Wordle and Writing: What to Do When You Fail

by Lori Hatcher

How many Wordle players do we have out there?

For the uninitiated, Wordle is a web-based game where players try to guess a five-letter word in six tries or less. Participants receive feedback after each guess. Wordle has a daily solution, and everyone attempts to guess the same word. During 2023, Wordle was played 4.8 billion times. 

So yes, I see your hands.

We’re word nerds. We love opportunities to exercise our knowledge of the English language, whether we’re writing a short story, editing a blog post, or competing with thousands of other word lovers to guess the winning word.

My husband and I are latecomers to the game, which became public in 2021. Each morning, after breakfast and devotions, we open the Wordle app and try to guess the word of the day. We had a 42-day winning streak going, feeling all smug and smart, until Saturday, October 5. 

Wordle gurus declared the winning word for that day “easy and straightforward.” Apparently not for us. After six unsuccessful attempts, our unbroken, self-satisfied Wordle streak ended when we guessed trial, giver, wiper, biker, cider,and miser, but not MINER. 

Waaah!

As I examined the wounds of our defeat, I realized that playing Wordle parallels the writing journey.

Sometimes, we tap a few letters on the keyboard and, voila! we win. All our letters turn green, and we receive an acceptance letter, a publishing credit, or a book contract. 

Other times, we slog away, one letter at a time, getting some right and some wrong. Maybe we need to hone our craft or polish our prose before our work is a winner. Slowly, slowly, word by frustrating word, we get better at the writing game. We pick up a few new subscribers, receive an invitation to contribute to an anthology, or get an email from a reader about how our words cheered her soul.

Some days, we try our best (or maybe we don’t), and our results look as grey as those dismal grey tiles on the Wordle game. This one was tricky. Try again tomorrow, some well-meaning expert tells us.

October 5 comes to every writer (and every Wordler). “Failing” at Wordle, just like “failing” at writing, isn’t the end of the world. 

The questions failure inspires reveal a lot about us.

• Will I try again or set it aside? There’s no right answer, but in the writing life, we must seek God’s will and obey it.

• Is there something I can learn from my failure? The answer is yes. Always yes. What will we do to become a better writer? Attend a conference? Take an online course? Subscribe to a writers blog?

• Will I let my failure demoralize me, or will I receive it as an opportunity to grow? Grow in humility as others critique our work. Grow in our willingness to learn. Grow in our compassion for others who are also struggling.

• Will I focus on the joy of playing or only on the joy of the win? Human standards of “winning” in the writing game usually include royalties, best-seller status, or national attention. These pleasures are as fleeting as cookies in a room full of teenagers. Winning in God’s eyes is characterized by faithful, prayerful, Spirit-led perseverance. It’s caring more about obedience than accolades. It’s offering the sacrifice of our service on the keys of our computers.

On Sunday, October 6, my husband and I clicked open the Wordle app, ready to restart our winning streak.

And we lost.

Again.

But you know what? Tomorrow morning, we’ll try again. In the meantime, we’ll read a few Wordle blogs, look for ways to grow our vocabulary, and determine to play for the joy of playing. 

Whether we win or lose, we’ll be better for having played.

And you will be better for having written. 

Now it’s your turn. Are you a Wordler? What lesson have you learned from the game that could apply to your writing life? Share your thoughts in the comment box below and join the conversation.

If you’d like to check out the game, CLICK HERE to visit the website. 

TWEETABLE

Wordle and Writing: What to Do When You Fail from author Lori Hatcher on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

Lori Hatcher loves to inspire and equip others by sharing high-impact stories for spiritual transformation. A popular women’s ministry speaker and writing/speaking instructor, Lori writes for Our Daily Bread, Focus on the Family, Guideposts, Revive Our Hearts, and Crosswalk.com. Check out her latest devotional, A WORD FOR YOUR DAY: 66 DEVOTIONS TO REFRESH YOUR MIND, from Our Daily Bread Publishing. Connect with her at LORIHATCHER.COM or on FACEBOOK.