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Anyone who grew up in the second half of the 20th century was familiar with two icons of pop culture: The Wizard of Oz and Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.

On the surface, these two couldn’t be more different. The Wizard of Oz was a 1939 movie about a young girl, Dorothy, who is swept away by a tornado and battles the Wicked Witch of the West in the land of Oz. Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, on the other hand, was a PBS show that taught kids how to cope with life and use their imaginations. 

These two worlds converged one day in 1975 when Margaret Hamilton made a guest appearance on Mister Rogers. As the Wicked Witch, she had scared generations of kids. But she was also a fan of Mister Rogers and enjoyed watching it with her grandchildren.

She appeared on an episode where Fred Rogers was teaching children not to be afraid of things that seem scary. They had Margaret Hamilton dress up a costume similar to the Wicked Witch to show kids that it was all make-believe. 

That’s not just a lesson for kids, but for kids of all ages … including writers.

We let fear hold us back from so much. What will people think if I start a blog? What if nobody likes my book? What will the people I went to high school with think about my new identity as a writer? What if someone leaves me a bad review?

Can those things happen? Of course? But will they hurt you? No. The vast majority of our fears about writing and creativity have no basis in reality. They are just figments of our imaginations. 

The master of horror himself, Stephen King, once said, “I’m convinced that fear is at the root of most bad writing.” Whether it’s fear of failure, fear of other people’s opinions, or fear of the blank page, none of it is real.

So the next time you’re distracted by that shadowy figure in the corner, and you’re feeling afraid or apprehensive about your writing, remember that it’s just your mind playing tricks on you.