Writing for yourself or ...

[SimonBrooke]

I write mostly to think...

I write mostly to think, mostly about human relationships; to try to understand how they work, and when they don't, why not. I'd like also to write to communicate, but to communicate, you need readers.

Actually very little of what I write is strictly erotica. One has to deal with sex in stories about people, because sex is one of our big drivers, and, of our big drivers, perhaps the most mysterious. Stories which avoid talking about sex avoid talking about the human condition.

But, on the whole, stories which deal only with sex strike me as being equally inadequate. Fun, yes, as fluff, as froth, as the quick and witty tossing off of an afternoon; but not a serious pursuit.

However...

Getting serious fiction published in the conventional way takes a lot of self confidence, especially if what you write isn't terribly mainstream. It takes facing a lot of rejection, and a lot of rejection of work you have poured a lot of your self into. By contrast, getting erotica published on the 'net is rather easy. There is an audience on Literotica (and other places on the 'net); and I crave an audience, if only out of insecurity and a desire for feedback.

And it's possible to take a story which is on the face of it about sex, and sneak a lot of other story telling into it. I do have some stories which are just sex, just sex for fun, but actually I'm using - or abusing - literotica in order to put stories which aren't really erotica at all in front of an audience.

 

[rgraham666]

I write for me, the stories I like to read.

I put them out there because I do like the feedback.

The last people I am going to write 'for' is my 'peers'. At that point you don't care about writing, telling a good story, you care about status.

Been there, done that, went insane. Never again.

 

[Munachi]

Munachi. Now now - Do you really write for yourself if you are an attention whore?

well, it's all my attention... all mine, all mine. everyone should love me. so that's what i write for.

 

[SimonBrooke]

Masturbation?

Do we write for ourselves? And what is the difference between when we actually do write for 'ourselves'.

Surely if one writes solely for oneself, that's a pretty mastubatory exercise? Not that I'm necessarily saying there's anything wrong with masturbation as such, but... isn't story telling about the interaction, however incomplete, between the narrator and the audience? Isn't what we're mostly here for, feedback?

I believe that most artists (authors, poets, painters, sculptures, architects, etc) do what they do with their peers in mind: other artists, critics, specific people whose opinion they respect or with whom they have a personal rivalry or close relationship.

There are certainly some people here whose praise makes me preen. When someone whose writing I admire says something nice about mine, that's a very good stroke; I feel warm, valued. Yes, we - or at any rate I crave the respect of the people whose writing I respect.

 

[CharleyH]

well, it's all my attention... all mine, all mine. everyone should love me. so that's what i write for.

LOL

 

[damppanties]

Surely if one writes solely for oneself, that's a pretty mastubatory exercise? Not that I'm necessarily saying there's anything wrong with masturbation as such, but... isn't story telling about the interaction, however incomplete, between the narrator and the audience? Isn't what we're mostly here for, feedback?

There's always reading something you wrote long back and coming across a totally lovely phrase and going "Oh my god! I wrote that!"

 

[CharleyH]

I write for me, the stories I like to read.

I put them out there because I do like the feedback.

The last people I am going to write 'for' is my 'peers'. At that point you don't care about writing, telling a good story, you care about status.

Been there, done that, went insane. Never again.

Come on, Rob. LOL You are spinning a lot of bullshit.

 

[Mesachie]

Interesting question. My first response was I write to please myself, as I've said in posts before. I generally thought that if you wrote to please others, you were aiming at being or at least emulating a professional writer, who will write to please others, usually for money.

Then I thought, well, if I send my stuff off to an editor (volunteer), who am I pleasing now? If I am so pleased with the story, why do I need to share it with someone else? Do I care if someone else doesn't like the style, or pov, or whatever? I'm writing for my own satisfaction, I am the reader I am pleasing.

But I'm not simply that, am I? I'm the author I'm pleasing. I may participate as a reader too, but it becomes a shared (one hopes) experience. So the story I write is aimed to please an audience. One that I may not have well defined in my head. It may simply be that nefarious group called "like-minded individuals". It may a very specific target group. Something on the order of "here's one for broken-hearted guys at the titty bar" or "here's one for bored lesbian strippers".

How to handle this gordian knot of a question? I sunder it by saying, in general, we write for both. Unless we are professional writers paying the bills, we write what interests us and will effectively reach others. That "others" group may vary radically along the way, but one we are part of when we pick up the pen.

