Saturday Soapbox: Why The F&%$ Do We Write?

On April 28, 2012, in Opinion, Soap Box, by rsguthrie

I blogged the other day, at times tongue-in-cheek as usual, about the risk of marketing like a caveman. The point there (if you didn’t read the blog) was that so many Indies are out there reading (or writing) the next “John Locke” book about overnight success. Hell, the whole THEME of my blog was that success requires hard work, lots and lots and lots of binary street-pounding, and that expectations need to be forever kept in check, etc, etc, etc.

All I did was admit I was having one of those frustrating days where you wish it would happen faster, that tons of hard work meant a larger impact to sales than it sometime does and that I felt downtrodden and self-pitying (yet I still followed that up by saying yes, yes, I would keep forging ahead, I just wanted to see more results and was wallowing a bit).

Most commenters seemed to get the point toward which I was striving. Or multiple points. Whatever. One commenter, however, more or less implied that I was seeking overnight fame and fortune and that my writing was going to suffer if I kept up that kind of a quest.

I have to say, I felt a little gut-punched. I write constantly about the hard work, the angles, the little things that can make (even a small) difference. I re-read my own blog three times I was so freaking pissed off. Where in the hell did I claim I was some kind of fame-chaser?

Now I’m not here to write about the commenter or debate. I actually respect her quite a bit and everyone is entitled to their own interpretation of the song and are free to write as much about that personal interpretation as they wish. And yes, I admit, I am dramatizing what she wrote a bit.

NOTE: We writers are wont to dramatize (and sometimes, God forbid, sensationalize) to make our pieces more appealing. I know. I hate it, too.

My commenter really is someone I like. She was not disrespectful, nor did she say anything personal or untoward. But the implication was in there; subtle maybe, slinking underneath the leaves. Maybe not so subtle.

Here’s a quote, and out of context though it may be, it does a fairly good job of exemplifying one of the writer’s points:

If you are writing in order to get famous, you’ve been seriously misinformed about what being a writer is about.

Firstly, who exactly was it that did declare to all of humanity “what being a writer is all about”? I missed that one somewhere along the line, or maybe I was absent that day in What Being A Writer Means class.

Myself? I’d guess it’s different for just about every individual writer in one way or another. But let’s stick to the idea of “writing in order to get famous”.

I am no fame-chaser. Would I take fame? Yes. And I can tell you that the commenter would, too (by her own admission). But there is an underlying theme in her comment that I’ve seen before, not just in what she was saying but many time by other artists, and it really comes across more like this:

As “artists” we are somehow turning our back on our craft or degrading our work if we want (or need) to make an, ahem, BUSINESS out of our writing.

I can hear you all now:

BLASPHEMER!

I swear, to hear some writers talk (which is a weird twist of media, I realize), you’d think there was some kind of shame in seeking success. Call it what you will (fame, notoriety, success, acclaim, esteem, popularity, estimation)—I believe wholeheartedly that many of us are trying very hard to make a living at this business we call “writing. The commenter said that if we write to sell books our writing will cease to (my words) have heart and that no one will want to read us anyway. I get what she’s saying, but it’s a razor sharp slope she’s playing along and I don’t like where it leads.

Of course I write to be sold. I also write to reach acclaim and station. I am a driven person. Whatever business venture I undertake, I will do everything within my ability (and ethics) to succeed. But all too soon when we play along the sharp, slippery slope of “Writing for…” we come across those tattered old words that have pissed me off since the first time I ever read or heard them:

SELL-OUT.

I have news for you all: my writing is what it is, whether I decide to write a few faster-paced detective thrillers to put some money on the table or spend four years working on my magnum opus—that book that I care about more than any other. Are the styles different? Of course. Could one be called more “literary”? Probably. But do I write the former with any less love for my readers or do my words come any less directly from my heart?

Abso-freaking-lutely not.

Writing for a living and writing well are nowhere NEAR mutually exclusive things and I am tired of people who consider themselves “in it for the art” belittling those who want a paycheck. You want to know the truth? If I was independently wealthy, I would still write. In fact, I would write more and I would write better because I would not be spending 50-60 hours every single week in a soul-crushing, life-sucking job that makes my muse want to put a pistol in her mouth. And THAT, to any of you reading, is why I want (fame/acclaim/status/renown): because it will allow me to write full time so that I can BETTER write from the heart the stories that reach people, touch people, and make them want to read more.

