go there when I need to work.

For bonus points, cultivate practices that uplift you. Make it a habit to exercise regularly, take walks in nature, play with your kids or pets, or take bubble baths. Taking care of your writing instrument (that’s you) is part of being the best writer you can be.

7. Ask for feedback

It’s important to know your strengths and weaknesses as a writer and use them accordingly. If you know that you are not the best at grammar, then finish your draft and get your really nitpicky friend to read it over. Focus on what you’re best at and build support for everything else into your workflow.

There are lots of ways to become a better writer. You could find editors for your work, use an outline, join a writing community, and read more books and articles. Think of it as continuing education for your new career.

You’re going to be judged by your writing, and that doesn’t mean you should withhold what you have to say for fear of being criticized. If you believe in your work, you’ll be sharing it with others. Embrace feedback as part of the process.

8. Connect to your work

As you grow in your writing career, you might find yourself having to write things you don’t really want to write about. Try not to let this take up the bulk of your time.

You need to be able to be yourself when writing so that your audience can relate more easily. Writing about something you’re passionate about makes it much easier. You’ll be more confident, have more fun, and your readers will sense your engagement.

9. Keep writing

No matter what, keep writing. The more you write, the better you get, the more you learn, and the more likely that someone will like your work and want to publish it for others to read.

Remember that there is an audience out there who wants to hear your story and learn from you. The world needs more writers, not more perfectionists.

The truth is, content doesn’t need to be perfect. It just needs to be free of errors, and relatively readable. Great writing is in the eye of the reader, and great writers create value for their readers. You won’t learn how to do that until you put yourself out there.

Writing can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be

We all have a fear of writing. It is a natural instinct to avoid something that can be difficult and even painful. But writing is not just about the act of putting words on paper, it’s about conveying your message in such a way that it has an impact on your readers. They’ll learn from your words, but also from your example. Be brave in your writing process so you can be brave in your life.

About Allaya Cooks-Campbell

Allaya Cooks-Campbell is a blogger, web developer, professional copywriter, and content strategist who began publishing content online over fifteen years ago. Since then, her writing has been featured in publications such as Huffington Post, Today, Readers’ Digest, Motherly, Romper, Well+Good, Scary Mommy, and The Kitchn. She works as a news editor for Health Digest and is a regular contributor to the Wellanin Collective blog. Allaya is currently a full-time staff writer and editor, and runs a boutique content agency, Alaya Media.

Are You In An Emergency?

Writing papers makes me anxious!

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Cite this Response

Alice! Health Promotion. "Writing papers makes me anxious!." Go Ask Alice!, Columbia University, 24 Jun. 2022, https://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/writing-papers-makes-me-anxious. Accessed 19, Jun. 2024.

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Alice! Health Promotion. (2022, June 24). Writing papers makes me anxious!. Go Ask Alice!, https://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/writing-papers-makes-me-anxious.

Dear Alice,

I have terrible anxiety about writing papers. Because of this, I put them off, need to ask for extensions, and then have more anxiety about completing the assignment. In addition, when I start writing, I find it difficult to keep going, especially because I hit what may seem to others as small roadblocks, like uncertainty about citation format. I don’t experience nearly as much stress about other types of work (e.g., studying for and taking exams). What can I do to get over or at least cope reasonably with this fear?

Dear Reader,

Just thinking about writing anxiety made this answer more difficult to compose. You see, writing anxiety and writer’s block are concerns for both students and professionals of all ages and academic levels. In fact, even the most seasoned writers experience anxiety or writer’s block now and then. Fortunately, writing is a complex process that, with practice and patience, may be improved. Read on for some strategies for overcoming the roadblock you’re experiencing.

Writing anxiety comes in multiple forms such as an inability to form an idea, a physical struggle to manifest words on the paper, or a fear of not meeting expectations that hinders your progress. The four main causes of writer’s block include psychological, motivational, cognitive, and behavioral reasons. Psychological causes often include mood or stressors that affect cognitive processing. Motivation-related blocks often arise from a fear of failure. Similarly, those categorized as cognitive causes stem from perfectionism and obsession with details, much like you described in your uncertainty when formatting citations. Lastly, the most common cause of writing anxiety is behavioral changes such as procrastination. Procrastination may lead to a domino effect in which more work doesn’t get done and the pile-up becomes overwhelming. Writer’s block is different for everyone not only in its cause but also in its manifestation and how long it lasts. For some, it may occur for a few minutes and for others it may take decades to overcome, but it’s good to know that it’s possible.

It’s worth noting that more and more research has been dedicated to understanding the psychology behind writer’s block in order to help conquer it. Multiple studies have concluded that writer’s block is most effectively combated by giving the brain a break. This period of time is called the incubation period and could include activities such as going on a walk, playing a word game, or getting a full night’s sleep. When done for an appropriate amount of time, these mental breaks could help writers to think more creatively and find inspiration. Fortunately, writing anxiety is typically a product of a writer’s habits, and habits are changeable! You’ve already made a great first step by identifying a few things that don’t work for you — procrastination and obtaining deadline extensions provide you little or no relief. Now, the next step is to try out or adopt some new habits. To help relieve the anxiety and fear you feel about writing papers, implementing any of the following strategies may be useful:

• Stay on top of your reading assignments and do your best to attend classes — that way you won’t have to cram or teach yourself course material before writing your papers.
• Prior to writing, brainstorm ideas. Create a chart or write down topics of interest to refer back to while writing.
• Follow the guidelines your professor talked about in class or included in a syllabus or grading rubric. If you’re not sure about the guidelines, ask for clarification early.
• Start writing even before you envision your entire argument. Getting words down on paper may help you come up with the rest of your writing assignment. Try free writing or diagramming to inspire ideas.
• Compose different parts of your paper in whatever order feels easy. You’re not required to write in sequential order, as long as the final product is well-organized. Some find it helpful to start with the sections that come naturally and move toward the more challenging parts.
• Avoid stopping and editing each sentence as you write. This will slow you down. Instead, consider writing your paper in several whole drafts, and take breaks between editing. Remind yourself that the first draft is low-pressure and exploratory.
• Write your paper in several sittings rather than trying to crank it out in one marathon session. Attempting to write a paper in one sitting may overwhelm you, thereby distracting you from your task.
• Avoid distractions by turning off your internet and cellphone or writing a draft by hand.
• Get feedback from others. Many schools offer writing support services such as helping you develop and structure ideas, find research, connect thoughts, strengthen your understanding of grammar, and much more.
• Seek out additional support. If you’re wondering if your writing block is related to a learning disability, you can check to see if your school as an office of disability services that provides support to students. 

You can also reach out to instructors or a tutor to help implement these strategies for combating writing anxiety. Remember that writing anxiety is common — and you’re certainly not alone. However, if you continue to experience these feelings and need additional support, you might find it helpful to reach out to a mental health professional.

Additional Relevant Topics:

How do i implement time management strategies and avoid procrastination, struggling with stress and tools for managing it, help i struggle while classmates seem to breeze through coursework, how to find a therapist.

Anxiety about academic writing: I'm afraid

• Am I the only person who feels like this?
• I never have enough time
• I'm a bad writer
• I don't know enough
• Writing is too hard

You might be feeling:

• I'm afraid that I'm not as smart or capable as other students.
• I'm feeling overwhelmed and I don't even know where to start.
• I'm already struggling in my class, and I'm afraid I'm going to fail this essay. If I don't pass the essay, I'll fail the course. If that happens, I may have to quit my program, and then I'll have failed myself and the people who support me.

What can you do right now?

Emotional strategies

• Consider your fear from a rational perspective and ask yourself these questions:  What are you actually afraid of? How realistic is the outcome you're afraid of? What can you do to protect yourself from that outcome?
• Pay attention to where you're feeling the fear in your body. Now try a few long, slow, deep breaths. How does that part of your body feel now?
• Try facing your fear straight on by setting yourself a small writing goal and then do it.
• Ask for help from the Counselling Centre, the Writing Centre, and your instructor to give yourself the best opportunity to feel supported. 

Writing strategies

• Listen to a pep talk about the anxieties typically experienced by new graduate students: Gradschoolitis.
• If you're feeling overwhelmed, start at step one ("Understand the Assignment") in " How to write an undergraduate-level essay " or " How to write a graduate-level essay ". Use the 12-step process provided in each guide to help you move step-by-step through the process. of completing your document.
• Make an appointment to speak with your instructor to learn more about what you need to do to ensure you pass the essay. Once you have that information, book an appointment to speak with us in the Writing Centre so we can provide suggestions and information to help you succeed.

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Where can you learn more?

