Inspiration is a myth. When you sit at your desk eager to put your words on paper, something is boiling inside you. That's not inspiration. That's you wanting to tell others you have something to say (but make sure you don't have a fever, just in case). As language learners, we especially want to be heard and understood. So, write a draft. Set aside your doubts about your talent for writing —even if you write every single day— and just write. You have a better and more challenging task ahead of you: taming your target languages. And that's exactly the point.
Someone once said, “The first try at something usually sucks.” Couldn't agree more.
Just relax, chew on your pencil, and aim for mediocrity. That alone takes half the weight off your shoulders. Don’t negotiate with your inner editor and try new phrases, maybe a phrasal verb you've never seen before, like pencil around or brain out. Are those real? Probably not. Go ahead anyway and don’t look back. You couldn’t care less what’s going to come out — at least for now.
Then lean back and read your alleged trash. Spot the gaps, those chunks where something doesn’t quite sound good, and use AI to your advantage — like Claude or ChatGPT. BUT I wouldn’t let it replace you utterly. Your mistakes, the grey areas in your writing, are compostable trash. Nothing to be ashamed of.
You put it so beautifully. I couldn't agree more! And yet it's hard for me to truly live by this idea - the inner critic is always there 😬
@LiubovVasilyeva That’s completely understandable, and it makes a lot of sense in your position 😅 You’re a writer, and most of us are language learners. We can’t help but feel double pressure: first for our language skills, and then for our writing. That’s why I think throwing caution to the wind and keeping writing might be the best approach here. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
This really resonated with me. It reminded me that mistakes are part of learning and that I should just write without fear. Thank you—it motivates me to keep going!
@Roumahcn22 I think that shaking off part of your self-awareness and fears can make a real difference when practicing your target languages. Thanks so much for your comment. I'm really glad the post resonated with you.