“Fame” or “Sales” do not necessarily beget crap. That said, I could name a dozen bestselling authors right now whose work is pure monkey manure. I could name another dozen or more who are currently read by only a handful of readers but whose writing gives me chills, brings tears to my eyes, and makes me want to read more and more and more. Brilliant writers. Geniuses, even.

Clearly CRAP and FAME have almost no discernible relationship anymore. I’m not sure they ever really did. As my commenter pointed out (and as she seems to have missed I also said) most geniuses gain their fame long after they’re gone.

My point is only this: don’t say things like “you are misinformed what it means to be a writer”. (And by they way, fill in “writer” with a blank line and don’t ever say that either.) People who think they have the lock on “what it means” are further from the core truth than any of us because they have the audacity to believe “they know”.

Don’t do that. If you write simply because you have a story to tell and even just one soul being touched by your words is enough to sate you for a lifetime and is YOUR definition of success, God bless you. I get it. But don’t you dare tell me whence my words come or how they will or will not be affected by my driving for success. Because then you are treading in unfamiliar waters with nary a paddle.

And there is no maxim for “what writing is all about”, no more than there is one for what love, war, cruelty, life, truth, or death are “all about”. We are each unique. Stop trying to cram your view down the craws of the rest of us. Write for the reasons you write. I’ll write for the reasons I do.

And may we each gain what it is we seek, whether fame, money, or, simply, solitude.

 

15 Responses to Saturday Soapbox: Why The F&%$ Do We Write?

  1. What a post! I can pretty much completely see we’re you’re coming from with much of what you say.

    Just going back to check out your commenter – I wonder if they digging at just how unlikely it is to make big bucks from writing, rather than specifically at your motivations for writing?

    Just saying. Your post still rings very true though, not just for writing, but how often do any ‘artists’ get slammed for being commercial?

    There is a interesting perception on successful books, that because they are often-times pieces of crap that this also means by producing popular books you must be a crap-monger. But lets think about this: There is plenty of crap out there that isn’t on the best-seller list. If all you needed to do to be successful was throw away your morals and write a piece of sparkling genre fiction then everyone would do it.

    In reality its almost a different form of art – discovering what appeals to the masses. It’s true that successful books are not always ‘good’ but there is something there the author strived to achieve nonetheless, something that many others did not.

    (+ good to know I’m not the only blogger who rides the pity-train from time to time)

  2. Dawn Torrens says:

    Hi Rob,
    I have to agree with you, I know I write for the love of writing it’s my passion, however, I want to write books that people all over the world will love to read too! I think most writers would be happy if they eventually became the next “James Patterson” or “JK Rowling” I know I would. Because like you said, it would bring us writers financial freedom, which in turn would free up more of our time to write so much more. I am betting most indie authors given the chance would write full time if they had the chance. Sadly they are not able due to daily work commitments taking away many precious hours out of their day! Like you if I was famous I too would write more not less. There is nothing wrong in wanting to make a living from writing, in fact it makes perfect sense to me…

    • rsguthrie says:

      Thanks, Dawn! You are an inspiration to me (always have been) and no one deserves to climb out of the unknown ranks more than you!! 🙂

  3. Of course we ALL write with the hope someone will buy our book. Hopefully, many someones, so that we can live out our dreams of supporting ourselves by writing. I do not know one writer who does hold that dream close their heart. Successfully achieving that goal does not make you a bad person, bad writer or a “sellout.” Who appoints the judges anyway?

    I didn’t read the original post and comment, so I can’t refer to that but I can say that I believe there is far to much judgement out there about writing – motives being in question, who’s deserving and who isn’t, etc. In my opinion, this is because Indie authors are now a hot topic now that we are aware here is the possibility of making big money.

    Runaway success is rarely achieved through hard work alone, but seems to have an element of luck. However, we work hard – and I do mean hard (writers are often perceived as just playing) – at achieving success, whatever that means to the individual. Whoever gets there, we should all sincerely congratulate them – however it happened – and continue to work towards our own definition of success, whatever that may be.