Counselling Services

• "A guide to fear mastery"

Writing Centre

• " I'm a new graduate student at RRU and I'm terrified by academic writing. Can you help me? " 
• " How to write an undergraduate-level essay "
• " How to write a graduate-level essay "  

Ask for help

[email protected] (250) 391-2600 ext. 4515   Book an appointment

[email protected] (250) 391-2600, ext. 4353 or 1-800-788-8028 Book an appointment

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Dealing with Obstacles and Developing Good Habits

Overcoming Writing Anxiety and Writer’s Block

You may be thinking, “All this advice is good, but sometimes I just get stuck! What I normally do just isn’t working!” That’s a familiar feeling for all writers. Sometimes the writing just seems to flow as if by magic, but then the flow stops cold. Your brain seems to have run out of things to say. If you just wait for the magic to come back, you might wait a long time. What professional writers know is that writing takes consistent effort. Writing comes out of a regular practice—a habit. Professional writers also know that not everything they write ends up in the final draft. Sometimes we have to write what Anne Lamott calls a “shitty rough draft.” One of my favorite writing professors, Duncan Carter, used to say that he was a terrible writer but a great reviser, and that’s what helped him write when inspiration wasn’t available. So how do writers get going when they feel stuck or uninspired? They develop a set of habits and have more than one way to write to get the words flowing again.

 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

You might associate the idea of writing anxiety or writer’s block with procrastination, and procrastination certainly can be either a cause or an effect of writing anxiety. You can learn more about  procrastination later in this section of the text.  But writing anxiety or writer’s block is more of a condition. We might even venture to call it an ailment. Uh oh. Do you have it? To aid you in self-diagnosis here, let’s take some time to figure out what it is. Then, if you find that you’re afflicted, we’ll help you to determine the best course of treatment.

What is Writing Anxiety and How Do You Know if You Have It?

Do you worry excessively about writing assignments? Do they make you feel uneasy or agitated? Do you have negative feelings about certain types of writing? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you might suffer from writing anxiety. Writing anxiety simply means that a writer is experiencing negative feelings about a given writing task. The last of the questions above points out something important about this condition that has been afflicting writers everywhere for centuries: writing anxiety is often more about the audience and/or purpose for a given writing task than it is about the mere act of writing itself.

Let’s consider this situational nature of writing anxiety for a moment. Say you just bought a new pair of headphones. You brought them home, removed all the packaging, plugged them into your MP3 player, and they’re amazing!  So you decide to visit the company website, and you write a stellar review of the product, giving it a five-star rating and including descriptive details about the headphones’ comfortable fit, excellent sound quality, ability to cancel outside noise, and reasonable price.

Now, let’s say that the next day in biology class your instructor covers the topic of biomes, and you learn about animal habitats and biodiversity and the interrelation and interdependence of species within biomes. You find it fascinating and can’t wait to learn more. But then something terrible happens. Your instructor assigns a term project on the subject. As your instructor begins to describe the length and other specifications for the report, complete with formatting guidelines, citation requirements, and a bibliography at the end, your palms start to sweat, your stomach feels uneasy, and you begin to have trouble focusing on anything else your instructor has to say. You’re experiencing writing anxiety.

Writing anxiety is the condition of feeling uneasy about writing. Writer’s block is what you experience when you can’t manage to put words on the page. But your condition isn’t about the act of writing. Just yesterday you wrote a great review for those cool new headphones. So why do you suddenly feel paralyzed by the thought of writing the biology essay? Let’s consider some possible causes.

What Causes Writing Anxiety?

The causes of writing anxiety are many. Here are just a few:

• Inexperience with the type of writing task
• Previous negative experiences with writing (e.g. someone, maybe a teacher, has given you negative feedback or said negative things about your writing)
• Negative feelings bout writing (e.g. “I’m not a good writer”; “I hate writing.”)
• Immediate deadline
• Distant deadline
• Lack of interest in the topic
• Personal problems or life events

Level of experience may explain why you felt comfortable writing the headphone review while you break out in a sweat at the thought of the biology paper. If you’ve never written anything similar to a specific assignment, maybe you’re unsure about whether or not you can meet the assignment requirements or the teacher’s expectations. Or maybe the last time you turned in a written report for school you received negative feedback or a bad grade from the teacher. Maybe you procrastinated most of the term and now the paper is due next week and you feel overwhelmed. Or maybe it’s the second week of the term and the finals week deadline seems so far away that you’re not motivated to write.

Knowing the cause of your writing anxiety can help you move beyond it and get writing, even if you can’t completely eliminate the problem. If the topic doesn’t interest you or if you’re having problems at home, those probably aren’t issues that will just disappear, but if you try some of the following strategies, I think you’ll find that you can at least move forward with even the most anxiety-inducing of writing assignments.

Strategies for Overcoming or Managing Writing Anxiety

There are a number of strategies upon which you can draw to help you move past the feeling of being lost or stuck. Consider if some of the following tactics can help you to get writing again.

Just Start Writing

It might sound like it’s oversimplifying the matter, but it’s true. Half the battle is to just start writing. Try some strategies like freewriting or dialectic notetaking. (For more on freewriting, see “ Strategies for Getting Started ” in the “Prewriting” section of this text, and for more on dialectic notetaking , refer to the section on “Writing about Texts”). You should also believe in the importance of writing badly. Bruce Ballenger, a well-known writer and professor of English at Boise State explains why writing badly is an important part of the writing process:

Giving myself permission to write badly makes it much more likely that I will write what I don’t expect to write, and from those surprises will come some of my best writing. Writing badly is also a convenient alternative to staring off into space and waiting for inspiration.

Sometimes the biggest problem writers have with getting started is that they feel like the writing needs to be good, or well organized, or they feel like they need to start at the beginning. None of that is true. All you need to do is start.

Have you ever seen a potter make a clay pot? Before a potter can start shaping or throwing a pot, they have to bring the big wet blob of clay and slap it down on the table. It’s heavy and wet and messy, but it’s the essential raw material. No clay? No pot. “Bad writing” is a lot like that. You have to dump all the words and ideas onto the table. Just get them out. Only then do you have the raw material you need to start shaping the words into something beautiful and lasting. You can wait until the revision stages to worry about shaping your writing to be its best. For now, just get the ideas on the table.

Create Smaller Tasks and Short-Term Goals

One of the biggest barriers to writing can be that the task just seems too large, and perhaps the due date is weeks away. Each of these conditions can contribute to feelings of being overwhelmed or to the tendency to procrastinate. But the remedy is simple and will help you keep writing something each week toward your deadline and toward the finished product: divide larger writing tasks into smaller, more manageable tasks and set intermediate deadlines.

The process that the authors used for writing this text provides a good example. As authors, we had to divide the text into sections, but we also had to plan the process for a first draft, peer reviews, and revisions, along with adding images, links, and other resources, not to mention the final publication of the text online. Had we not divided up the larger tasks into smaller ones and set short-term goals and deadlines, the process of writing the text would have been overwhelming. We didn’t meet every single intermediate deadline right on time, but they helped move us along and helped us to meet the most important deadline—the final one—with a complete text that was ready to publish on schedule.

Imagine that you have a term paper that’s assigned during Week 1 of a eleven-week term, and it’s due during finals week. Make a list of all the tasks you can think of that need to be completed, from beginning to end, to accomplish all that the assignment requires. List the tasks, and assign yourself due dates for each task. Consider taking it a step further and create a task table that allows you to include a column for additional notes. Here’s an example:

Collaborate

Get support from a friend, family member, or classmate. Talk to your friends or family, or to a tutor in your college writing center, about your ideas for your essay. Sometimes talking about your ideas is the best way to flesh them out and get more ideas flowing. Write down notes during or just after your conversation. Classmates are a great resource because they’re studying the same subjects as you, and they’re working on the same assignments. Talk to them often, and form study groups. Ask people to look at your ideas or writing and to give you feedback. Set goals and hold each other accountable for meeting deadlines (a little friendly competition can be motivating!).

Talk to other potential readers. Ask them what they would expect from this type of writing. Meet with a tutor in your campus writing center. Be sure to come to the appointment prepared with a printed copy of the assignment and a short list of what you want to work on, along with a printed copy of your essay.

For more about getting help from a tutor see “Why Meet with a Writing Tutor?” and “Preparing to Meet with a Tutor” in the “ Giving and Receiving Feedback ” section of this text.

Embrace Reality

Don’t imagine the situation of your writing assignment to be any better or worse than it really is. There are some important truths for you to recognize:

• Focus on what you do best rather than fretting about your perceived weaknesses.
• Acknowledge that writing can be difficult and that all you need to do is do your best.
• Recognize what might be new or unfamiliar about the type of writing that you’re doing.
• Understand that confusion and frustration is a natural part of experiencing new things, and it’s okay; it’s part of the learning process.
• Remember that you’re a student and that you’re supposed to be experiencing things that are new and unfamiliar (new formats, new audiences, new subject matter, new processes, new approaches, etc.).
• Repeat the mantra, “It doesn’t have to be perfect; it just has to be DONE.”

Seek Out Experts

If you can, find more experienced writers (especially related to the type of writing that you’re doing) and ask them questions. Sometimes, this might just mean a friend or family member who’s already taken a couple years of college courses. Maybe it’s a fellow student who has already taken the class you’re taking now. Also, the tutors in your college writing center can be a big help at any stage in the writing process. Give them a call and make an appointment. And don’t forget the expert you see all the time throughout any class that you take: your instructor. Ask your instructor for suggestions. That’s what she’s there for.

Another way to learn from the experience of others is to look at examples of other pieces of writing of the type that you’re working on. How is this piece organized? Does it make use of source material? What sort of tone does it use? If you don’t know where to find examples, ask your instructor. If he doesn’t have them at the ready, he’ll likely be able to give you some suggestions about where to find some.

