Writers, Here’s How to Get Out of Your Own Way!
Self-doubt got you down? Write and post your mission statement.
October 1, 2026
Dear Writers,
Welcome to StoryCellar! I’m glad you’re here. I’m Oregon-based journalist and author Melissa Hart; I worked as Contributing Editor at The Writer Magazine for 10 years, and my writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Smithsonian, The Washington Post, CNN, Salon, Slate, Real Simple, The Advocate, Orion, The Los Angeles Times, and numerous other publications. (See my work at www.melissahart.com.)
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Writers, Here’s How to Get Out of Your Own Way!
At the Florence Festival of Books last weekend, I got to deliver the keynote to a room full of writers working in various genres. I freely admitted my own periodic imposter syndrome, especially when tackling science-based features. Then, I explained how I get out of my own way so that I can sit down and write.
First, here’s the script that runs through my head as I pitch or work on stories just out of my comfort zone:
Melissa’s Brain: Girlfriend, you’ve gotta be kidding. You’re pitching a story on how to boost neuroplasticity in middle age? You can’t even spell neuroplasticity. How are you going to write about it? And what is this on your desktop—a query for a history magazine? You’re not a historian. Are you bonkers? Speaking of history, are you ever going to finish your historical novel? That’s what I thought.
Writers, it’s enough to drive me to a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia at 9 AM and call it breakfast.
Fortunately, over two decades, I’ve come up with my own mission statement of sorts. It’s on my desk, and it looks like this:
Every morning, I remind myself that no matter what I’m working on, my goals as a writer are to illuminate, entertain, and/or inspire. Repeating this daily helps me to view my imposter syndrome as self-indulgent. I don’t have time to luxuriate in self-doubt—I have work to do.
So do you.
Here are some recent writers’ projects that illustrate my mission statement.
STORIES THAT ILLUMINATE
Emily Poole’s Cascade of Life: An Artist’s Seasonal Guide to the Wild Northwest literally illuminates, through vibrant illustrations, the flora and fauna of the PNW.
From Time Magazine, Wendy Wisner’s essay illuminates how to survive a parent’s diagnosis of dementia: My Mom’s Alzheimer’s Led Me to a Dark Place. These 6 Words Saved Me - Newsweek
Nick Keppler’s recent essay for Slate illuminated a demographic I don’t usually consider: Men aren’t lonelier than everyone else. This group of people is.
STORIES THAT ENTERTAIN
Annie Hartnett’s The Road to Tender Hearts, narrated in audiobook form by the incredible voice actor Mark Bramhall, made me laugh out loud at three in the morning this week. (Yes, I was awake, and yes, the humor involved a cat.)
This essay by Lisa Borders in Oldster, Geriatric Gen X: A Manifesto, is so witty.
I’d be remiss in not sharing this oldie but goodie from Colin Nissan: It’s Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers - McSweeney’s Internet Tendency
STORIES THAT INSPIRE
Kristen Coffield and Debra Eckerling teamed up to write the new book Active Grandparenting: A Guide to Modern Family Dynamics, Healthier Habits, and Functional Fitness (With Recipes, Hydration Techniques, Exercises, and More).
Susan Shapiro’s essay from The Ethel has me planning all sorts of adventures for my single friends! Matchmaking Tips From a Woman Who Set Up 30 Marriages
Lyanda Lynn Haupt has a brand-new book out, and I can’t wait to read it and get inspired to go out and consider my neighborhood birds!
Of course, your own mission statement might look very different from mine, writers. Maybe you write to educate yourself, or for a salary/paycheck, or to keep yourself away from the chocolate chip cookies/hookah/Boone’s Farm Strawberry Wine.
Regardless of your reason, consider writing it on a sticky note and placing it somewhere prominent in your workspace to remind yourself that with the limited time we’re given on this earthly plane, you don’t have time to give in to self-doubt.
Want more teaching? Check out my Anytime/Anyplace Online Writing Courses. They’re fun, affordable, and oh-so-useful to your writing!
What I’m Publishing
My latest book is the illustrated nonfiction work Down Syndrome Out Loud: 20+ Stories of Disability & Determination, available in hard copy, e-book, and audiobook form. I’d be so grateful if you’d order a copy for your school or public library or classroom, pediatrician or child psychologist, dance studio, or YMCA!
Stay tuned for my essay on hiking The Narrows up to my waist in freezing water on Thanksgiving Day (Business Insider) and marathon running women who just happen to have Down syndrome (RUNHER Magazine).
