J.K. Rowling and Neil Gaiman's secret with dealing with issues of imposter syndrome

No matter the height we have reached we can’t escape from them.

Samuel Madu
3 min readAug 17, 2023

Writers suffering from imposter syndrome think they are the only ones with such a problem and fear it has become their new reality.

Mostly we think we are the only ones stuck in that place of indecisiveness and feeling like an imposter. For writers with results and progress, this can also come as not feeling deserving.

No matter the height and years as a wordsmith, we all still suffer from the feeling of self-doubt in our craft. The reason for this is that we are sharing ourselves with the world.

Unlike any profession out there, the writer is the person who has to be vulnerable to be appreciated and have to share the deep parts of themselves to be seen and read. All these have us questioning ourselves and the position demanded of us.

The world asks more from us and sometimes that pressure of being a writer can have its effect on how we see ourselves and the things we believe about ourselves

The acclaimed author Neil Gaiman, known for works like “American Gods” and “The Sandman” series, has openly spoken about his struggles with imposter syndrome. He has mentioned how even with his success, he often feels like he’s just one step away from being found out as a fraud.

You can imagine the height and success of Neil Gaiman and yet somehow he still questions himself and thinks the world will someday figure out how much of a fraud he is even when this is not objectively true.

The legendary poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist Maya Angelou, who authored “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and many other influential works, also faced imposter syndrome. Despite her remarkable achievements, Angelou admitted to feeling like she would be exposed as not as intelligent or talented as people believed

And for J.K. Rowling our beloved author of the “Harry Potter” series, J.K. Rowling has spoken openly about imposter syndrome and how it affected her, especially after the immense success of her books. She revealed that even after achieving worldwide recognition, she sometimes felt like she was undeserving of her accomplishments.

These three examples laid down here show us that imposter syndrome and the feeling of self-doubt are real and natural. No matter the height we have reached we can’t escape from them.

Rowling stressed the significance of understanding that imposter syndrome is a common experience and advised aspiring writers to believe in their capabilities.

Aunt Maya emphasized the importance of recognizing self-doubt, but not allowing it to control one’s actions or choices and the famous writer Neil Gaiman suggests that acknowledging these feelings and continuing to push through the doubt is key to overcoming imposter syndrome.

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