The Word on College Reading and Writing Copyright © by Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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How to Overcome Fear of Writing

Last Updated: April 21, 2022 References

This article was co-authored by Melessa Sargent and by wikiHow staff writer, Hannah Madden . Melessa Sargent is the President of Scriptwriters Network, a non-profit organization that brings in entertainment professionals to teach the art and business of script writing for TV, features and new media. The Network serves its members by providing educational programming, developing access and opportunity through alliances with industry professionals, and furthering the cause and quality of writing in the entertainment industry. Under Melessa's leadership, SWN has won numbers awards including the Los Angeles Award from 2014 through 2021, and the Innovation & Excellence award in 2020. This article has been viewed 2,936 times.

Whether you’re writing an essay, a cover letter, a novel, or anything in between, having a fear of writing can make it hard to start. Overcoming this fear may take some time, but it can be done! By calming your anxiety and building your self-esteem, you can get confident in your writing abilities and reduce your unease about writing.

Building Confidence

• Remind yourself that you can create great work.

• Explaining things well (great for scientific papers).
• Having strong opinions (good for persuasive essays).
• Valuing your own skills (great for cover letters and resumés).
• Making connections while reading (good for novels and summaries).

• This is especially helpful for formats like essays, scientific papers, or summaries.
• Resumés and cover letters have specific formats to follow that you can find on Google.
• If you’re writing for a class, your teacher may be able to show you examples of what they’re looking for.

• If you don’t feel comfortable meeting in person, look for online writing groups instead.
• Check out your local community center or community college for groups like this. [5] X Research source

• If you’re in college, you can also visit your school’s writing center to meet with a tutor.
• If you aren’t writing in an academic session, your friends or family members can help you out a lot.
• If you’re working on a novel, try hiring an editor to give you feedback.

• You don’t have to incorporate every revision you get if you don’t want to, but it can be helpful to get feedback from someone with fresh eyes.

Starting to Write

• Research paper: Brainstorm ideas for a topic, do preliminary research on the web, write the introduction paragraph, create an outline for body paragraphs.
• Resumé/cover letter: Look up job positions, pick out keywords to include, create sections and categories.
• Novel: Write out general timeline of events, come up with backgrounds for each main character, pick a location for the story to take place.

• Write a rough first draft by May 2nd.
• Get feedback on the rough draft by May 5th.
• Edit and create a polished second draft by May 12th.
• Meet with the writing center to edit the second draft by May 15th.
• Revise and turn in the final draft on May 23rd.

• Starting with the body of your paper can actually make writing much easier, since you can use an intro and a conclusion to summarize the rest of your writing.
• Or, if you’re writing a cover letter, you might want to start with your closing paragraph first.
• When you’re writing a novel, working on the climax scene might help you get the ball rolling.

• Try not to edit as you go—this will only slow you down. Instead, have dedicated writing times and dedicated editing times.
• It may help to keep your goal in mind as you work. When you think about the big picture, it can help lessen any fear or anxiety you have about writing.

Expert Q&A

• Try not to expect perfection from yourself. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be done. [12] X Research source Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Pick a relaxing area without distractions to write in, like the library or your room. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ http://writing2.richmond.edu/writing/wweb/confidence.html
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/writing-anxiety/
• ↑ Melessa Sargent. Professional Writer. Expert Interview. 14 August 2019.
• ↑ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/career-transitions/201007/writing-anxiety-and-the-job-search
• ↑ https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/wrd/chapter/overcoming-writing-anxiety-and-writers-block/
• ↑ https://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/writing-papers-makes-me-anxious

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Graphophobia (Fear of Writing)

Graphophobia is the irrational fear of writing. Someone suffering from this condition can expect to experience a very high amount of anxiety from merely thinking of writing, let alone actually doing it. In fact, their anxiety may be so intense that they may even endure a full blown panic attack as a result of it. Although such an influx of anxiety will not always be the case for everyone suffering from graphophobia, it is still very plausible to occur nonetheless.

Someone experiencing a full blown panic attack as a result of their graphophobia can expect to have an increased heart rate, an increased rate of breathing, higher blood pressure, muscle tension, trembling, and excessive sweating, among several other symptoms. Although panic attacks may not always be the case for everyone experiencing symptoms of graphophobia, it is still possible to occur, especially if their symptoms are very severe.

Someone suffering from graphophobia may find themselves avoiding that which they fear. They may take this to the extreme by ensuring that they cannot be exposed to writing in any way. For example, someone with this condition may refuse to even sign their name on a document, let alone write an essay. Such excessive worry and irrational thinking is likely to be one of the main causes of their mental anguish.

Although someone with this condition may actively avoid their fear in an attempt to help them reduce their chances of experiencing any immediate anxiety, doing so may also worsen their symptoms of graphophobia in the long term due to the fact that they would also be justifying their fear to themselves by actively avoiding it.

Symptoms of Graphophobia

As is the case with virtually every other phobia that exists, someone with graphophobia can expect anxiety to be the most prominent symptom of their condition. Also, as previously mentioned, their anxiety may be so extreme that they may even endure full blown panic attacks as a result of it. Depending on the severity of their panic attack, they may even need to be hospitalized. However, this will vary from person to person and will be dependent on many factors.

Furthermore, someone with graphophobia may go to painstaking efforts to ensure that they do not come into contact with their fear in any way. This may mean them not only avoiding areas where they may come into contact with their fear, but also that they may actively try to prevent it from happening by taking a more hands-on approach.

Below, you will see some more common symptoms of this phobia:

• Anxiety when thinking of writing
• Constantly avoiding having to write
• Unable to cope with their anxiety
• Muscle tension, shakiness, and sweating
• May experience panic attacks

Causes of Graphophobia

There are no definitive causes of graphophobia. Nevertheless, genetics and one’s environment may both play very significant roles in the development of this condition. For example, if someone has a family history of mental illness, especially of anxiety disorders or  specific phobias , then they may have a higher chance of developing graphophobia. This may be due to them then having a genetic predisposition to developing mental illness in general.

If someone were to have such genetics, then it may only require that they experience some sort of traumatic event for them to develop full blown graphophobia. Essentially, any sort of emotionally painful event that involved the various fears associated with graphophobia in some way may be enough for someone to develop this condition insofar as they have the proper genetics.

Although we do not know the exact causes of graphophobia, the consensus among most mental health professionals is that both genetics and environmental factors play very significant roles in the development of any given mental disorder. So, taking a closer look at these two different parameters may shed some light as to whether or not you may be at risk for developing graphophobia.

Graphophobia Treatments

Just as there are no definitive causes of graphophobia, there are also no treatments that are specifically designed for this condition either. Nevertheless, there are still many different forms of treatment that can help to significantly improve many of the symptoms of graphophobia. Some of these treatments include exposure therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and some psychiatric medications, among others.

Exposure therapy  is one of the most common forms of treatment for people suffering from phobias. Exposure therapy works by having the therapist gradually expose the patient to their fear over a given period of time. With regards to graphophobia, the therapist may start off by having the patient write lines on a sheet of paper and then eventually have them write down words. This would all be in an attempt to help desensitize the patient to their fear by repetitively exposing them to it. Theoretically, the more someone is exposed to something they fear, the less it will bother them over time.

CBT  is another very common form of treatment that is often used to help people suffering from generalized anxiety disorder ( GAD ) and obsessive compulsive disorder ( OCD ), among other conditions. Moreover, it may also be effective at helping to treat people suffering from phobias like graphophobia as well. CBT works by having the therapist help the patient to uncover why it is that they think, feel, and behave the way they do with regards to a particular fear or concern they have.

Someone with graphophobia partaking in CBT can expect to learn why it is that they think the way they do about their fear, among other things. Understanding such things may help someone with graphophobia to take a more pragmatic approach when thinking about their fear of writing.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) for Graphophobia

MBSR is an 8-week evidence-based program that offers secular, intensive mindfulness training to help people who are suffering from anxiety, stress, depression, and other sorts of mental anguish. MBSR may be able to significantly help someone who is suffering from graphophobia as mindfulness meditation has been shown to be very beneficial for anxious people. In such a structured program, someone with graphophobia can expect to learn a plethora of different skills that can help them to relieve the intense anxiety that’s associated with their specific phobia.

Talk to your doctor or therapist to see if MBSR can help you to reduce the intensity of your symptoms of graphophobia, as well as where to find MBSR programs in your area.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Graphophobia

CBT is a psycho-social intervention that aims to improve one’s mental health. It is a modality that is often used to treat people suffering from anxiety disorders such as generalized anxiety disorder and OCD. Someone with graphophobia may also be able to benefit from CBT as well seeing as how it would allow them to have a much better understanding as to why they think and behave the way they do in relation to their irrational fears.

CBT can be immensely helpful for someone with graphophobia given the sheer automaticity of their symptoms. For example, when someone with graphophobia is exposed to their fear, they will almost always have an instantaneous subconscious reaction to their fear. Such a lack of introspection is likely a large part of why someone with this condition will suffer to the extent that they will. CBT can help you to take a step back and analyze your fears more deeply than you typically would.