My lovely agent Jennifer is shopping around my cat-themed nonfiction book proposal. Cross your paws that some editor falls in love with it!
Where I’ll Be Soon
October 1, 2026—“The Art of the Query Letter” for Willamette Writers.
October 4, 2026—Down Syndrome Out Loud discussion for The Small but Mighty Book Club, online.
October 14, 2026—Oregon Keynote Speaker: “The Crucial Community Providers who Empowered the Artists, Athletes, Activists, and Entrepreneurs in the new book Down Syndrome Out Loud” for Community Providers Association of Oregon Conference.
I’m always happy to keynote and/or teach a Master Class at your writers’ conference or workshop! Just give me a holler at melissahartsmith(at)gmail(dot)com .
A Few Cool Resources for Writers
I’m obsessed with this Jane Austen podcast The Thing About Austen - Podcast - Apple Podcasts in which the charming hosts analyze everything from illegitimate children and lap dogs to white soup and the pump room at Bath.
Publisher and author Laura Stanfill’s incredibly-useful nonfiction book for writers, Imagine a Door — Forest Avenue Press, has been out in the world for a year doing the excellent work of demystifying writing and publishing for us all.
Women of a certain age, I was delighted to find this website with recommendations for books, films, podcasts, and more: Home | CroneHub
Have I shared this resource before? It’s a good one, on the excellent website DIY MFA. Why You Should Try the Pomodoro Technique - DIY MFA - Pereira. I swear by the Pomodoro Technique even though it always makes me crave pasta.
This is a really useful short podcast for writers, with plenty to say about how we should protect our eyes from the strain of being on screens all day! A head-to-toe check in for your health : Life Kit: Health : NPR . I’ve been setting my alarm to do the 20:20:20 Rule.
While we’re on the subject of health, my poet sister and I just had a long discussion on how much we adore walking, and I found this! Wanderers: A History of Women Writers Walking - Nasty Women Writers
The History of Concrete | John Wilson | Now in Theaters. I’m recommending this film without having seen it because I’m intrigued by its backstory. The filmmaker, John Wilson, took a workshop on how to write and sell a Hallmark movie. He used the formula to write and sell a documentary about the history of concrete. Delightfully bizarre! I’d love to know what you think!
Calls for Submissions
This deadline is TODAY, you folks writing comic plays! Submit | Join the Comedy Revolution Today — Jokes on Her
The Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship – One Story offers a year-long mentorship on the craft of fiction writing with One Story magazine.
Narratively Story Manager - Sacrifice: Mini Essay Contest. If you win this one, the judge—New Yorker cartoonist and writer Liza Donnelly—will turn your essay into a cartoon!
How to Submit — Mental Health Tings wants 800-1200 word blog posts about your life with a mental illness or neurodivergence and/or how those struggles affect your faith, or book reviews on the same topic.
Pitch Guidelines for Freelance Writers | Discover Magazine. “Science should be for everyone.” This is directly from the guidelines. Take that, Melissa’s brain!
The Rachel Carson Center Review is looking for submissions for a thematic issue on nonhuman animals and more-than-human worlds. Details: About - Springs
Quartet is a poetry journal for women over 50. From the guidelines, “We want to read poems that tackle difficult themes, that bend or honor traditional forms, that surprise and illuminate, that are genuine, that have momentum and play with language.” Quartet - Community of Literary Magazines and Presses
Icarus | Call for Submissions for original stories riffing on the theme this mythological character represents.
I’ve written for Conz Prezi at Business Insider several times; she’s seeking fresh pitches for unusual holiday stories, family travel experiences, soft retirement, multigenerational families, and parenting across cultures.
Call for Submissions – Syncopation Literary Journal. Editors want pieces that explore women’s contributions to music, as well as gender as it relates to music.
Editors at Fit to Print - Glossy Planet want flash fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry that responds to a headline of the writer’s choosing.
Want more calls for submissions? Check out these resources:
That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!
—Melissa
P.S. Here’s me giving my keynote for writers, “Why the World Needs Your Stories Right Now,” at the Florence Festival of Books last month. I’m holding up the P-style featured prominently in a piece I wrote for The New York Times Sunday Magazine!
No, my friends, I did NOT demonstrate how to use the P-style urinary device.
Melissa Hart is the author, most recently, of Down Syndrome Out Loud: 20+ True Stories about Disability and Determination (Sourcebooks, 2025). Find her on Instagram and BlueSky @WildMelissaHart . www.melissahart.com