  4. Kim S says:

    Good Lord! There is NOTHING wrong with being well compensated for one’s talent, whatever that talent may be!
    I met some great Indie writers today at a street festival. Some had the luxury of being retired from successful careers — some did not. But they all had one thing in common: they were ALL peddling there wares. And each and very one of them wanted to sell their books. For fame or fortune. Kudos to them!

    I recommended your blog to all them– as their kindred indie writer who had all kinds of interesting things to say about in the world of
    Indie publishing, among other things. They immediately pulled out their smartphones and looked you up!

    People who think artists shouldn’t create for compensation are just not thinking!

    • rsguthrie says:

      Thanks, Kimmie! (I hope “Kimmie” is all right…it just slipped out. Let me know if that is one of those “Ewww” nicknames and I will cease and desist!! 🙂

  5. Jericha says:

    Okay, let me just fess up right here and say yup, that was me, and okay, Rob, I am guilty as charged, or mostly. I was unfair to your post – because after reading it (which I did, thoroughly, four times, before I commented, and I took a few days to think about what I wanted to say) and the comments as well, I did a bad thing – I used your post as a soapbox. And I apologize. That was not good of me. You didn’t deserve it, and your readers didn’t deserve it. And I’d like to thank you for this post, which very gently and thoughtfully points out the flaws in what I wrote, and made me think VERY hard (and with a startled jolt of guilt!!) about what I’d said.

    I DID make a sweeping statement about “what writing is.” That’s no good. I should totally know better than to do that. I also used a lot of “you” in that comment, and that was bad too – I didn’t mean it as you, specifically, Rob, I meant it in the sense of “one,” but it shoulda been a red flag: whoa, Jericha, start making some I-statements here. I do think you quoted it out of context – the context being that fame and fortune are things involving a hefty dollop of chance for almost all creative people – but then you did, also include a mention of the mild dramatization of what I said (In order, I assume, to illustrate its impact on you?) and that was nice.

    Here’s what I meant, said another way: if I met a kid who had started writing a novel because she thought novel-writing was a quick ticket to fame and fortune, I would need to stifle my uncontrollable urge to pee myself laughing. But I said “you,” and going back to reread it, it DOES look like I’m pointing fingers. I didn’t mean to! I swear! I was generalizing! It was bad!

    Now, I did NOT say (and do not believe!) that writing to sell books will make said writing cease to have heart. I know you noted that those were your words, not mine, and I appreciate that – because what I meant, and what I did not say well at all, was not “writing for money is dumb and awful” but rather “it’s pretty hard to make money writing, and if you’re in writing for the dolla dolla bills you might want to look into a better-paying profession.” Not because it’s impossible to make money as a writer, or because writers who make money are sell-outs, or because the quality of our writing necessarily suffers when we make money. Just because writing, and especially writing fiction, is not exactly a hot ticket to a paycheck, and yes, I DO get puzzled when folks get upset about not making money off their art, of ANY kind, because although it CAN happen and as far as I’m concerned OUGHT to happen a lot MORE, it doesn’t happen very often and if it did there wouldn’t be blogs like this one. (Sudden thought: am I just wildly, idiotically wrong about this? Is it actually relatively easy and I just have some stupid romantic notion of the starving artist? Uh oh…) Sure, the JK Rowlings and the Damien Hirsts of the world exist, but so do lottery ticket winners, and they kind of serve the same function: they’re part of the grand story of success, like the white picket fence and the self-made man and the bootstrapping college student. I didn’t mean one shouldn’t enjoy the monetary benefits of one’s labor, or strive to obtain them. I just meant that if money is your driving motivation, there’s a problem, because it’s rarely the outcome – of good writing (or any kind of art) OR bad.

