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| Photo credit: Melvin_Es on Flickr |
We writers often have a natural tendency to censor ourselves. We discount ideas and say things like no one would want to read that, or it'd be way too hard to find an agent for that. While writing first drafts we look at our work and groan because the writing isn't up to par or because, truth be told, it'd be a little embarrassing to let anyone read what we have so far. We psych ourselves out and make the task of writing a book that much harder for ourselves.
Sometimes we have to remember to forget everyone else and write for ourselves.
I made the decision to write like no one will ever read my work a couple manuscripts ago, and I have to say it's been one of the most freeing decisions I've ever made when it comes to my writing. When you write completely for yourself, you no longer have to worry about the writing not being good enough to even merit a first draft. When you write like your WIP will never be read by anyone else, you no longer waste time thinking about how difficult your WIP may or may not be to publish later on or whether people will like it, or whether it'll ever sell a copy. None of those things matter when you write for yourself.
Naturally once you get published (or decide to publish independently) you can no longer think that way, because you know for a fact that it will be read. But while you're an unpublished writer, writing for yourself is a great way to free your creativity and allow your story to flow without those extra stressors. And who knows? Maybe after some editing and refining of your WIP, you might just decide that it's ready for some external eyes after all.
What do you think? Do you write for yourself or do you write anticipating future publishing prospects? Have you ever discarded an idea due to a poor publishing outlook? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
12 comments:
It's a great feeling writing just for yourself, My third novel I wrote "the kind of book I want to read". When in doubt I said, "It's my damn book I'll write what I want." It was a great 6 weeks of writing.
My friends have told me, "I'm still reading it, I'll get through it soon." So they must think it sucks. Still it was a great experience.
Hmm...I think I'm actually the opposite. I write YA and I interact with MANY teenagers on a daily basis, so mostly I think of them while I'm writing. It doesn't censor me at all, because I know that I'll enjoy whatever I end up writing. I gave the first draft of my NaNo novel to my friends (oops, but I can't take it back now) and so far they're reading it quickly - because I wrote it with teenagers in mind, because I know how many teenagers think. While I think it's important not to censor yourself, I also think it's important to have your target audience in mind when you write it :)
That is good advice for everyone, even published authors. The reason most of us write in the first place is because we enjoy so much. Thanks for reminding me of that!
That's a great point, Ava. On the one hand, I think we should write for an audience. But on the other, we shouldn't be afraid and shun ideas just because we think someone might have a problem with them. (Someone's always going to have a problem).
Of course you're right in the sense that focusing on external things can distract us from the story we want to tell. And external motivation can rob of us of our inner passion. Focus and passion are essential to telling the story. Write and worry about publishing and marketing later. There can even be some revision if we need to shape it for a particular audience or publisher, but that should never interfere with our creative flow.
I have to agree that writing for yourself is a really wonderful experience. Sometimes we just need to give ourselves permission to write without any kind of censor. :)
I agree that it's a good idea to have some sort of audience in mind, however I think it's important to make sure you don't censor your ideas or the writing itself because of it (which perhaps I should have explained a little better in the post). In your case it seems that that isn't an issue that you've had, which I think is wonderful, so in that case, keep on keeping on. :)
Sure thing, Elaina! ^_^
Great point about someone always having a problem--you really can't please everyone, and if you try, you will absolutely fail.
Absolutely agreed, Larry. Well said!
You make an excellent point. i always try to entertain myself first. Have linked to this post on The
Funnily Enough.
mood
Moody Writing
Thanks for linking to my post! I really appreciate it!
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