Wannabe Writers #18

Wannabe Writers is a writing group for the un-published and anyone is welcome to join. It's a place where future authors can ask questions, share stories, and get feedback. Click (here) to find more about how it works.

Where I am in the writing process: Last week a brilliant idea came to me for the conclusion of my novel. Right now I'm writing the last action-filled chapters and soon after that I'll be done my first draft. I'm hoping to be done by mid-July.

My current problems: Maintaining momentum. I'm easily distracted by the internet, and planning for ALA next month.

My question this week:  Sarah didn't have a question this week, but I do. How do you deal with writer's jealousy?

I haven't had to deal with this personally yet, as most of my writing buddies are in similar places as myself. I believe only one of them is anywhere near the query stage. That said, I do find myself feeling slight twinges of jealousy, not when I see a well-deserving aspiring author finally reach their goal, but when I see that first time novel sky-rocket into the stratosphere. I think it's only natural to read a book that is merely okay and think to yourself, 'How the hell did this land on the best seller's list?' Instead of letting it bring me down, I use writer's jealousy to move forward. If after reading a so-so book, I'll tell myself, "You can do better than this!" and I use that to push me towards reaching my goal. It doesn't always work, but I do try not to get depressed. Not all published books are good, but hopefully mine will be one of the good ones that gets published.