Besides learning to be more fastidious with regards to understanding one’s specific fears, someone with graphophobia engaging in CBT can also expect to learn various other skills aimed at helping to relieve the anxiety caused by their condition.

Psychiatric Medications for Graphophobia

Anti-anxiety meds

These types of medications are very useful to help prevent panic attacks. Such drugs can be extremely useful for people suffering from severe graphophobia due to the fact that people with phobias often experience panic attacks as well. Some common anti-anxiety medications include Xanax, Valium, and Klonopin, among many others.

These types of drugs are not typically taken on a daily basis, but they may be insofar as their graphophobia is severe enough. However, this is something that you should first discuss with your doctor before you decide to do so to ensure that it is safe and effective.

Antidepressants

These types of medications aren’t only for people who suffer from depression as they can also help people suffering from anxiety disorders as well, such as graphophobia. Some common antidepressants are Paxil, Zoloft, and Lexapro, among several others. These drugs may be able to help reduce some of the symptoms of graphophobia.

These types of drugs are typically taken on a daily basis. They can indeed help prevent panic attacks from occurring, but they are more so used to help reduce people’s daily anxiety. Talk to your doctor to see if taking antidepressants can help to reduce your symptoms of graphophobia, as well as whether or not it is safe to do so.

Meditation Techniques for Graphophobia

There are many different  forms of meditation that exists which can be very advantageous for someone suffering from graphophobia. Specifically, mindfulness meditation has been shown to be quite beneficial for helping people to enter into a more equanimous state. There are many different ways with which you can implement mindfulness meditation and there are also many different meditation apps which are designed to make things as easy as possible for you.

Mindfulness has the potential to significantly help those suffering from graphophobia due to how it will help one to distract themselves from their fear by refocusing their attention onto something else that does not have any sort of emotional baggage attached to it, such as by focusing on the breath for example. This is one of the most basic ways that one can meditate and be present.

For someone with graphophobia in the midst of a panic attack, redirecting one’s attention to the various sensations felt when breathing can actually help to reduce the amount of mental anguish experienced during such an influx of anxiety.

To implement mindfulness meditation to help relieve one’s symptoms of graphophobia, you can do so by paying close attention to the way the muscles in your abdomen and chest contract and relax with every inhale and exhale. You can spend time dwelling on how it feels as your chest expands during each inhale and how it sinks in with every exhale.

Besides focusing on your breathing, you can also focus on the sounds around you, the way your skin feels as you touch certain objects, the way foods taste, as well as the way certain aromas smell. Essentially, honing into your 5 senses can significantly help you to reduce some of the anxiety that is associated with graphophobia. Also, remember that it will take a lot of practice to become an adept meditator. So, practice is key.

Consuming Less Caffeine for Graphophobia

It is no secret that consuming large amounts of caffeine throughout the day can aid in making you more anxious. This makes sense when we look closely at how caffeine affects our body’s physiology. When we consume a high dose of caffeine, our heart will start to beat faster and we become more tense. Essentially, our body will begin to go into a “fight or flight” state of mind. Such a frame of mind is often a precursor for someone with graphophobia to experience panic attacks.

So, consuming little to no caffeine throughout the day may be able to significantly help reduce your day to day anxiety. Although doing so will likely not make all of your anxiety go away, it will indeed help you to reduce any unnecessary suffering that you would have otherwise experienced if you were to consume a large amount of caffeine.

Beverages like coffee and tea are often high in caffeine, as well as some energy drinks. In fact, even some foods have caffeine in them as well, such as dark chocolate. Being more conscious of your daily caffeine consumption may help you to reduce some of the symptoms associated with graphophobia.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for Graphophobia

DBT is a very effective form of treatment for people struggling with emotion regulation. It is often used to treat people suffering from borderline personality disorder. Nevertheless, it can also be very advantageous for someone suffering from anxiety disorders like graphophobia too. This is due to the numerous amount of coping skills you can expect to learn in a DBT group. These groups typically last about 6 months long and can have anywhere from two people to several people depending on how many join the group.

One very effective DBT skill for helping someone with graphophobia is half-smiling. This technique works by having you think about that which you fear or upsets you all while slightly raising the corners of your mouth by lightly smiling, thus the term “half-smiling.” Although, it isn’t enough to just think about your fear while half-smiling, you also have to try and refrain from entertaining those painful emotions that your specific fear may evoke.

Mindfulness meditation is also heavily used in DBT and can greatly benefit someone with graphophobia as it is done in a group setting, which helps to put the patient out of their comfort zone. These group mindfulness practices may include drinking warm tea to hone in on the sense of taste and tactile senses or simply focusing on the breath.

Coping ahead is another very useful DBT skill that can help someone with graphophobia. With coping ahead, you will want to find a place where you can sit down quietly without distraction. Close your eyes and then think about the many different possible scenarios where you would face your specific fear and overcome it or cope with it. Doing so will help you to be much better adept at coping with your graphophobia when you are actually exposed to the specific fear associated with it in real life.

Exposure Therapy for Graphophobia

As previously mentioned, exposure therapy is one of the most common ways to treat anxiety disorders such as graphophobia. It can be an efficient way to help desensitize the patient to their specific fears. Be that as it may, it is imperative that the therapist implementing it on their patient is very adept at doing so. For example, if the therapist were to slightly expose someone with graphophobia to their fear, then it may not be very effective as they may need a higher amount of exposure to truly trigger any sort of worthwhile change in the patient.

The same can be said for the antithesis of this scenario. If the therapist were to excessively expose someone with graphophobia to their fear, then doing so could be highly counterproductive to the point to where their graphophobia may become immensely worse due to the therapy alone. So, it is paramount that the therapist implementing exposure therapy for someone with graphophobia has a very strong sense of just how severe their symptoms are so that they can know the level of exposure that the patient will likely be able to handle.

Working Out for Graphophobia

Exercise has been shown to be extremely beneficial for people suffering from anxiety disorders, including graphophobia. Specifically, cardiovascular exercise can significantly help to relieve one’s stress. This is not to say that weight-resistance training would not benefit someone with anxiety, but rather that aerobic exercise is has been shown to be more effective at releasing those feel good chemicals in the brain, such as endorphins.

According to the American Psychology Association, exercise can help to condition the mind to better cope with stressful situations. This makes sense when we take into consideration the high amount of stress that the body is put under during strenuous exercise. So, if you yourself are sedentary, then engaging in some form of aerobic exercise may be able to significantly help reduce your symptoms of graphophobia by making it much easier for you to cope with the anxiety and stress that’s associated with this condition.

There are many different aerobic modalities that you can partake in to help reduce your symptoms of graphophobia, such as swimming, biking, skiing, walking, and jogging. You can also acquire the many benefits of exercise by playing sports such as tennis, soccer, basketball, and racquetball, among many other sports. Engaging in some form of exercise consistently may be able to help relieve some of the pain associated with graphophobia over time.

Yoga Practice for Graphophobia

There are numerous different yoga poses that can substantially benefit someone who is suffering from graphophobia. In part, this is due to the meditative state of mind that yoga tends to emit in those who practice it on a consistent basis. Yoga can be thought of as meditation in motion. It can help to relieve some of the anxiety associated with graphophobia due to the mere fact that by engaging in yoga, your attention will be redirected to something more productive.

There are many different types of yoga that someone with graphophobia can benefit from, such as hatha yoga or hot yoga, among many others. Nevertheless, regardless of the many different forms of yoga that exist, virtually all of them can help to relieve some of the stress and anxiety that is associated with graphophobia.

If you have never practiced yoga before, then it may be in your best interest to take a class or watch some guided videos that can help you through each pose. Just like with meditation, the more you practice yoga, the more adept you will become at it. Besides helping you to reduce your symptoms of graphophobia, you can also expect to acquire increased strength and flexibility, among other benefits.

If you think you may be suffering from some of the symptoms of this condition, then you may benefit from therapy . Feel free to reach out to your doctor or local mental health clinic to see what your available options are and to see if there is any sort of discount or promo code available to help you with the costs of treatment , as well as if your health insurance will cover treatment costs.

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Writing About Fears and Phobias

Fear is a complicated emotion that involves pronounced emotional, physiological, and behavioral elements. To write fear well means you’re going to need to address each of those elements, while also taking into consideration the character’s personal history and why their fears developed. 

Like any of the major emotions, fear has a way of creeping into stories of just about every genre. If you’re writing a romance, you may have a character feel afraid of rejection as they plan to profess their love. If you’re writing something with action or horror elements, a character may encounter another person who poses a threat to their safety. In any story, however, a character may be afraid of bees or heights, or other things they could encounter at any time. If you can’t properly convey the feeling of fear in these situations, an otherwise good scene could end up feeling very shallow. 

What is the Character Afraid Of?

There are two major types of fear: rational and irrational. 

• Rational fears are fears that make sense, such as being afraid of death or something that could cause serious bodily harm. In most cases, rational fears arise from genuine dangers; if there’s a good reason to be afraid of something, then it’s a rational fear to have. 
• Irrational fears are fears that don’t make sense, and they vary from person to person. Someone might be afraid of clowns, even though clowns pose no real danger to anyone’s personal safety. Other examples are fear of worms, cats, holes, or ghosts. In other words, if there’s no reason to be afraid of something, and yet someone is afraid of it anyway, then that fear is irrational. 

