I am definitely an "audience" writer. If I didn't have an audience, I wouldn't write. And then reputation to a lesser extent. I want to be proud of what I write, and have others think it is good, but I am not above writing pure entertainment. Money is at the bottom because — this is writing. It is extremely hard to make money writing fiction. But I think art adds value to our lives and artist deserve to be compensated. If only the general population agreed.
An interesting read, but all of it boils down to sales. You need to have a book in a form that readers can buy. You won't have audience, money or reputation without them. Integrity of your work only enters the picture if you go with a conventional publisher. But that's not a guarantee of fulfilment of any of the other motivators. Ask most authors of fiction in Canada. You might sell only a few hundred copies, which is a ticket to skyrocketing to obscurity. If a publisher won't take your work, you need to find an alternative. Then, you have a shot at audience, money and reputation, while preserving your integrity.
Thoroughly enjoyed this read. I'm sure we could all draw our own personal Venn-style diagram of how these motivators fit together for us. I have been heavily in the audience camp, with a bit of integrity thrown in, but the money aspect has been growing in importance year-on-year, whether I like it or not. Trying to find a way to have all these pieces slow together without overloading one of the others is the real trick, I feel.
Hi, Mark, I have been following your blogs since I took a technical communication course back in 2013(?) and my teacher recommended it. I am a full-time teacher of writing at a rural community college and I was teaching technical writing at the time. I mostly teach first-year composition now.
I self-published a novella back in 2010. I used Lulu to do it and then had it listed on Amazon, etc. It felt really good to me to be in control of the entire process, though as you describe, it didn't open all the doors for me. I only ever sold a handful of copies to friends. I do most of my writing for myself (through journaling), so audience hasn't been a primary consideration for me. Usually I'm writing for me. Come to think of it, neither reputation nor money are primary considerations for me. But I would say that integrity is very important to me, and I would add authenticity. If these criteria are on a spectrum, then I've been firmly on the side that favors integrity over everything else.
But I realize that paid writers, the kind that make their livings through writing, whether it be via self-publishing or traditional publishing, are a different animal. I haven't evolved into that animal yet, and perhaps I never will. I guess there's no easy way or shortcut. Like your invocation of Everest, it's a pretty daunting task that relatively few people will accomplish. Most never try, and those who do are not guaranteed success. More starkly, some of those who try die on that mountain ("Into Thin Air" comes to mind).
I'm also an amateur musician. Iggy Pop said of the death of Kurt Cobain that he was reminded how "dangerous the profession [of music] is for the practitioners." I think the same could be said of writers. William S. Burroughs also said something to the effect that writing is a dangerous business and few survive it.
Anyway, I'm curious to see how you progress. Having been in the "integrity" camp for so long, I'm opening up to the traditional paths to see if I can also climb the mountain. Maybe I'll see you on the Hillary Step. Don't forget your oxygen tank!
Perhaps I am naive, but the joy is in the journey. We write because we must. We self-publish because it gives us an audience who share our journey through our stories. When an authors work isn't what a traditional publisher is looking for, we can enjoy the benefits of self-publishing. Thirty years ago, that wasn't much of an option. Neither were ebooks. Nor did a writer compete with millions of other writers for a contract. Self-publishing isn't a step down. I like to think of it as a step forward. :)
I am definitely an "audience" writer. If I didn't have an audience, I wouldn't write. And then reputation to a lesser extent. I want to be proud of what I write, and have others think it is good, but I am not above writing pure entertainment. Money is at the bottom because — this is writing. It is extremely hard to make money writing fiction. But I think art adds value to our lives and artist deserve to be compensated. If only the general population agreed.
Excellent essay.
An interesting read, but all of it boils down to sales. You need to have a book in a form that readers can buy. You won't have audience, money or reputation without them. Integrity of your work only enters the picture if you go with a conventional publisher. But that's not a guarantee of fulfilment of any of the other motivators. Ask most authors of fiction in Canada. You might sell only a few hundred copies, which is a ticket to skyrocketing to obscurity. If a publisher won't take your work, you need to find an alternative. Then, you have a shot at audience, money and reputation, while preserving your integrity.
Thoroughly enjoyed this read. I'm sure we could all draw our own personal Venn-style diagram of how these motivators fit together for us. I have been heavily in the audience camp, with a bit of integrity thrown in, but the money aspect has been growing in importance year-on-year, whether I like it or not. Trying to find a way to have all these pieces slow together without overloading one of the others is the real trick, I feel.
Hi, Mark, I have been following your blogs since I took a technical communication course back in 2013(?) and my teacher recommended it. I am a full-time teacher of writing at a rural community college and I was teaching technical writing at the time. I mostly teach first-year composition now.
I self-published a novella back in 2010. I used Lulu to do it and then had it listed on Amazon, etc. It felt really good to me to be in control of the entire process, though as you describe, it didn't open all the doors for me. I only ever sold a handful of copies to friends. I do most of my writing for myself (through journaling), so audience hasn't been a primary consideration for me. Usually I'm writing for me. Come to think of it, neither reputation nor money are primary considerations for me. But I would say that integrity is very important to me, and I would add authenticity. If these criteria are on a spectrum, then I've been firmly on the side that favors integrity over everything else.
But I realize that paid writers, the kind that make their livings through writing, whether it be via self-publishing or traditional publishing, are a different animal. I haven't evolved into that animal yet, and perhaps I never will. I guess there's no easy way or shortcut. Like your invocation of Everest, it's a pretty daunting task that relatively few people will accomplish. Most never try, and those who do are not guaranteed success. More starkly, some of those who try die on that mountain ("Into Thin Air" comes to mind).
I'm also an amateur musician. Iggy Pop said of the death of Kurt Cobain that he was reminded how "dangerous the profession [of music] is for the practitioners." I think the same could be said of writers. William S. Burroughs also said something to the effect that writing is a dangerous business and few survive it.
Anyway, I'm curious to see how you progress. Having been in the "integrity" camp for so long, I'm opening up to the traditional paths to see if I can also climb the mountain. Maybe I'll see you on the Hillary Step. Don't forget your oxygen tank!
Perhaps I am naive, but the joy is in the journey. We write because we must. We self-publish because it gives us an audience who share our journey through our stories. When an authors work isn't what a traditional publisher is looking for, we can enjoy the benefits of self-publishing. Thirty years ago, that wasn't much of an option. Neither were ebooks. Nor did a writer compete with millions of other writers for a contract. Self-publishing isn't a step down. I like to think of it as a step forward. :)