Writing anxiety is a term for the tension,

worry Worrying is the mental distress or agitation resulting from anxiety, usually coming from a place of anticipatory fear (terror) or fear coming from a present threat (horror). With more understanding of the situation, worry becomes concern, the ...

nervousness Anxiety is an emotion characterised by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different from fear in that fear is defined as the emotional response to a present threat, where ...

, and a wide variety of other negative

feeling According to the '' APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations, thoughts, or images evoking them". The term ''feeling'' is closel ...

s that may occur when given a

writing Writing is the act of creating a persistent representation of language. A writing system includes a particular set of symbols called a ''script'', as well as the rules by which they encode a particular spoken language. Every written language ...

task. The degree to which a writer experiences these negative feelings may vary depending on the context of the writing. Some may feel anxious about writing an essay for school, but writing an email on the same topic doesn't trigger the anxiety. Others may feel fine writing a lab report, but writing a letter to loved one triggers the anxiety. Writing anxiety is therefore a situational experience that depends on a number of factors, including the writing task itself, the environment, personal and audience expectations, and one's previous experiences with writing. While writing anxiety is often used interchangeably with

writer's block Writer's block is a non-medical condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author is either unable to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown. Writer's block has various degrees of severity, from difficulty in coming ...

, writing anxiety refers to the various feelings of apprehension one associates with a writing task, while writer's block is the effect that it has on one's writing process.

Causes

Writing anxiety can occur when * Faced with the pressures of getting good grades at school, college, or university. * Having to adapt and learn a new

writing style In literature, writing style is the manner of expressing thought in language characteristic of an individual, period, school, or nation. Thus, style is a term that may refer, at one and the same time, to singular aspects of an individual's writing ...

. * Tight deadlines or no deadlines. * Not understanding the writing task.

Managing Writing Anxiety

There are many ways to manage writing anxiety. * Asking for assistance from a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

, a writing group, a friend or family member about the assignment can help understand the assignment and give a direction of which writing style and format is appropriate for the task. * Practice writing. It is a skill that can be learned and taught, given the support and guidance from teacher, lecturers and professors. * Have a plan of what to write out. Work out what to say, what feelings to convey to the reader, how to reach the end goal

References

{{reflist Anxiety

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion characterised by an unpleasant state of inner wikt:turmoil, turmoil and includes feelings of dread over Anticipation, anticipated events. Anxiety is different from fear in that fear is defined as the emotional response ...