Of these two, the one you’re going to need to think about the most is irrational fears —otherwise known as phobias . Everyone is afraid of suffering or dying, so that’s not as important to consider right away. Rather, consider what things your character is afraid of that sets them apart from their peers. Are they afraid of large bodies of water? Of getting lost? Of mushrooms?

Keep in mind that phobias are a type of character flaw. Character flaws exist to add depth to a plot by creating obstacles for a character to contend with or overcome, as well as allowing readers a deeper understanding of the character’s past and personality. If you give your characters a phobia, but they never encounter what they are afraid of in the story itself, then there is no real reason to give them that phobia in the first place. 

For more information on how to deal with character flaws in your story, check out How to Create Complex Flaws for Characters .

Why is the Character Afraid?

Now that you’re thinking about what your character is afraid of, you need to also start considering why they’re afraid of that—as well as how you can use that fear to your advantage in the narrative. 

As we’ve discussed above, many fears are innate or entirely rational. In that case, the answer to the question of why the character is afraid of something would be very straightforward. No one wants to be maimed or killed or otherwise put in harm’s way. Other completely understandable fears include getting lost, losing a loved one, or getting sick. But what about when a character’s fears are not so easily explained? 

Many fears result from past experiences. If someone is afraid of dogs, it may be because they were bitten by a dog in the past. If someone is afraid of clowns, it could be because someone they looked up to as a kid was also afraid of clowns, and they learned to be afraid too. You don’t need to do a lot of work to tie the character’s phobias to their backstory, but you should at least consider the origin of these fears so you can make their reactions to them deeper and more meaningful. 

Fears are complex, however, and can arise for a number of reasons. Not all fears have an easily identifiable cause, and others could have deep psychological explanations. Different people can be afraid of the same thing for entirely different reasons. For example, someone may fear large crowds because of the noise, while someone else may be afraid of crowds because of how easy it would be to get lost in a crowd, whereas another person may fear crowds because of the potential social demands of being around many other people. Other things, such as a person’s neurotype , can influence the way they interpret their surroundings and contextualize their experience too. 

Fears are more impactful if there is depth to the way they are experienced. If your characters have deep and meaningful reasons for being afraid of something, you need to clue readers in to the complex emotions and memories at play. 

Writing about “Fight or Flight”

“Fight or flight” is a phrase used to describe the physiological response a person experiences as a result of being afraid. Fight or flight, also known as “acute stress response,” causes the release of adrenaline and several other changes that allow a person to react quickly to a threat. 

Because of this response, the character experiencing acute stress may also experience:

• Dilated pupils
• Flushed face
• Trembling 
• Shallow breathing
• Nausea 
• Chills 
• Rapid heart rate

However, although the physiological reaction to fear is universal, the behavioral reaction is not. There are four major types of reactions to threats that a person can exhibit, though there are variations within each category as well. These different reactions are known as:

• Fight: This type of reaction is characterized by a person becoming aggressive and standing their ground as if to physically fight off a threat. However, this reaction can be triggered even when there is no physical threat to actually fight. 
• Flight: This type of reaction is characterized by a person attempting to flee or hide. They may attempt to hide behind another person, run away, or cover their face. 
• Freeze: This type of reaction is characterized by a person freezing up in the face of fear, often becoming incapable of moving or making a decision on their own. Like a kind of paralysis, this prevents a person from moving away from the threat in favor of not being noticed by it. 
• Fawn: This type of reaction is characterized by a person trying to prevent a threat from occurring in the first place by being compliant with whatever or whoever is making them afraid. It is most common in survivors of abuse, who are used to trying to appease an abuser to prevent more abuse from taking place. However, it can also be triggered in other situations where the fear results from another person, rather than an animal, concept, or situation. 

Of course, a character can experience different reactions in different situations. If they are confronted by a wild animal, their instinct may be to freeze, while if they are spooked by an actor in a haunted house attraction, their reaction may be to fight the poor employee in the ghost costume.

A character’s personality, and their experiences with each individual trigger, is going to help determine how they respond to fear at a given moment. In addition to that, other environmental factors can influence how a person reacts to fear. When alone, a person may flee, but if they are with others, they may be more inclined to stay and fight. Take a look at the setting, the object of the character’s fear, the other characters present in the scene, and any other factors to help you determine the way a character will respond. 

The Body Language of Fear

As with any emotion, it is almost always better to “ show, don’t tell ” when it comes to writing about fear. 

This is probably a phrase you’ve heard a million times before, but if you want a refresher, you can check out Show, Don’t Tell: What It Is and How to Use It (With Examples) .

One of the easiest ways to utilize the principle of “show, don’t tell” is to rely on body language. The way a character moves and speaks can indicate how they are feeling without you having to tell readers “they are scared.” However, the body language exhibited by a character who’s afraid of something is going to depend on their reaction to that fear (fight, flight, freeze, or fawn). 

Here are some examples:

• Fight: A character who instinctively reacts with the “fight” response is probably going to scowl, clench their fists, and stand with a wide stance. They could also stand protectively in front of others who are around them. Alternatively, they could lash out unexpectedly, instinctively trying to beat back whatever perceived threat has them scared. 
• Flight: A character who reacts with the “flight” response may grab onto something or someone, retreat back several steps, hold their arms close to their chest, or flinch noticeably. They are also more likely to cover their face with their hands, hide behind other people or objects, shriek, scream, and cry.
• Freeze: A character who reacts with the “freeze” response will quite literally freeze where they are standing. They may stare—either at their fear or off at nothing at all—or glance around frantically, and their limbs will still likely tremble. They could also be shocked silent, or they could mumble to themself or whine. 
• Fawn: A character who reacts with the “fawn” response will appear to make themself as small as possible. They may hunch over, wrap their arms around themself, or even go down on their knees. Like the flight response, they are also more likely to cry, but they may also try to mask how they feel with a fake smile

Additionally, a character who is scared may engage in what’s known as “self-soothing behaviors” to try to calm down or ground themself. Here are some examples of what those behaviors look like:

• Rocking back and forth
• Shaking their hands
• Wrapping their arms around themself
• Chewing on their lip
• Clasping their hands together tightly
• Gripping someone or something tightly
• Breathing slowly and deliberately 
• Clenching their jaw
• Fidgeting 
• Picking at their fingernails
• Holding their breath

For more information on how to use body language to cue readers in to how a character is feeling, make sure to check out Writing Body Language: Bringing Your Characters to Life next! 

Using Fear to Reveal More About a Character

The way a character reacts to being afraid can reveal a lot about who they are. Fear is great at revealing a person’s true colors, and betraying elements of their personality and past that they otherwise would not discuss. It’s also not uncommon for people to behave seemingly out of character when they are afraid. For example, someone who is ordinarily tough may become timid and quiet when they are scared, while someone who is ordinarily skittish could behave courageously under pressure. A person who is ordinarily very calm and collected could reveal a more aggressive side of themself when they are exposed to something they fear. 

You can also use a character’s fears to give readers subliminal context to that character’s backstory. If a character is afraid of people yelling, that could indicate they have experienced abuse in their past, without you having to explain that explicitly. 

Just by planning ahead a little, you can use fear to reveal many things about a character’s true personality, the way they think, and what they could be hiding.

Fear of Writing Phobia – Graphophobia or Scriptophobia

By Editorial Staff 52 Comments

Scriptophobia is the extreme fear of writing in public. The word Scriptophobia is derived from the Latin word script meaning writing and phobos which is the Greek word for fear or dread. Graphophobia is very similar to Scriptophobia but it is more specific in that; it is related to the extreme and often irrational fear of handwriting.

Both Scriptophobia and Graphophobia are very common fears affecting hundreds of people around the world. In some cases, the phobia can affect the sufferer’s day to day life. Many are unable to take on jobs that require writing. The fear is especially debilitating in case of students who are unable to progress in school. Many tend to give up education because of this fear.

Causes of Graphophobia

The fear of writing usually originates from a negative experience in one’s past. Apart from technicalities, many Scriptophobes are also afraid of fear of rejection, fear of ridicule or the fear of embarrassing themselves or fear of being criticized etc. A student might have been rebuked or laughed at owing to something s/he has written or even for their handwriting. This episode can trigger panic attacks each time one has to write in class. This deeply conditioned response can create negative thinking patterns which are hard to change or overcome. Other issues like deep rooted lack of self esteem or the fear of persecution can also cause the fear of writing phobia.

Fear of excess success can also cause a fear of writing. This may be strange to believe, but the person who suffers from it actually develops a strange complex that makes him feel afraid of writing down his personal thoughts.

Fear of exposure can also lead to Graphophobia- it makes the writer feel vulnerable that s/he is exposing the innermost thoughts or that their writing could lead to devastating outcomes.

Writing one’s ideas and thoughts is usually therapeutic for some yet at the same time; a person could feel that if someone reads those thoughts it would violate their privacy. Words can also trigger anger, sadness or evoke other emotional responses. Someone’s private matters becoming public knowledge can therefore lead to a paranoia which is akin to being naked in public.

