Great post, comforting. I suffer from FOMO for sure, and as a writer/EFL teacher it affects me in both areas. Trying to cram too many activities into my lessons, thinking 'oh my poor students won't get to do this cool activity I spent ages planning!'
It's helpful but hard to think of the cost sunk fallacy - I have so many posts and ideas and ruminations and they are all over the place, and I keep thinking, how to make them fit? My dilemma is that I started my Substack as a resource for language learners, but it has grown to include a large chunk of non-learners who engage with and comment more on my posts than my original target audience (part of that might also be that around 150 of my subscribers, my earliest ones, only use Substack for me, and don't subscribe to other publications).
TL;DR - a niche is tough, I'm interested in so much, and I'm often trying to shoe-horn my ideas into a 'how this benefits language learners but can appeal to a wide[r] audience.'
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. FOMO is so strange because, if we let it, it really does infiltrate every part of our lives… You can have FOMO over shows your don’t watch to books you don’t read to careers you don’t choose to relationships you don’t pursue - the list goes on! But you’re right; if we don’t avoid the FOMO, we can’t enjoy the things we DO choose. And that’s “missing out” on something, too! 😅
Good piece and self-thought provoking. The "FOMO" is relatable I think to anyone who really enjoys the writing process a lot. I'm focusing on a niche like pro wrestling precisely because it's where I feel I have the most knowledge and direct personal experience (and subject matter passion about) and hence look to find and grow an audience. However, that said, there are certainly ideas to expand into other topics that I am not as knowledgeable about but have a compelling interest in and quest to learn more about, writing precisely from the perspective as an inquisitive new "fan".
Thanks! It sure can be hard to choose a niche when you have a lot of interests. There are a lot of topics that I'd like to write about, especially as a career ghostwriter, but narrowing down my focus is definitely better for the actual progress I can make in an area and for hiring/monetary purposes!
If you have any posts you did on your ghostwriting creative process, feel free to pass it along. I always enjoy reading insights on writing processes and haven’t seen much about ghostwriting out there in general.
Much of my page covers this exact topic, so I'm glad you asked! I post articles on Mondays typically about ghostwriting/writing in general. On my page, they're all listed under the "Writing FAQs" tab!
Emma, how come everyone but me knows what the hell FOMO means? Sometimes I feel as old as a cave painting in Spain, specifically the unofficial oldest, Maltravieso Cave in Cáceres, Spain, haha.
Haha! You’re fine! It is a relatively new term. FOMO is the “fear of missing out,” meaning that you feel worried or stressed that you might be missing out on something fun or amazing because you’re stuck doing something else.
It’s the worst because I just want to write all kinds of things, but as a career writer I also know I have to spend most of my time on something specific to get really good at it. 😅 But it will be cool to maybe one day be a real leader in a specific niche! ☺️
Infomative
Great post, comforting. I suffer from FOMO for sure, and as a writer/EFL teacher it affects me in both areas. Trying to cram too many activities into my lessons, thinking 'oh my poor students won't get to do this cool activity I spent ages planning!'
It's helpful but hard to think of the cost sunk fallacy - I have so many posts and ideas and ruminations and they are all over the place, and I keep thinking, how to make them fit? My dilemma is that I started my Substack as a resource for language learners, but it has grown to include a large chunk of non-learners who engage with and comment more on my posts than my original target audience (part of that might also be that around 150 of my subscribers, my earliest ones, only use Substack for me, and don't subscribe to other publications).
TL;DR - a niche is tough, I'm interested in so much, and I'm often trying to shoe-horn my ideas into a 'how this benefits language learners but can appeal to a wide[r] audience.'
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. FOMO is so strange because, if we let it, it really does infiltrate every part of our lives… You can have FOMO over shows your don’t watch to books you don’t read to careers you don’t choose to relationships you don’t pursue - the list goes on! But you’re right; if we don’t avoid the FOMO, we can’t enjoy the things we DO choose. And that’s “missing out” on something, too! 😅
Good piece and self-thought provoking. The "FOMO" is relatable I think to anyone who really enjoys the writing process a lot. I'm focusing on a niche like pro wrestling precisely because it's where I feel I have the most knowledge and direct personal experience (and subject matter passion about) and hence look to find and grow an audience. However, that said, there are certainly ideas to expand into other topics that I am not as knowledgeable about but have a compelling interest in and quest to learn more about, writing precisely from the perspective as an inquisitive new "fan".
Thanks! It sure can be hard to choose a niche when you have a lot of interests. There are a lot of topics that I'd like to write about, especially as a career ghostwriter, but narrowing down my focus is definitely better for the actual progress I can make in an area and for hiring/monetary purposes!
If you have any posts you did on your ghostwriting creative process, feel free to pass it along. I always enjoy reading insights on writing processes and haven’t seen much about ghostwriting out there in general.
Oh, and I almost forgot - My post coming out in about 45 minutes is on the pros and cons of career ghostwriting, too!
I look forward to reading it!
😄
Much of my page covers this exact topic, so I'm glad you asked! I post articles on Mondays typically about ghostwriting/writing in general. On my page, they're all listed under the "Writing FAQs" tab!
Listened to your voiceover, and you modulate your words very well, have a clear voice, and a professional but friendly tone. Well done!
Thank you so much!! 😄
Emma, how come everyone but me knows what the hell FOMO means? Sometimes I feel as old as a cave painting in Spain, specifically the unofficial oldest, Maltravieso Cave in Cáceres, Spain, haha.
Haha! You’re fine! It is a relatively new term. FOMO is the “fear of missing out,” meaning that you feel worried or stressed that you might be missing out on something fun or amazing because you’re stuck doing something else.
Now, about a guy being a 'Chad' don't have a clue what that means? I'm being No Cap here. ;)
I think that’s referring to a toxically masculine guy who’s annoying, but it seems to me to have a pretty fluid definition. 😂
Yikes, I better stop right there.
My Substack FOMO is being classified as Fiction when what I really am is High Fantasy and not SF.
It’s the worst because I just want to write all kinds of things, but as a career writer I also know I have to spend most of my time on something specific to get really good at it. 😅 But it will be cool to maybe one day be a real leader in a specific niche! ☺️