Some people
will tell you—in writing workshops, classes, conferences—that getting published
should not be your goal. That you should write for the love of it, and not
worry if what you’ve written is ever read by anyone else.
There may be
some merit in that point of view if what you’re writing is a personal or family
history meant only to be left as a legacy. Other than that, I don’t buy it. Why
would you write if not to be read? That seems to me to be the whole point. If you’re
not read, are you even a writer? I don’t think so.
There are
those who say the sheer act of writing makes you a writer. How so? Compare it
to, say, an interest in plumbing. Sure, you can play around with pipes and
wrenches and fittings all you want. You can even take a course and get a
certificate in plumbing. You can buy all the tools and equipment. And you can
take a lot of enjoyment and personal satisfaction from it all. But until someone
hires you, and pays you, to pound on their pipes you are not a plumber. Not
really.
I don’t see
writing as all that different. Putting words on paper is the beginning of being
a writer, not the end. Because if those words aren’t published, aren’t made
available to other eyes, they might as well not exist.
I agree with you, Rod: why write if you're not planning to sell? Writing's too hard, to do only that. Granted, those first few pieces might be better left in a drawer, but if a writer doesn't test the waters and make the effort, how is the writer going to learn anything?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment, Carla.
DeleteThe advice you cite Rod, makes sense if you are promoting participation in writer's workshops. If more aspiring writers knew how hard it is to get published, there would be fewer aspiring writers. Many, like me probably should have rented a movie. Some of us are just stubborn enough to keep going in spite of the odds.
ReplyDeleteIt is difficult to get published (unless you're talking self-publishing). But, as you say, serious writers keep trying. Thanks for the comment, Paul.
DeleteI see this from a different perspective. I believe it's a matter of your goal. For some, writing for themselves alone may be all they want to achieve. Others may write only for family and friends, but have no interest at all in making the first dime. And some, probably the great majority, harbor dreams of being a one-shot wonder; one book, fabulous wealth, and fame. Then there are the professionals, the ones who know it's a job which will require time, effort, training, skill, and luck in order to rise to the top.
ReplyDeleteI suspect the first two groups and the last group occupy less than 5% of the professed writers out there. Probably 95% are in the one-shot-wonder category. Fortunately, it doesn't take too long to find out which kind you're dealing with. I know you're one of the pros, and I'm happy to be associated with you.
Can't disagree, Duke, that there are different goals. But for any serious writer, getting writing in front of readers ought to be one of them. Knowing your words are affecting others in some way is, often, more of a motivation than money.
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