News reports such as writers having written an explosive column and being persecuted (in communist countries etc) or even touch trigger bombs that explode due to touching writing devices can all lead to fear of writing. The latter is an extreme and exceptional case, and a majority of the cases of Scriptophobia usually stem from other causes explained above.

Symptoms of Scriptophobia

Depending on the extent of one’s fear of writing phobia, the patient can suffer from various physical and emotional symptoms.

• Some Graphophobes are extremely guarded about their writing. They might write only at night to avoid being seen by others. They will be particular about where and what they write.
• In other extreme cases, just the thought of having to write something can lead one to have a dry mouth, elevated heart rate, sweaty palms, nausea, etc.
• Students might experience debilitating symptoms due to this fear such as the inability to write in school or finish projects owing to the fear of embarrassment. They might try to avoid writing at all costs. Many tend to miss school frequently complaining about stomach ache or other disorders-anything which will let them stay at home.

Parents often tend to be strict with the kids suffering from Scriptophobia. This causes the child to feel isolated, depressed and anxious all the time. Many kids also develop other fears like that of sleeping alone or might experience bed wetting due to this fear of writing. Others tend to be lonely or some even have imaginary friends. Therapy is of utmost importance in treating this phobia in younger patients.

Overcoming the fear of writing

As stated above, children with Scriptophobia need to be treated with TLC and if needed, a therapist or school counselor must be consulted. It is important to get to the bottom of the fear through hypnotherapy, cognitive behavior therapy and other desensitization techniques.

Adult Scriptophobes must first learn to accept their fears. This will get them in a better position to overcome it. Phobics can also try making themselves more comfortable while writing-some soothing music, nice bright lights, or writing near an open window sometimes can create a an ambience that is conducive to writing.

These days, there are many different devices available for writing. You can type on a typewriter or a computer instead of traditional pen and paper. You can also read more to get inspired-these small things can help you overcome your fear of writing. Write whatever comes to mind even if it is gibberish. The important step is to start and take the first step and continue until you reach the end. You could imagine enjoying yourself while writing and focus on the goal or the end objective of why you are writing in the first place.

If writing down thoughts is hard, you can try and record them on a voice recorder, create a brief written outline and later fill in the gaps. Finally, Scriptophobia or Graphophobia can be overcome by practicing writing daily. One can start a daily blog or keep a journal-the key is to write something every day. These are good practices to get people to accept what you write and slowly overcome your fear of writing once and for all.

Daniel G Ward says

February 2, 2022 at 10:43 pm

Since my divorce 12 years ago, I have had a problem signing legal documents in public. I have no problem signing any documents at home and alone. Once I go to a lawyer’s office or doctor’s office, something triggers this anxiety. And I’m a mess. What can I do going forward?

Zabbee says

October 16, 2023 at 10:33 pm

Hello dear friend, exactly like me, this illness has destroyed my life. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Zabbee, and I am from a beautiful village in Iran. I’m forty-two years old, a truck driver, and I have to say that I’m crazy about the English language, but I have been suffering from this disorder since I was a teenager or since 1996.

October 16, 2023 at 10:41 pm

Whenever I had to go to the bank or anywhere where I had to write or fill out a form, it was the most difficult thing in the world. It was, or still is, impossible to take notes, write down, or sign in public, like the lawyer’s office. I don’t know what to do.

Stacey says

January 28, 2022 at 7:41 pm

I never knew so many people had this same issue. I feel somewhat better that I’m not alone. I have a fear of signing my name in front of others. I know how to sign my name, but I get so nervous when I have to sign in front of others. At my job, we constantly have to sign documents. No matter how hard I try to calm my nerves and tell myself, don’t get nervous – you can do this. It just doesn’t work. I beat myself up about it every time and think: why does this happen? I believe I become nervous that someone is standing over me, and I have to hurry up and sign this document. The funny thing is when I have to just write, it doesn’t bother me. It’s truly embarrassing, and I don’t want anyone to think I’m incompetent.

October 16, 2023 at 10:43 pm

Exactly like me, dear friend. I have been suffering from this disorder since 1996 when I was a teenager.

Sharon says

January 21, 2022 at 10:39 am

I’ve been suffering from this for years. I’m praying to God that I overcome it because I feel it’s holding me back from doing what I’m supposed to do. Any advice, please help.

Jennifer says

August 2, 2023 at 8:18 am

Identical to your situation, that’s my problem so many times. But I want to face that fear of writing in front of people, so I’m here now to find ways to avoid it because I feel it’s so embarrassing if I’m in front of others and can’t write or sign. Thank you for sharing your experience. I continue seeking treatment and wish someone could help me and others in the same situation.

Roseline Iroegbu says

October 28, 2021 at 1:48 pm

Please, I need help with this writing phobia. How do I get the help?

Adeola says

November 10, 2021 at 9:38 am

I wish we could know. I have the same challenge with my son, and school just keeps getting tougher each year as expected.

January 14, 2022 at 10:15 am

As someone who developed this phobia while in grade school, I have to say that the only thing that truly helped me was to have a scribe. I have recently graduated college, and I owe finishing my thesis to my trusted friends and family members who would let me dictate my thoughts to them, and they’d type it up for me. If your son needs help in the classroom, maybe assigning a classmate or teacher’s aid to him to help him take notes or take dictation on projects could be arranged. I’ve seen accommodations like this in college courses, and I think it could be used elsewhere.

Joe Leonard says

July 6, 2021 at 6:49 pm

At 30 years old, I’ve only just found out that what I have is a phobia. It’s caused me serious problems for work and life, being constantly made to feel stupid or lazy, just because I couldn’t describe what the problem was. I have tried therapy for GAD but will try it for this also. Hypnotherapy could be useful with that right person, but I may also try the beta blockers.

Thank you so much for writing this article! I wish more people knew about this. I want to show this to my school teachers to help them not make the same mistakes on other children.

August 2, 2023 at 8:22 am

Same here. I’m 35 years old, and I couldn’t describe my problem until a few days ago when I researched and found this article. I am thankful.

Pulendhar says

September 14, 2019 at 12:08 pm

I have suffered from health problems and scriptophobia for 4 years.

July 30, 2023 at 8:11 pm

How did you get rid of this problem?

Dorothy Hollie says

August 8, 2019 at 11:58 pm

I am 71 now and have overcome my writing phobia. I suffered with it for more than 30 years. If someone was looking at my hand, my hand would stick to the paper and when it did move, it would scribble the word and I would be so embarrassed. I am a college graduate with a master degree. I can’t recall having that problem in college.

Cameron says

February 5, 2020 at 2:21 pm

I also can’t recall having this problem in high school. I just started a job 2 days ago and there is writing involved in public! My hands sweat, I start to shake.. it’s terrible!

January 21, 2021 at 1:19 pm

What did you do to overcome this? I’m 62 and still suffer from writing phobia.

Philips says

January 24, 2021 at 11:45 am

I’m suffering from the same situation, don’t know how to go about it. Do you have any information that could help me overcome this situation? Most times I feel embarrassed after writing in public.

Dibakar ghosh says

July 17, 2019 at 12:43 am

I got this phobia a decade ago. I can’t sign or write in front of anyone, my hand starts shaking like an old woman. This is creating a lot of problems for me.

March 28, 2019 at 5:36 pm

I am shivering when i am going to write. I fought the spelling some time, how to spell my name. What can i do for this please.

March 24, 2019 at 5:41 am

I think I have scriptophobia not the fear of writing in public but penning my thoughts onto paper. The irony is I teach writing and my students get it and do well but deep down I struggle constantly thinking I’m a fraud. This fear has kept me from pursuing a higher degree because it involves a lot of writing my personal opinion on the subject matter. This site has helped me reflect on what my fear is all about and I am taking control of it from today onwards. Wish me luck!

Gregers Andersen says

March 19, 2019 at 5:30 am

Yes, I have this phobia as well. I’m a minister in a church and am called on frequently to write things down, like written reports. I do all my handwriting from the safety of my office, but I’ll never let anyone see it. I’ll use a keyboard and print anything that needs to go public. If I have to attend a course, I’ll make excuses for leaving before I have to write anything. The strange thing is, I’m good at writing, my spelling is sometimes a little challenging and at other times it’s not. Go figure? I never write in public, but in saying that sometimes I’m caught out as in having to fill in forms for people who can’t write, or having to witness passports etc. When I do have to write, my handwriting goes from bad to very bad. My spelling is shocking and I’m left feeling like an idiot. And the people whom I’m writing for look at me like I’m stupid. But I’d rather have this phobia than many others I’ve seen, so I thank God for small mercies.

M. thilakavathy says

December 19, 2021 at 1:57 pm

Could you overcome this phobia?

