Doing vs Being: The Imposter Syndrome of a Writer

Imposter syndrome is something we have ALL struggled with as teachers and as writers; however, sometimes we forget that no one struggles with that more than students.  I've been working with a new batch of student writers for a few weeks now and the other day during our first writing workshop a conversation occurred that reminded me of that struggle.

Every year I begin my College English course with the same writing task, an idea I got from author John Warner that asks them the question: "Who are you as a writer?"  It is one of my favorite questions to pose because it automatically gives me a snapshot into the history, experiences, joys, and fears my students have surrounding writing.  

By the time of our writing workshop, they had been working on their response to this question for about a week. I opened with a writing check-in and asked students: "What are some obstacles standing in your way?"  

I got a few different responses, but the one I want to focus on was: "I'll be honest.  I'm really not sure if I've answered the prompt."

"What makes you say that?"

"I mentioned some of the writing I've done in school, but I don't feel like that really addresses who I am as a writer.  I don't think I really know who I am as a writer."

"Because all you've experienced so far with writing is really school related?"  

The student nodded, so I added: "But isn't that still answering the prompt?"  

They looked confused, so I added, "The audience of this piece wants to know who you are and they want you to be honest.  If you don't know, well, that's still an answer. You've shared experiences in writing -- your history -- and through your experiences you reached the conclusion that your writing identity is mostly tied to your school work.  That's still answering the prompt.  Does that make sense?"

The student left our workshop conversation looking a little more reassured. I knew as soon as the interaction was over that I needed to write about it.  I found the moment a good reminder of how much students write for school and still struggle with owning that writing identity.

It's easy to DO writing, it's harder to BE a writer.

What do you think?  Have you asked students' about their obstacles and have you confronted your own? Are you someone who DOES writing or ARE you a writer?