 

[CharleyH]

Surely if one writes solely for oneself, that's a pretty mastubatory exercise? Not that I'm necessarily saying there's anything wrong with masturbation as such, but... isn't story telling about the interaction, however incomplete, between the narrator and the audience? Isn't what we're mostly here for, feedback?

I would agree - I am not certain others would.

 

[impressive]

As an amateur, my response is: I write for me. I share for others.

As a professional, my response is: I write for me (as a means to an end).

Good to see you, Charley!

 

[rgraham666]

Come on, Rob. LOL You are spinning a lot of bullshit.

I'm a writer. Bullshit is my job.

But that's my opinion on the matter.

 

[CharleyH]

Interesting question. My first response was I write to please myself, as I've said in posts before. I generally thought that if you wrote to please others, you were aiming at being or at least emulating a professional writer, who will write to please others, usually for money.

Intriguing, post. Are you not just appeasing your exhibitionist side? To post a story, in itself, is an excercise of exhibiionism, not an excercise of doing unto oneself.

 

[scriptordelecto]

The noble thing to say would be that I write for myself, and although that's how it began, I have become (as FallingToFly says) a shameless feedback whore. I'd be lying if I said I didn't love getting those little messages of appreciation. They are the drug that we are all hooked on. It's why we keep posting.

 

[CharleyH]

As an amateur, my response is: I write for me. I share for others.

As a professional, my response is: I write for me (as a means to an end).

Good to see you, Charley!

Good to see you also, IMP.

How can you say you write for you when everything you have said is writing for others amateur or otherwise? Just a Q to get things a little deeper.

 

[CharleyH]

I'm a writer. Bullshit is my job.
But that's my opinion on the matter.

I dare not say what I wanted to then. LOL

 

[SesameStreet]

I write for myself. It has proven to be the best form of therapy that I have ever discovered.

 

[DG Hear]

Easy answer here!

I write what I feel and think. For anyone who has read any of my stories, I'm all over the place. I love to get the emotions flowing in a story. Love, hate, crying, even suicide in a few. Fights have never been out of the question. I started writing because I was tired of reading the same old thing. I wanted more reality. So I started writing.

Cheating wives, cheating husbands, How do different people react to their situation. My comments and hate mail go at about, 65% positive, 10% negative and 25% could go either way. So, there is only one person that has to live with the results, that's me. So I can honestly say I write what I feel.

The hardest fact is that if people don't like my ending, they vote negative, because it's not what they would have done in that situation. No way for me to deal with that. I do try to listen to my editors and see what they have to say. I usually go with their opinions. Of course, I have two of the best out there and I'm not afraid to say that they make my stories what they are. So to 'LadyCibelle and Techsan' I love you guys!!! Of course LadyC is one fantastic woman. I asked her if she would help edit for me so I could get a realistic point of view from a womans perspective.

So in answer to the original question!
I write for DG Hear!

 

[CharleyH]

I write for myself. It has proven to be the best form of therapy that I have ever discovered.

Great - do you post those stories? My point is that you can write for you, but the moment you worry about how your little lit story fairs? The moment you actually post your stories online? It is a moment where you write for others.

Edit: How do your (not yours specifically, SS - ) stories differ from when you write for you alone and post stories for other?

 

[CharleyH]

Thank you all. I cannot possibly keep up, but I do love all your ideas on the subject and hope you keep it alive. Big KISS

 

[inlovewithyourghost]

I don't know that I have much to contribute by way of the topic on writing, but rather as an artist.

I haven't written much. I wrote a poem (for myself) when I was younger that wound up being published. And that was it for 10 years. When I wrote the story I submitted to Lit, I wrote it for myself. But I continued the story after I posted the first chapter... And that portion I wrote for the readers. Lol... Except as it turns out, I haven't submitted that part of it yet. *scratches head*

Anyhow.
I tend to express myself in other ways. I draw, paint, and every so often try to carve or sculpt something. I almost always do this for someone else, and not for myself. Which you can tell by the fact that I have only 2 or 3 originals that I have kept for myself, and have given the rest away.

In retrospect I suppose that the difference is in the way it is created. For example:

When I draw or carve something, it is a physical creation... a tangible expression of my innermost thoughts. I may be wrong, but I believe other artists may share in my opinion that Midas used his hands to create gold, but artists use their hands to create the riches of life itself. These forms of art appeal to the right brain, where language is neither comprised of, nor limited by words. And for me, creating that art is much like the sense of touch... like a kiss... it goes beyond words yet speaks volumes, and most of all is meant to be shared. Therefore I create for the one I'm sharing with.

