The challenge for artists of all stripes is to manage the creative impulse with the expectations of others. The musician needs an audience, the chef needs diners, the writer needs readers and with this relationship comes the burden of expectation. Art forms must first be enjoyed for their own sake, and this can be deeply satisfying, but to elevate the art it needs a response. This can be a real tightrope to walk. How do I create art that is personally fulfilling and satisfying but also create art for others to enjoy and be inspired by? As writers, the work is quite isolating. We rarely get to see our readers reading our work so the reader can become distant and imaginary. What is the point of writing? What is the point of all art if it doesn’t expand beyond the individual creation to live independently in the world?
My advice to you as a writer, is don’t forget the reader. I am not suggesting that you attempt the impossible and try to please all readers everywhere at all times, just keep the reader in mind. Write what excites and inspires you. Write what feels creative and fulfilling. But all that work and creation and focus needs reflection. The act of sharing your art is truly the transcendence of art itself. A flower that is not looked upon, smelled and enjoyed is no less beautiful and worthy but its beauty and worthiness is intensified by others experience of it. It is the shared experience that makes art so powerful. Be wary of the concerns though. One of the issues with writing for the reader is the tendency to hold back your authentic self. If you become to fixated on the readers experience, you cannot write believable characters. If you become too aware of reader your writing becomes a performance. You may become guarded or unrelatable. The pitfalls of writing only for yourself is that your writing can become inflated and self-indulgent.
The writer has a relationship with the reader. If you put words on paper, whether you intend to share it or not, you are putting a creation into the world. We don’t always know who will end up reading what we have written but to write is to desire to communicate and communication is the act of sharing ideas between people. When you sit down to write, I am not suggesting you think about your readers reaction. I am suggesting that you consider that your writing is important in the larger context of the world and that it may have an impact on others. What you write matters. Deeply. What you say and communicate matters. Write for the relationship.
Here are some questions I consider when writing. These are particularly helpful during revisions.
- What is this story about?
- Who is telling this story?
- Am I worried what the reader thinks of me?
- What am I hiding from the reader here?
- Am I overemphasizing something for the benefit of the reader?
- What doesn’t the reader know right now? Do they need this information?
- If I divulge this or that, does it leave me too vulnerable?
- Where am I holding back?
- Why am I telling the reader this?
- What parts of the story do I include and what do I dismiss?
