If you’ve seen Finding Nemo, the refrain “Just keep swimming” probably swam around your head for a while. If your kids have seen it, it may still come up every once in a while. That Dory was on to something.

Many aspiring authors struggle to complete a first draft. Most of the time, they are caught in insecurity. The story isn’t good enough. The characters aren’t deep enough. My inadequacies show through.

The answer is just keep writing. If it’s a first draft (and particularly the first draft of your first book-length manuscript), of course your inadequacies show through. That’s why it’s called a first draft.

We all want to be catapulted into stardom with our first novel. We need to remember that writing is a craft. Just as a luthier’s first guitar is likely not a masterpiece, it’s likely your first novel won’t be either. Just keep writing. Keep improving. Develop your craft. Persevere.