Who Are You Writing For?

Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self. – Cyril Connorly

I think many writers fall into this mindset when faced with fear or insecurity. Their writing is not good enough, they’ll never be published, they can’t make money at this unless they write exactly what they think the public wants. Unfortunately many writers do this at the risk of losing their self. Do I think everything you write needs to represent your true self? No. There are writing jobs I have taken that were advertorial in nature and I wrote glowing reviews of restaurants I thought would close in 6 months. When faced with bills and deadlines and fear I wrote for a paycheck.There’s a lot of paying your dues for a new writer. And I’m still doing that.
All I know is that there are venues where I could write that could potentially be lucrative but I want to maintain “me”. Anything less would be giving up my self.
Today, think about what you are willing to give up to be called a writer or a published author? Where do you draw the line? Who are you writing for? List 10 venues where you could be published that really represent you. These are places that fit your style, character and self. Now get back to work!

Lovingly,
The Writing Nag