Yes, I would. When I started I wished for people to acknowledge my work, but it didn't happen. Even those who said they cannot wait for my book to come out didn't read it. Now I write because I write, and if people read (and they do), then it's a win.
I'd certainly prefer if other people enjoyed it, but some of my best work is things I enjoy reading and which has been largely ignored wherever I posted it.
I dont know about a full book because right now i'm just starting on my first 'book' and it looks so daunting. But short stories, RP scenes, little worldbuilding myths, I will write those all day every day. I'll post them and if I get a like or comment i'm ecstatic, if I don't, it was for me anyway.
For all you know right now, you could end up writing a book that is a huge smash and all of those backstories and myths that maybe seemed frivolous before will be highly desired by people who are in your fervent audience.
Sometimes when I think about the price of success, I think about Sally Rooney and the way she got huge and feels like she lost the entirety of her privacy to the machine that is public relations and public life.
I worry about that a bit.
Some of what I write currently, and even what Im currently working on as my first novel, I see as conflicting with my current full time job.
Could I keep doing what I do, & care about doing, when my writing is so antithetical to that community. If not can I afford to do it?
Yes. It's a personal goal of mine to finish writing at least one of my stories that's in my head. I made a short story a couple of years back and I'm quite proud of that even if many won't get to see it.
Anyone that finishes ANY kind of story is a victor in my book. It's much easier to talk about how you want to write a story than to actually write one.
I write a crime blog that doesn’t garner lots of public attention but it does allow me to get information in order and create a database of sorts. I submit tips to law enforcement at times as well when I see something that sticks out. I’ll keep doing it forever. It gives me a purpose.
You mean, if I write four books that no one wants to read does it still matter to me? Would I still write my current WIP? Would I still post to my blog every week? Would I pay for a WordPress site? Would I still share links to my novels?
Art for art sake is important but it’s also nice to know I’m not throwing a party for one. I’d probably stop at the first draft if no one was into it. At least then I’ve gotten it out of my system.
I wonder how many writers go through several books before the one that either gets picked up and published or else is finally the one that makes them popular.
I write the stories I want to tell. It’d be nice if someone else wanted to read them (and if I didn’t need to make money to continue the process), but I’m just happy to have my work out there.
It depends on why I'm writing it. If I'm writing it to make money and it won't sell, I wouldn't write it. If that book is part of a building block to my career, I would still write it.
If I'm not concerned about making a dime and I desperately NEED to write it, I would write it.
I think this is the healthiest attitude a writer can have. Plus, with the amount of work and rereads it takes with our own stories, if we don't love it, why should anyone else?
I may fall out of love of certain works but you know what? I constantly surprise myself when I return to the work in some way and go "Oh dang, this is good."
No. If no one wants to read it, that includes me too. If it did not, there would be at least 1 person who would love it, Me.
I write the books I'd love to read, to share with the world in hopes others will like it too, and find a magical world to retreat to, then leave with a smile.
I think that's an important distinction that a lot of people forget. Even if no one besides us reads it, we still did. And so it is not completely falling on deaf ears.
probably not if I know no one is going to read it
i understand that writing is personal but for me it is also a way to communicate my feelings to the world when no one wants to hear them
and not being read is like screaming into the void
it makes me feel worse
I can see and personally know how very dispiriting that is. Screaming into the void about the way that you feel about the world is a lonely and often empty experience. Not something I would wish on anyone.
This I feel. I've sworn off writing more times than I can count, and I always end up back at it anyway. There is something about the way that my mind works that keeps me writing even when I'm not writing.
I remember there was a scene in the movie Finding Forrester where he says something like... why is it the stories we write for ourselves are the best ones?
Passionately. E.M. Forster penned Maurice between 1913 and 1914 knowing he could show it to no one. Didn't see print until 1970. Imagine not having that unique window into queer history unencumbered by the weight of subsequent decades and their changing perspectives.
100%. I never write books with the expectations that someone will read them. Statistically, so many books are coming out that it's unlikely mine will gain any traction at all. 15% of all trad published authors sell less than 12 copies, and the number is probably much, MUCH higher for indies.
That's a good way of looking at it! Maybe sometimes all it takes is one person clicking with your story to justify all the hours of hard work. And sometimes that one person will be you. Still worth it.
That's not to say that I don't WANT people to read my book. I do. Makes me happy when they do! But it's more like finding $10 on the street. If it happens, it makes my day! But just because it's unlikely to happen doesn't mean I won't go outside and take walks anyway.
Comments
Yes, it is a risk, and yes it is also an unorthodox format, but I believe it accessible enough for people new to the genre.
#WritingCommunity
Some of what I write currently, and even what Im currently working on as my first novel, I see as conflicting with my current full time job.
Could I keep doing what I do, & care about doing, when my writing is so antithetical to that community. If not can I afford to do it?
Maybe.
I can't write sexy sexually omnivorous supernatural being with kit that inspires sex toys you really don't want Granny seeing.
I can write a mostly normal throwback world that is hiding body horror creatures inside public services, but...
1: no one fucks them
2: why do they exist?
Oh well.
If I'm not concerned about making a dime and I desperately NEED to write it, I would write it.
I have made a commitment to be my own biggest fan. I don't need others, but if they come? I am grateful.
I may fall out of love of certain works but you know what? I constantly surprise myself when I return to the work in some way and go "Oh dang, this is good."
We are a lot harder on ourselves than we should be, and this is just a little magic that helps break that.
I write the books I'd love to read, to share with the world in hopes others will like it too, and find a magical world to retreat to, then leave with a smile.
i understand that writing is personal but for me it is also a way to communicate my feelings to the world when no one wants to hear them
and not being read is like screaming into the void
it makes me feel worse
hungry thoughts like red threads wind
explosive power, must release-
or else my brain will turn to grease.
Also have to confess that when the notification popped up when you replied, I saw the tiny profile picture and was like... what in the Taylor Swift?!