Andre Hartslief
The words sound innocent enough, and a few writers even think it makes them sound a bit more humble…
But those simple words strung together in a sentence is one of the most wrong-minded things you can ever say if you have a message you deeply care about:
Of all the novice writers I’ve heard utter that phrase, I’m guessing less than 1% of them actually mean it.
Yet for some reason, they wear it like armor against two of the most common debilitating fears:
Fear #1: You’re not good enough to be a writer.
Even after decades-long careers and thousands of books written and millions of copies sold, several authors still face this fear. It’s natural to want to shield yourself from this fear, as nobody likes feeling that they might not have what it takes.
However if you believe in the story you want to write and if you have a message you believe can help other people. Then why in heaven’s name, are you writing, if not to get that message to as many readers as possible?
If you tell your readers, these 8 words, “I don’t care if I ever get published.”
you are saying to them, you DON’T care about reaching people with your story, it will do nothing to motivate them to read it and it will do zero to motivate you when the writing gets tough, like it always does at some point.
In fact, those 8 words will make it so much easier to just put your book on the back-burner when life gets tough or if you’re not sure where to go with your story.
My advice? Rather than trying to avoid the fear, face it, then turn your fear into motivation to do your best work. Allow fear to push you towards remaining committed and to never stop learning, to doing everything in your power to improve the craft of writing.
Take it from someone who’s been at this for over 12 years, fear can be your greatest motivator!
I don’t deny the fact that it exists, I acknowledge that fear is valid, but it should rather motivate me to always do my best work. THAT, I believe is the secret to success.
Fear #2: Wanting to get published means you’re selfish
Too many aspiring writers are overwhelmed by the prospect of huge commercial success. Writers want their book to make a difference in as many lives as possible on the one hand,. and on the other, that little voice inside their heads tells them it’s wrong to yearn for recognition and success.
Remember, if you’re wrestling with this conflict, wanting to see your work praised and your name in print, doesn’t make you self-centered—it just makes you human, benefits added on, don’t have to become your motivation for writing.
Remind yourself why you’re wanting to publish. If it’s because you have a passion for making a difference in the lives of others, through your writing, don’t feel guilty for pursuing an audience.
Just keep your passion foremost and at the center of your mind and remind yourself why you’re writing in the first place. Regards, Tranquilpen.
This is a Great to See.
These days, the words “getting published” do not mean what they used to do. There was a time when the only acceptable form of publishing was via a recognised professional publisher, who paid you for the right to publish your work. The alternative was “vanity publishing” – you paid the publisher and had no prospect of getting your book promoted or reviewed.
However, the stigma of vanity publishing has largely disappeared and the vast majority of people who now claim – on Twitter and Facebook – to be published authors have self-published in one form or another. The Internet now allows for self-promotion in ways that were never previously available.
The fact remains, however, that the proportion of new writers whose work is taken up by traditional publishers is vanishingly small.
I agree, John, in some ways print distribution in actual bookstores was much easier. Traditional publishing excelled at what their model was primarily designed to facilitate. Sales reps would go around the various stores and made it very easy for book buyers to select books from them which they liked and paid later on one invoice per publisher minus the returns. Books were usually in the store for about a month and only remained if they were perennial sellers. Thank you for commenting.
Good points for most people, but there are some writers like me, who just like to write for their own benefit, such as journalling, etc.
We write on these sites just more to test our own writing to see if anyone else might be interested in our ideas, but, never really minding if they are, or not.
I agree with you, though, we should never negatise our own writing.
We are all writers from the very first day that we first learnt to write.
I Iike what you have to say about writing especially the last sentence! Thanks for commenting.
Thanks too. I like to comment here on Virily when I do not feel like writing a full piece myself.
Hi Dunce, it’s a great pastime going through the various posts and leaving quality comments such as yours, above. Thank you, Tranquilpen
Powerful inspiration and message for all Andre.
I’m glad you found something useful there Carol. Thanks for commenting.