November 17, 2018 at 2:23 pm

My case is not exactly graphophobia or scriptophobia but somewhere near that of it. It’s more like I am afraid that my handwriting will turn imperfect and there will be different sizes of the words I write and it would look shabby. I’ll literally tear that paper off my notebook and start all over again. And I think this phobia hit me not because of negative experiences but positive ones where I was praised for my handwriting. That created a line of neatness to pass and created kind of a pride in me and I could never let anyone down with my handwriting. Firstly I didn’t really care how it turned up, until one of my friends criticized me (I wouldn’t actually call it ‘criticized’ he probably just said that to advice me) and then my parents. Things just went down for me, I would spend hours on a few paragraphs. It’s gotten less worse because I learned that it was a problem and forced myself not to tear off what I did. I did say it got better because of my decision. I think it’s more like fear of imperfection.

Sountharya says

April 20, 2020 at 7:06 pm

How did you solve this problem? Please reply to me.

Marilou Remolacio says

November 6, 2018 at 8:00 am

I had the same problem. I don’t know how to overcome this phobia. Its stressing me a lot. I need my hands. I need to write normal. I cannot be like this!

August 2, 2023 at 8:29 am

Yes, same here. It’s very stressful. But I believe one day we can overcome this problem.

Dkveikhepu says

March 26, 2024 at 8:42 pm

I have this phobia.. whenever I write in front of others, my hands start shaking, and I can’t write. It really sucks. I have been struggling with this phobia since my college graduation. Can anyone else help me overcome this phobia?

Katherine says

September 19, 2018 at 8:55 pm

I can’t believe there is a term for what I experience everyday. Just writing this comment makes me anxious. I would rather dig ditches than write. It interferes with my life in so many ways. Glad I’m not alone.

Alberte says

September 2, 2018 at 10:04 pm

I’m not afraid of my own handwriting. I’m afraid of others’. Seeing it is the same reaction I get to seeing a spider. I can’t eat or sleep when I see it, and it’s been this way since I was five. I don’t know if it counts as graphophobia, but I’ve never heard of anything like it before

Shukdeb karmakar says

September 1, 2018 at 4:42 am

I am suffering from writing phobia from long back. Please suggest.

February 5, 2018 at 3:41 am

I got this phobia one year ago I can’t sign or write in front of anyone my hand starts shaking like an old women this is creating a lot of problems to me.

April 8, 2019 at 9:39 pm

I’m also facing the same situation, did you find any solution?

October 11, 2019 at 7:52 am

I am also facing the same situation. Any help?

s marthur says

January 22, 2020 at 9:26 pm

I am writing this late, so hope you see it. I suffered with this for years – it caused problems with jobs, social etc. Therapy did no good (I even had a psychiatrist belittle my problem – how dare I come with such a small thing). My answer? A psychiatrist prescribed a small amount of propranolol (Inderal) 20 mg of this beta blocker an hour before you have to sign or write (or take in the morning and it lasts 8 hours). Few side effects, not addictive and you don’t need higher doses.

August 2, 2023 at 8:32 am

Thank you for this information.

January 3, 2018 at 3:18 am

All I can say is this, I had always been very good at writing, and wrote lovely, but a long time ago I was in a reception area and had to answer the phone then log notes for the social workers of children’s cases, anyhow I was rang one day with a lady in a panic asking for a social worker, that I could not get hold of (I did work in a room on my own) I tried everything I could to get hold of one of them, to no avail, then was accused of potentially having killed a child because they did not have the information!

I have been trying to establish where this phobia comes from but I know it is from my past and like said earlier in the page I feel naked now writing in front of anyone, pen will not work but at home it is normally fine, I didn’t get it, now I sort of do, it has to do with feeling criticized, I know this is in my head. When I saw the wording for it, I will tell the Job Centre what this is and how bad I feel about it, makes me feel stupid and I am not. Thank you.

Debmilan rao says

July 6, 2017 at 9:55 pm

I have developed this phobia after a traumatic experience. It is so debilitating that I can’t attain jobs, exams or interviews. This is ruining my career.

September 12, 2018 at 7:56 am

Did you ever figure this out? I am going to therapy tomorrow for this after 10 years of avoidance.

October 5, 2018 at 11:08 pm

I understand. It’s real. I suffer too. I have found ways to get through life with this phobia. Use things to shield your hand , even breathes and know it won’t kill you. Scribble with your pen, like to get it too write and ask the person your with a question about themselves. It takes their attention from you and what you’re doing. If it’s cold wear gloves. It’s easy to write with gloves for some reason. Vote and get that Dem Joe Donnelly out of there. Write a letter when you’re by yourself with someone near but not paying attention and keep telling yourself that that person is standing right next to you but keep writing. It works .

David Del Grande says

May 28, 2017 at 12:41 am

This is the second website I’ve visited on this dreadful subject and I am quite surprised that I am not alone with this problem. At 67 years of age I’ve had this phobia most of my adult life. I have yet to come up with a solution besides avoiding situations where I must write in front of someone. Thank you for the information.

varsha says

January 8, 2017 at 5:39 pm

I can’t control my fear when writing on board in class, I feel that people is going to laugh at me

September 12, 2016 at 10:41 pm

Thanks, you have really been of help to me.

May 24, 2016 at 10:29 pm

Thank you for writing this… Thank you for the advice. I have been dealing with this fear since I was very young and I hope that through practise, writing will become a source of pleasure rather than pain.

David Finnigan says

June 2, 2016 at 6:45 pm

I have the same thing. Mine started about 10 years ago, when I had to fill out an application for a job and the employer themselves was watching me do it intensely. I panicked, and as a result I could not even control the pen in my hand…. Try to sign things in front of someone and its always an ordeal, I need a secretary wife cause its just not worth the hassle :D

Arun chauhan says

September 28, 2016 at 3:30 pm

I have completed my MBA and now I have a job. I also have the same problem of writing. This problem has been with me for the last 7 years. Now the position is that I am not able to hold a pen or pencil in my hand properly. It shivers in front of others and while writing anything I also forget the spellings of words. This is only because of fear of writing. Sir can you suggest me some steps to overcome from it. Without writing I am an illiterate person who is having all degrees.

October 20, 2017 at 6:55 pm

Dear Arun, do not panic and think that you only have this problem. Every problem has its solution do not worry much.. you can gain your inner confidence soon. Firstly forget you are having a problem. Secondly write something very slowly alone. Thirdly write or draw a picture you love more in front of unknown people.. Then slowly write in front of known people. Im sure you will get good at handwriting soon. All you need is your confidence back and do not read much about the problem of writing it will take you to the state where you cant write. Writing is not the only parameter that will decide your life. So do not worry, practice makes man perfect. All the best.

Mohammad Ramiz Uddin says

March 3, 2018 at 2:36 pm

You said the truth… i am like you. Many people says you are a highly educated person but why are you not successful? I always feel like this.. if you find any solution please reply to me brother.

Nitin das says

May 30, 2023 at 8:53 pm

I’ve been having the same trouble since 15 years old, and now I’m almost 40. It started with a traumatic experience, and now I have a master’s degree, but I can’t do anything.

Moin kureshi says

May 21, 2016 at 6:54 pm

Dear sir, I have a writing problem, i have not written for the past 4 years. Before i wrote with the right hand, now i write sir with the left hand. I took treatment from the neurologist. In the report everything was normal. Sir i am suffering from this problem. What do i do? So please reply with your suggestions fast.

Richard UK says

September 10, 2019 at 1:21 pm

I have been suffering for years with this problem. In my 20s it was extremely difficult. Now in my 30s I am starting to cope a little bit better with this condition. Lifestyle changes have helped loads. Meditation, exercise, good sleep pattern and healthier diet. Plus cutting down on alcohol. Then next day my nerves are out of control from a night out with friends at the bars.

CBT is excellent, but £40 per hour private or there is the NHS long waiting list. Talking Changes is a free online NHS help service. I am also on GP medication to cope with my anxiety.

I am currently back at college this week. Needing my meds to calm me down. I was extremely panicky as it was my first day. I was ok in the morning and panicked in the afternoon. My hands started to shake and my writing was not neat. I forgot to take my meds at lunch time.

Next weeks plan at college is to continue my meds and listen to my meditation music in one ear phone and have my large file hiding my writing from others. These techniques are only there for me until I start feeling comfortable in class and start making friends which should calm down my anxiety. I am not going to let anxiety trap me indoors and control my life. I will always get out in the community and face my fears or they will only get worse. Wish me luck.

September 4, 2015 at 7:16 pm

I wasn’t aware of Graphophobia or Scriptophobia, but it’s surprising how many phobias there are from your website. I can say I don’t have that problem as I write a journal everyday, but just need information on dealing with Nosocomephobia.

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82 Phobia Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best phobia topic ideas & essay examples, 🔍 good research topics about phobia, 👍 interesting topics to write about phobia, ❓ research questions about phobias.