Writing for me, on the other hand, is a completely different creation. It is no less a form of art, don't get me wrong. I love reading. I love having someone read to me. Words can be incredibly powerful. But it appeals to the left brain. Language. Words. Speech. It is a form of expression that very much defines itself. And to me, writing is very personal. It is intimate because it literally spells out my thoughts. When I write, I feel naked, in a way. Because even if it is fiction, those words are a reflection of the private world inside my mind. And if I take the time to actually put it to words, I don't do it so someone else can experience it. I do it because I want to define it, own it, and make it come alive. So I write for me.

*glances up at the last couple paragraphs*
Does that make the slightest bit of sense?
I'm going to sleep now.

 

[TheeGoatPig]

Great - do you post those stories? My point is that you can write for you, but the moment you worry about how your little lit story fairs? The moment you actually post your stories online? It is a moment where you write for others.

Edit: How do your (not yours specifically, SS - ) stories differ from when you write for you alone and post stories for other?

No, you've got it worng. It's not written for others just because it is posted looking for feedback. It is written for whatever reason they stated. You're just going to have to take their words for their motives on trust, since you can't see into our souls through our text.

And stop jumping on everyone's backs just because they disagree with you. I don't even see you trying to get more information out of anyone who says they write for others. You seem to just take it as fact.

Why are you doing this to my sanity!?!?!?!

 

[Selena_Kitt]

I don't write for either. And I write for both. Ah the ultimate true paradox.

I think people who polarize and separate them end up in trouble. Writing just for the self, or just for others... both end up being selfish pursuits... one is no more than masturbation, the other exhibitionism.

It's walking the tightrope, balancing the two... that's where all the best art is created. Very like making love... bringing the two together to create something beautiful, something that was already one to begin with... that's what I long to do.

Don't always succeed... but that's my longing.

 

[Liar]

Of course I write for me.

The World is not in need of my stories. The only need there is, is for me to tell them. If I didn't tell them, The World would find other stories to read. There's always stories.

And like Imp said, even in a professional role, I write for me. To get paid.

 

[deliciously_naughty]

Hi delicious - good to see you after all these years. Hm, I would immediately think that a blog would be written for you - much in the way a diary is? Interesting, though - can you tell more?

Thanks.

I consciously decided to try to make my blog more professional. I have about 20 blogs I read every day, and all of them are amazing writers who make it a point to have well written entries. I have a private blog where I talk about everyday stuff and bitch about my life, but the one I link in my sig line is the pro one. Since sex is what I've been writing the longest (4 or 5 years here on Lit alone), the sex blog seemed the way to go.

It's an interesting challenge to write professionally for a period of time every day. I'm working on revising one novel, starting another, occasionally working on a short story or article to freelance, and the bog. Having more irons in the fire allows me to move from project to project so that I'm writing for the full time I plan to be and not just sitting there fighting with a project that isn't goign well on a given day.

 

[hmmnmm]

I was posting to the SDC and this question came up for me in the midst of my post:

Do we write for ourselves or do we write for others?

It's an age old argument, I know, but I truly believe that we write for others. Anyone want to bite on a writing topic today?

Wooo! This is doozy. A lot of ways to look at it. All sorts of circumstances.

We could look at the audience factor - whether the writer has one or none, and how well the writer and the audience know the other.

We could look at the masturbation factor - personally I enjoy masturbating, but for the most part it is a private activity. I would be inordinately embarrassed to masturbate in front of other people - UNLESS - they were very special people and I was assured that they truly enjoyed watching me masturbate.

I personally love to doodle with words, drawings, guitar notes, photographic imagery. All the endless ways to observe, all the endless combinations. This is also a solo activity that I gain tremendous pleasure - but to assume another mind, or set of ears or eyes will find anything useful from my doodlings is another matter - I almost never expect any other person to like anything that I dare to show or expose as a finished project.

On the other hand, one never knows what another will find appealing, uplifting, erotic, humorous, frightening, joyous... so, there's also the idea of presenting works that may touch someone in some positive way. The problem is, that I don't personally feel that anything I do falls into that category of worthiness - even when others say they enjoy this and that.

So again, I think it is both, or either, maybe you begin for yourself, for your own pleasure, for your own adventure, and depending on your personality, shyness, eagerness, etc, you invite others along for the ride, hoping they know you well enough to enjoy the detours, and you know them well enough that you don't have to have a real destination in mind for the trip.


There's lots more to this topic.


And I'm still terribly jealous of you, CharleyH.