In Praise of Fear: Why Author and Psychotherapist Dennis Palumbo Is Right About Creativity and Anxiety
 |
| Visions-AD/AdobeStock |
Every generation of writers is told some version of the same lie: that fear is a weakness, a defect to be conquered, or a signal that you’re not cut out for the work. Dennis Palumbo, thankfully, knows better.
In his recent Psychiatric Times column, “In Praise of Fear,” Palumbo—former Hollywood screenwriter (My Favorite Year) and longtime psychotherapist to artists—offers a lucid, deeply humane meditation on fear as an essential companion to meaningful creative work. I encourage every writer to read the piece in full.
Palumbo’s argument is not theoretical. It is lived. It is earned.
Fear Is Not the Enemy of Serious Work
Palumbo reminds us that emotions are not moral categories. Fear is not bad. Courage is not good. They are information—signals from the interior life that tell us where the stakes are.
In my experience working with writers across genres and decades, the absence of fear is rarely a virtue. More often, it signals disengagement. The writers who feel nothing are not brave; they are not fully invested.
Fear shows up when the work matters.
Palumbo puts it plainly: the creative mind draws its power from the same inner terrain that produces doubt, anxiety, and vulnerability. To exile fear is to exile the source of the work itself.
The Mountain Is the Work
One of the most memorable passages in Palumbo’s essay recounts his attempt to climb the Grand Teton while researching a screenplay. Frozen on a ledge, he admits his fear to his instructor, who responds: “Good. Otherwise, I wouldn’t climb with you.”
Fear, the instructor explains, keeps climbers present. Alert. Alive.
Writing works the same way. Fear focuses attention. It sharpens judgment. It forces us into the moment where the next handhold—the next sentence—actually matters.
Writers who try to eliminate fear often end up writing safely. Or not at all.
Why Trying to “Kill” Fear Is a Mistake
Palumbo rejects the popular advice to conquer or destroy fear. After decades of clinical work with writers, musicians, filmmakers, and artists of every stripe, he has never seen fearlessness produce better art.
Fear reveals what we care about.
Fear marks emotional truth.
Fear energizes the work when it is acknowledged rather than denied.
What drains creative power is not fear itself, but the effort required to pretend it isn’t there.
Why Writers Need Support, Not Platitudes
This is where many writers get stranded—aware of their fear, but unsure how to work with it. Palumbo’s clinical insight reminds us that fear should be taken seriously, but not indulged. Explored, but not obeyed.
At Writers Lifeline, the focus is not on eliminating anxiety or forcing productivity. It is on helping writers stay in relationship with their work when fear inevitably arises—during drafting, revision, submission, or success itself.
Fear is not a reason to stop. It is often the sign that you are exactly where you need to be.
Read Dennis Palumbo’s Essay
Dennis Palumbo’s original essay, which is thoughtful, generous, and precise in ways only long experience allows.
I strongly recommend reading “In Praise of Fear” in Psychiatric Times:
https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/in-praise-of-fear
Some climbs are meant to be difficult.
Half excited. Half terrified.
That sounds about right.
No comments:
Post a Comment