• Anxiety and Phobia in Dental Settings: Theories and Their Relations While external factors may lead to the creation of the anxiety pattern in a patient, the subsequent dental treatment and procedures and their experiences may either exacerbate or altogether nullify the condition.
• Learning Theories Explaining Elevator Phobia I have tried to fight the phobia, but whenever I am faced with the scenario where I am supposed to use the elevator, the memory of the fall becomes so clear, and my fear comes […]
• Social Phobia: The Case Analysis Although the symptoms of acute stress disorder and paranoid personality disorder can be partly observed in Mr. So, the proof of acute stress disorder, paranoid personality disorder, and social phobia in Mr.
• Social Phobia and Stigma Treatment in Saudi Arabia In addition to the social factors, the causes of anxiety and phobic disorders include heredity, the individual characteristics of the nervous system, and the presence of congenital abnormalities.
• Old Age Phobia: Problems and Solutions Most of the countries of the world share the same view regarding the issue of the fear of aging. Thus, the perception of age is never well-received by the community and there is such a […]
• The Development of Phobias and Addictions On the other hand, addictions are the behavioral pattern that is characterized by either psychological or physical reliance on substances abuse which is known to have negative impacts on the health and the life of […]
• Social Phobia Issue Analysis From surveys of many individuals from across the United States and elsewhere, Ruscio and his colleagues found that 40% of individuals considered themselves to be chronically shy, to the point of it being a problem. […]
• Behavioral Treatment of Phobias One of the key concepts of CBT is that the source of a patient’s problems most likely lies inside the person, not outside. Therefore, further research should be initiated to improve the understanding of CBT […]
• Anxious Phobia Disorder Patients’ Brain & Behavior The improvement of the methods of spectral and multifractal analyses of the electroencephalogram has enabled scientists and psychologists to sort the chaotic and fractal dynamics of the brain associated with anxious phobia disorders.
• Specific Phobia: Major Psychiatric Disorder Moreover, the client loved going to school when she was a child because she did well in all of her classes.
• Conditioning in Phobias and Addictions In classical conditioning, Extinction of a behavior is induced by use of a positive reinforcement to the organism which escalates a response.
• Phobia in Operant and Classical Conditioning The process of classical conditioning encompasses an association between a behavior that is involuntary and a stimulus. This process sharply differs with that of operant conditioning where the association is between voluntary behavior and a […]
• Social Phobia: Causes, Symptoms and Signs It is generally associated with the way a person conducts him or herself in any social setting; in this case, an individual may be in a position of feeling very shy and / or lacking […]
• Psychological Problems: The Social Phobia For the achievement of the positive outcomes in restoring of social phobia, the specialists suggest to include the assessments of the life quality and life events in the psychological treatment procedures.
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in Solving Social Phobia The third element “The situation is perceived as socially dangerous” is the cumulative effect of the trigger situation and the negative thoughts that the individual has accumulated about a particular situation and the perception by […]
• Aerophobia or Fear of Flying The main aim of the careful explanation of the positive reasons of recovering from the condition is to enable the victim to have a feeling of absolute calmness as the session winds up and to […]
• Blushing and Physiological Arousability in Social Phobia
• Phobia: Analysis of How It Affects Society
• Claustrophobia: Phobia and Frightening Airplane Experience
• Connecting Paranoia With Social Phobia, Eating Disorders, and Schizophrenia
• Phobia’s and Addiction Relating to Classical and Operant Conditioning
• Educational Phobia: How It Affects Education
• Erythrophobia: The Analysis of the Blushing Phobia
• The Differences Between Phobia and Panic Disorder
• The Problem of Exam Phobia Among High School Students
• Explaining Reasons People Might Develop a Specific Phobia
• The Relationships Between Faith, Self-Esteem, and Social Phobia
• Fear and Phobia: Social Anxiety Analysis
• Identifying Social Phobia: Symptoms, Treatment, and Prognosis
• The Relationships Between Phobia and College Student Fears
• The Problem of Islam-Phobia Under the Trump Administration
• Overcoming Social Phobia and Social Anxiety
• Overview of Three Most Common Phobias: Agoraphobia, Claustrophobia, and More
• Phobia: Phobias and Specific Activating Events
• Psychoanalytic and Behaviorism Explanations of Phobia of Darkness
• Social Phobia and Perfectionism: Theories, Types, and Models
• Psychological Reasons and Effects of Phobia Amongst Children
• Phobias: Effects and Treatments of Phobias
• Social Phobia Among Teenagers and Adults in America
• The Relationship Between Social Phobia and Fear of Public Speaking
• Social Phobia: How It Affects Children
• Phobias: The Cause, the Effect, and the Solution
• Analysis of the Effects of Phobias on People
• Subliminal Cues Bias Perception of Facial Effect in Patients With Social Phobia
• The Causes and Cure of Situational Phobia
• Social Phobia and Low Self-Esteem as Factors Behind Unhealthy Eating Behavior
• The Conscious and Subconscious Facets of a Phobia
• The Factors That Contribute to the Social Phobia
• The Millennial Generation Must End Islam Phobia
• Analysis of Causes and Disadvantages of Phobias
• Treatment Plan for Child’s School Phobia
• Understanding Social Phobia and Its Effect on People in the US
• What Shapes Europeans’ Attitudes Toward Xeno-Philia or Phobia
• Overview of Certain Strategies for Phobia Treatment
• The Netherlands on Combating Xenophobia and Racism
• Islamophobia in American Media: Cause or Result
• What Is a Phobia and How Does It Manifest Itself?
• What Shapes Europeans’ Attitudes Toward Phobia?
• How Do Phobias Differ From Ordinary Fears?
• What Kinds of Phobias Do People Commonly Develop?
• How to Portray Socioeconomic Factors as They Might Play a Role in Someone Having a Phobia?
• Are Phobias Genetic or Learned?
• What Symptoms and Behaviors Might Indicate a Phobia?
• How Can Therapy Treat Phobias?
• When Does Medication Make Sense for Phobia Management?
• What Age Has the Most Phobias?
• What Happens if Phobias Are Left Untreated?
• Who Is Most Likely to Get Phobias?
• How Can Utilizing Combinative Therapy Be Even More Helpful Than Just Administering One Method of Treating a Phobia?
• How Can a Blood or Injury Phobia Actually Cause a Dangerous Situation for That Person?
• Which Is the Most Common Type of Phobia?
• What Are the Complications Arising Due to Phobias?
• How Does Genetic Predisposition Play a Role in Whether or Not Someone Develops a Phobia?
• What Part of the Brain Develops Phobias?
• What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and How Do Mental Health Professionals Utilize It in Eliminating Phobias?
• What Are the Symptoms of Phobias?
• How Might Biofeedback, Deep Breathing Techniques, and Meditation Be Used in Conjunction to Help Treat Phobias?
• How Are Phobias Diagnosed?
• What Are the Causes and Risk Factors for Developing Phobia?
• Why Do Phobias Get Worse With Age?
• Meditation Questions
• Suicide Prevention Paper Topics
• Abnormal Psychology Paper Topics
• Addiction Essay Topics
• Behaviorism Research Ideas
• Superstition Essay Ideas
• Islamophobia Paper Topics
• Homophobia Topics
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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writing essay about phobia?

Would it be a bad idea to write my Common App essay about a phobia? I’m thinking about using the “Describe a problem you’ve solved or would like to solve, explain its significance and the steps you took to try to solve it” prompt, but it seems like it would also fit in the failure essay topic or the meaningful identity/background essay.

Anyway, I’ve had moderate to severe emetophobia (the fear of vomit) my entire life and I recently started going to therapy for it this past summer. It’s one of the most under-researched phobias out there and there is no guaranteed cure. Because of this, I’ve become interested in researching this phobia as an independent project during college, to try and help others once I’ve gotten a better handle on my own phobia. It is one of the only things I can pinpoint that has drastically changed my life, which is why I am considering using it for my essay. I would, of course, focus on how I’ve become a stronger person through dealing with this rather than all of the things I can’t do because of my phobia.

Will colleges view this negatively? It’s a big part of who I am, but I can see why they’d be hesitant to admit a student who is deathly afraid of throw up. I don’t want to use this as any sort of “sob story” or make the reader pity me, but I don’t really have any other unique qualities or talents that I feel would be eye-catching or relevant enough to write about.

Well, imagine attending the admission’s committee meeting. Of course you want to stand out, but I am not sure that vomitus is the image that you want in their minds. Probably too much information.

You might make it personal but general about how a young person faces fear and anxiety to overcome (or adapt to) a problem and how that prepares you or influences you in regard to college.

@WISdad23 Haha, okay, good point. I wasn’t planning on being graphic with it or anything, but mainly focusing on how it’s changed me as a person.

Would writing about just plain anxiety and fear not be too generic for an essay?

I don’t think the details of the pathology are as relevant to college admission as are the details of the struggle and its outcome.

I had a relatively funny story about one of my fears that fulfilled the prompt and was interesting/insightful. I think it works pretty well actually.

I think if you make it somewhat funny and maybe give a couple of anecdotes about the lengths you went to in order to avoid vomiting combined with the strength it took to actually address the problem and try to overcome it, it could be a good topic. Your interest in wanting to help others with similar problems shows your character and that should come across well.

Everyone is repelled by vomit. Is a fixation with vomit what you want the AdComms to remember you by? How does this want them to say YES?

I’d stay clear of topics about repellent bodily fluids.

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• Lyness, D. (Ed.). (2013, May). Fears and Phobias (for Teens). Retrieved from https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/phobias.html
• Nordqvist, C. (2017, December 20). Phobias: Symptoms, types, causes, and treatment. Retrieved from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/249347.php

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