    But yes, mea culpa, I got on my high horse. Sorry. I’m off the horse and humbly apologizing, because I DO see how my comment (which was genuinely meant to say “gee, Rob, yeah, it sucks to not be able to write full-time, but I think you’re having a pretty awesome impact despite that!”) could be read as “people who write for money are sell-outs who don’t make AHT” (cue noble strains of violins here). I just get mad, not at you, Rob, not at other writers, but at the system that tells us that we can be wildly famous and successful or be nothing. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with not getting famous – with being where you are right now, for example, reaching readers, starting conversations, etc – a place I’d love to be myself, certainly. Yes, it would be nice for anyone making art to be able to do it full-time, whether from sales of said art or from being independently wealthy or any other way, because we need artists and it’d be really a much nicer world if we valued them as much as we do our investment bankers. And yes, having a different job DOES take away from your creative time – god knows I’m aware of that. I did NOT mean to imply that we should all just, you know, be in it for the general spiritual good of humankind and we should be thankful for being thrown the financial equivalent of scraps.

    I guess it just made me really sad and frustrated to think of you reaching these hundreds of people, getting into the thousands, every year, and feeling like it’s not good enough. You were writing about wanting to reach the masses (ah, the elusive masse!) and I wanted to put in a vote for the masses maybe just not mattering as much as we think. Again, not because reaching the masses means YOU’RE A SELLOUT ZOMG, but because it’s awesome that you’re reaching anyone at ALL within the galactic vastness of the internet, and I just get bummed out at the idea that we’re all – creative folk generally – being sold this idea that IT’S NOT ENOUGH UNTIL YOU’RE TOTALLY FAMOUS. I do not have the impression, Rob, that you’re writing in order to get rich; as far as I can tell, richness would be an extremely nice perk as far as you’re concerned (am I right about this?) but isn’t the driving motivation, or you wouldn’t have made the comment about continuing to write if you were independently wealthy.

    In short, I was writing a grumpy, somewhat self-righteous stop-feeling-sorry-for-yourself-you’re-doing-pretty-awesomely-I-think-anyway diatribe, but as with any time someone tells you to stop whinging and keep a stiff upper lip, it came across as less encouraging and more just plain snobbish. Um, whoops. Trying to learn my lesson here. I do really appreciate the thoughtful way you presented your feelings about my comment from your perspective (and the compliment to me as a person – geez, that was unnecessarily nice of you) and hopefully it will soothe your injured feelings a little to know that reading what you’ve written here did genuinely impact me and make me reconsider what I’D written. (Guilt twinge, guilt twinge!) You got me thinking hard, and I’m grateful for having my tactlessness and generalizing pointed out in such a genteel fashion. I’ll think a little harder before I post next time, honest.

  6. I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine who works in PR. I mentioned that I am continually surprised which blog posts receive high readership and which posts don’t.

    My friend gave me some insight into how items become viral. The “Friday” song had one or two hits for months until the right media folks opened it and passed it on.

    Yesterday I had the privilege of talking to a gal who has been involved in the KONY movement since college (at least six years). I remembered the conversation with my PR friend. The KONY movement went on for years. It went viral in March of 2012.

    Like you said, we work hard. We write and write and write. Maybe something we write will go viral – but we can’t count on it. And, it is almost impossible to predict what will and what will not get attention.

  7. Jon says:

    Lol excellent post Rob.

    Look its a business and those who approach it as so will do well if their writing is good ( i say if as you can be great at marketing and great at business but if you cant write then a person might not last long )

    Sure we are all in it to write because we love to. But hell this aint no literature where we get awards

    Its fiction

    I think a key factor and I have seen this done with indy authors is cowriting. Sharing some of the load

    I’ve been working online for close to 12 years full time, made my living from marketing, affiliate marketing, software selling and copywriting.

    Im writing my first novel, will it be a hit, who knows probably not but I am going to whack this ball out of the park like I would with any of my other products that I have done online. So chances are it will do fairly well

    Long term though I think it’s key for indie authors to get to know each other. Break down the barriers and learn to cowrite together on books and share profit.

    James patterson is a book writing machine but is he doing it all. nah… he outlines a lot and writes parts and others write parts.

    Its the same with iphone apps and games, cross promotion is the key

  8. Andrew says:

    I find it interesting that many of the writers we look at as the greats are people we would have considered sellouts. Including Shakespeare. My gosh, MacBeth was written on request, and it’s one of his most famous plays. He was, probably, the epitome of the sellout up to and including changing his plays based on audience reaction.
    Charles Dickens was no different, Great Expectations being the best example of that.

    The truth is, most of the writers that we consider great wrote because they wanted to make a living writing. And they created art.

    So did Picasso.

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