Your brain fills in missing details in your own writing, so you can't see what's actually wrong with it. Even experienced writers need an editor or coach to spot the gaps, just like Tiger Woods needs a swing coach. Getting outside help isn't weakness; it's how you get better.
Chapters
One of the writers I spoke with recently taught English for 17 years. Another has been writing for 40 years and published 2 books. Another teaches creative writing classes that sell out. And all 3 of them were stuck. And all 3 of them were surprised by that. There's this belief, especially among smart, well-read, experienced writers, that if they just put in enough hours, they'll eventually figure out what's wrong with their writing. And that's true for some things, but not for this. Here's why. Your blind spots are invisible to you. That's literally what makes them blind spots. You cannot objectively read your own writing because your brain fills in the gaps automatically. You know what the character is feeling, so you didn't notice that it wasn't on the page. Being smart has nothing to do with this. Being experienced doesn't fix this. Having an English degree also doesn't fix this because the problem isn't intelligence, it's just perspective. You're too close to the work. Even the greatest athletes in the world have always had a coach. And you would look at this, somebody like Tiger Woods always had a golf coach, which on one hand, why? Like, if the golf coach is so good, why isn't he on the PGA Tour? They have these coaches not because they're better athletes, but because the coach can see what the athlete can't. An editor mentor can do the same thing. They read your scene from the reader's perspective without knowing what's in your head, and then because they're so well trained, they can instantly spot where it breaks down, show you where it breaks down, and then teach you the skill so that you can fix that in your next rewrite. So no matter how experienced you are, you can't do that for yourself. And I want you to hear this: asking for help isn't some admission that you're not good enough or you're not smart enough. It's the move that every serious writer makes when they're ready to go from good to great.
