The Writer I Am

Samuel Dark · Oct 17, 2006

Hello fellower writers, it is I again, Samuel Dark. I am writing in here again because I do not know where this belongs, but here it goes:

I am a writer who writers for people. An audience. Not for one self, but for others. This might sound odd to those who haven'[t heard this quote from Stephen King. The jist of what he said is there are two types of writers: Those who write for themselves, and those who write for an audience. I am one who writes for an audience. I think the majority of the people here are writers who write for themselves.

Now, that doesn't mean your selfish -- that doesn't really mean anything. Actually, I do believe that means most of you guys will be better then I will ever be -- because your not bound by chains of an audience, you write just because you love it. I am one who must always consider his audience, the people who I target. I write with purpose, though, which makes my job even harder. When I have a certain message, either about morals or God, I have to know how to weave it in without making it the story, but simply adding to the story.

I, Allen Straith (my real name), will forever be bound by the Laws of my Audience. What type of writer are you?

(feel free to move this topic if you think it deserves to be somewhere else).

Ol' Fashioned Girl · Oct 17, 2006

I'm the kind of writer who likes having an audience, but doesn't need an audience. I write what I like and if others like it, that wonderful. If not, wait a minute and I'll write something else they might like better.

It worked for George Lucas. ;>

louisgodwin · Oct 17, 2006

I definitely write for myself. No one else. I only write the type of stuff I would want to read.

I think the AW Roundtable might be a good place for this thread.
Just an fyi.

JennaGlatzer · Oct 17, 2006

I write for an audience. I'm a practical writer... it's how I make my living, and I'll write what I think will sell. Can't afford to spend much time having affairs with my muse. We flirt over poems and short essays and journal entries, but the longer writing is all for the audience.

SpookyWriter · Oct 18, 2006

This word is not perfect, nor is the thought which put it to paper, and so this writer is neither; an audience yet to be born is my specter to which I aspire. I have no desire for other, a dandy or a feather, and so what I scribble onto this page is nothing for a few or a many to view.

What audience is best when their is no art? A story must tell a tale or it is not to sell. Needless to say, I arrange my words to a single appreciation which has not an audience nor a salary for my thoughts.

Oddsocks · Oct 18, 2006

I guess I write for myself. I write stories and characters I find interesting.

ChaosTitan · Oct 18, 2006

Both.

I write for an audience of two. Myself and my best friend/co-writer.

I write what I love, the stories I want to see, with characters that I adore, in an alternate future full of possibilities. I write for her, as my first and best fan, because she also loves the characters, and stands behind me with a sharp poking stick to make sure I keep producing.

My favorite part about writing for an audience (even if it's just one person) is getting a reaction. Whether it's the sudden revelation of someone's past, an unexpected death, or slipping on a banana peel, I like to see how she reacts. If I were a filmmaker, I'd be the type to go hide in a theater during a screening just to see what the audience thought.

I like to think that I'll write for a much larger audience one day, but even if that never happens, I'll always have that audience of two.

Soccer Mom · Oct 18, 2006

Once again, I'm firmly in the camp of "Both". I write for people to read and (hopefully) enjoy. If no children ever read what I write, that would make me very sad. Then again, I entertain myself. I enjoy my own writing and crack up when I think I've written something funny. My family has gotten used to finding me giggling over my notepad finally and no longer start speed dialing the shrinks.

cree · Oct 18, 2006

I have always written for myself....and was surprised to find an audience existed, too. But the passion for writing was always to entertain ME. If I'm not entertained, writing ceases to become an art, a passion, a self-defining activity -- and instead becomes a (gulp)... JOB.

Sassenach · Oct 18, 2006

Comments in Red

Samuel Dark said:
I am a writer who writers for people. An audience. Not for one self, but for others. This might sound odd to those who haven'[t heard this quote from Stephen King. The jist of what he said is there are two types of writers: Those who write for themselves, and those who write for an audience. I am one who writes for an audience. I think the majority of the people here are writers who write for themselves.

You base this on what?

Now, that doesn't mean your selfish -- that doesn't really mean anything. If it doesn't mean anything, then why even mention it? Actually, I do believe that means most of you guys will be better then I will ever be -- because your not bound by chains of an audience, you write just because you love it. I am one who must always consider his audience, the people who I target. I write with purpose, though, which makes my job even harder. So do the rest of us. When I have a certain message, either about morals or God, I have to know how to weave it in without making it the story, but simply adding to the story. This sounds utterly self-aggrandizing.

I, Allen Straith (my real name), will forever be bound by the Laws of my Audience. What type of writer are you?

(feel free to move this topic if you think it deserves to be somewhere else).

cree · Oct 18, 2006

Sassenach -- is your point to contribute to the conversation, or instead to paralyze it?
Not sure what your point is.

Sassenach · Oct 18, 2006

I'm not sure what your point is either, other than you don't like my post.

CaroGirl · Oct 18, 2006

I definitely want others to read my work, and certainly keep my audience in mind when I write. I consider myself a member of my own audience, btw.

I don't know how many people at AW write only for themselves, and would never presume to guess.

cree · Oct 18, 2006

OP is entitled to observations and opinions without them being redlined for your pitiful pleasure.
I enjoy when people share their observations, even if they don't mesh with my own.
Enough said.

Sassenach · Oct 18, 2006

I use red so that my comments are readable within the graf. I can change them to blue if that'll make you happy.

You've hurt my feelings by calling my observations "pitiful."

aka eraser · Oct 18, 2006

Enough hissing you two. Let's keep this pleasant.

icerose · Oct 18, 2006

Back to the original point, I write books and scripts that I would love to see on the shelves and in movie theatres. So I write both for myself and for an audience. If I didn't entertain myself with my own stories I don't think I could trudge through 400 pages and edits.

I write stories that I believe in, with characters that I want to know what happens next. Are they going to be okay? Will they reach their goals? Will they turn back when it gets difficult or will they trust in something bigger than themselves.

I often feel I am a mere recorder of a journey that has already happened and I get to watch it, and record it, and share it.

RG570 · Oct 18, 2006

I can't pidgeonhole myself into saying I am this or that. It's not something I'm willing to reduce to a binary choice like that. I write in a way that I think some might enjoy my work. I do not pander to them.

I just f-ing write. Hopefully without all-encompassing narratives which label me as a certain type of writer.

arrowqueen · Oct 18, 2006

I write to market.

Kate Thornton · Oct 18, 2006

I write for my readers - that makes me careful - you can't be sloppy or careless when you know you are giving your work to the reader. I write for my editors, too - you have to careful and concise for them or they won't buy and your readers will not see your stuff. The fact that I derive such immense pleasure from the process is the cherry on top.

Though I seldom have a message about anyone's god, I write often about basic justice and the lines that blur morality.

The Writer I Am

Samuel Dark

Ol' Fashioned Girl

Hand? What hand?

louisgodwin

Back from the dead

JennaGlatzer

wishes you happiness

SpookyWriter

Oddsocks

ChaosTitan

Around

Soccer Mom

Crypto-fascist

cree

Sassenach

5 W's & an H

cree

Sassenach

5 W's & an H

CaroGirl

Living the dream

cree

Sassenach

5 W's & an H

aka eraser

Fish Whisperer

icerose

Lost in School Work

RG570

arrowqueen

RIP, our sarky besom

Kate Thornton

Still Happy to be Here. Or Anywhere