I wrestle continually with this. I write many pieces that aren’t shared anywhere. Right now, as I edit a book, I’m goofing around and writing two other novels. I’ll just write a few paragraphs in each every day. I don’t know what will ever happen with them. They don’t shame or embarrass me, but the tedious process of publishing deflates me. When I finish, they’ll probably be added to the stack of finished but unpublished material, as I write on, riding the muse and just trying to hold on.
So I struggle with this, not because I write for others, but because I write for me, and I’m growing calloused about what others think of my writing. Is it good or bad?
Does that matter?
by Destine Williams
Hey everybody, today I wanted to do another Day In the Life post. And for today’s topic, I wanted to shift our focus inward and talk about something that’s been on my mind a lot these days. It’s this idea of being more honest when we write, draw, compose, or just create well…anything.
On Where This All Came From…
You see I’ve always had this feeling before I had the words to express them, but it was finally cleared up for me when I heard about artists that have sketchbooks that are made for the sole purpose of showing people and separate sketchbooks that are just for them.
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Michael Seidel, writer 
If you write for you – I’d say it doesn’t matter (or shouldn’t?) what others may or may not think about what you write. However, being a writer — I can’t say the same about me. Then again, I’m not sure anything I do is done for me…
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That touches on it, doesn’t it? If I’m writing for me, what does it matter? Yet, if I’m writing for me, why pursue any publication? I suppose I’ll slink back to the position that I need validation and appreciation, that I want others to enjoy my writing, and for me to bask in the reflection of achievement.
See, this is one of those posts I should have kept to myself.
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You pursue publication for you as well. Ok, so it’s a form of validation – but it is also a goal. And a goal set and reached is a powerful self-motivator. So the drive for publication can be for you as well…
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Yes, this is true. Reflecting on it more, I write for myself, but each step I accomplish – finishing a novel, short story, etc. – pushes me toward a desire for the next step – publishing, which then drives me toward the next step, wanting people to read what I write, and enjoy it. Because I’m always writing, I’m always on this treadmill. Each step and action drives a new step and action, and each is fraught with unique challenges and demands.
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This becomes complex. I write, initially, though, to understand myself and to refine my thinking. Writing helps me think. So I begin there, writing for myself. That writing isn’t for publication, but just for me. Yet, sometimes, it evolves into something I want to direct toward publication.
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