Months back, I started to openly question why I still wrote. Books weren’t selling and I can’t do any publishing at this time. That’s both a financial and situational thing that I hope will be remedied. Anyway, there was a common phrase that got sent my way to ‘answer’ my question:
‘Write for yourself’
I’ve always been on the fence about this concept because of how it gets presented. I’ve seen it used a lot as a ‘positive support’ phrase. An author who is doubting their path will be thrown this chestnut to create some sense of determination. I never really saw how this works in this situation. If a person wants to sell their books, but nobody is buying then it doesn’t help to be told to keep writing for themselves. In fact, that seems to cause more frustration because it comes off as saying only the author will like their own work. That or people shouldn’t care about having an audience, which I noticed came from those who still manage to sell things.
The other time I see the phrase is when people are discussing how to aim for a specific audience. Some authors will say to write for yourself first. This is the use that I kind of agree with. If an author is entertained and emotionally invested in their story then that will come through in the words. You have to enjoy and believe in what you’re doing, right? If you’re only writing solely to appeal to strangers without your own interests and emotions in mind then you have a higher chance of creating an empty husk of a story. Unlike movies, a book can’t depend on CGI-filled action scenes and rapid fire one-liners to hide a flimsy plot. So, you really should write for yourself along with appealing to an audience.
Overall, I think ‘write for yourself’ is a phrase that has fallen into the same category as ‘show don’t tell’, ‘kill your darlings’, and ‘grow thicker skin’. People spout these lines because they used to have impact. It’s what a positive person will use to cheer someone up with the least amount of effort put into it. There’s not even an explanation of what they mean and I’ve asked at times. Mostly, I get a shrug with a few people telling me that I shouldn’t care about selling books and just enjoy writing. That doesn’t usually help when I’m lamenting no sales and talking about how my dream of being a career author has been thoroughly shattered. Spitting the phrase out is almost insulting at that point, which is what happens with those others too.
That kind of touches on why I don’t always like the phrase. I grew up dreaming of being an author with people buying and mostly enjoying my book. So, I clearly wasn’t going to write stuff that only I would like. I know I had to enjoy my own stories to get the emotions and care right. Yet, I’m not trying to entertain myself alone. That’s what puzzles, anime, and staring at the ceiling are for. Writing was fun with the added benefit of working towards a possible dream. Now, I don’t really know what it is since it’s so hard to find the time and motivation. The idea that I’m now only writing for myself is kind of painful when compared to how I dreamed even 6 years ago.
Guess I’m saying that I hope people are more careful when they tell a sad author to ‘write for themselves’. Read the room a bit or explain the phrase.
(I usually only post poems on Thursdays, but that’s old stuff. Had the urge to write something new and this popped into my head.)
Legends of Windemere 