Friday, April 23, 2010

Why Not?


Today Rachelle Gardener asks, Why Do People Want To Be Published? She asks why "so many" people want this, and theorizes about the primal urge to be heard and the possibly-more-recent desire for celebrity...

Wait a minute. Why wouldn't we want to be published?

Now, I realize that there are a wide variety of motivations that underlie the thousands upon thousands of query letters sent daily to literary agents. And I'm quite sure some people are planning to be celebrities with the next Twilight-level breakout novel, but I'm also sure that those people are delusional. But this doesn't mean that the desire for publication is such an odd and wondrous thing that it must be explained.

I went to law school to be a lawyer, not just so that I could better understand Supreme Court decisions in the privacy of my own home. And before that, I wanted to be on television and in movies because acting was my job. I didn't give a crap about celebrity (indeed, I saw enough celebrity around me to view it as high-risk and potentially damaging rather than fun and exciting).

I helped run the lighting in an off-Broadway theater for a period of time in high school (we had a theater troupe that worked as stagehands in exchange for being able to perform in the location later on), and I got paid the same as the adult actors: $5 per show. Five dollars per show in 1990. No money for rehearsals. That's NOTHING. I don't think a single one of them wanted to be on Broadway for the "celebrity." Those actors loved acting in a way that I never did, were willing to make sacrifices that I was not.

They loved the art form, and the only reason they would ever want to be on Broadway would be for the joy of the art: (1) because a Broadway show would mean more money to pay the bills so they could spend more time acting instead of doing the day job; (2) because a Broadway show would mean more exposure, which would mean more acting gigs, which means, again, less need for a day job; (3) because there are some freaking amazing shows on Broadway, and who wouldn't want to act in the best plays available; (4) because it would mean they were Broadway-worthy, among the best in their field.

They wouldn't want to be lousy actors on Broadway, just to be able to say that's where they performed. They wanted to do the hard work and be extremely talented, and so of course then they would want the financial rewards and recognition that come with being superb at one's craft.

I think that writers who take writing seriously want publication like those actors wanted Broadway. It's the prize at the end of a long road, in an art form that these people are passionate about. It's not about celebrity, it's not even necessarily about being heard or seen. It's about doing a job you love, and doing it well enough that people want you to keep doing it, and will pay for you to keep doing it, so that you can do it some more.

What do you think?


16 comments:

  1. I totally agree! I want my writing to reach an audience. When I was a kid I put on plays for the family and relatives, because in some ways I love to SHOW OFF.

    I had a writing teacher ask us if we would still write if we were stranded on a desert island. I thought, heck yes, so that when they rescue me I can publish a best-selling memoir and go on Oprah.

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  2. Couldn't have possibly said it better myself.

    I write to tell the story and become better at my craft. If, by some miracle, I shatter records, then by all means let them be shattered. But that's not why I'm doing this.

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  3. Oooo! I love this. You just articulated thoughts I couldn't articulate myself.

    That is definitely one of the reasons I want to get published. I'd love to get paid doing something I love to do. There are many more reasons, but that's definitely one of them!

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  4. I write because I have to. I want to publish because it formalizes that, and also I want to write all the time, full time, as my job, and selling my writing is the way to do that.

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  5. I think the first question is Why write in the first place?. I really believe that anyone one who puts their thoughts to paper wants on some level for someone to read it. The next logical goal is to get gain a wider audience by getting published. And by getting published you might make some money doing what you like to do. I just find it hard to buy into the argument that people just write or blog for themselves. Seems like a self-indulgent waste of time to me, or maybe some kind of therapy that still remains self-indulgent.

    Lee
    A to Z Challenge Reflections Mega Post

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  6. Yeah, I think you're right. We have to be working toward some sort of goal and that is THE goal for writers.

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  7. @Arlee- I would love to be published. I would love to write for a living. But I don't require someone to read my stuff for me to consider it a good use of my time. I enjoy writing, so I do it.

    Same reason I play piano. Just because I decided I would rather be a published author than be a concert pianist (and that I probably have a lot better shot at it, too), doesn't mean that I no longer see piano time as valuable.

    And anyway, what's wrong with indulging yourself. For some reason that phrase only ever comes up in insults and criticism.

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  8. I just sent in my first submission ever to a few literary magazines. I found it gave me a way to "let go" of the project and move on to another one. There is also the dream that someday I might be one of the lucky ones who can make a living off of writing fiction...

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  9. Atsiko:
    I think I understand where you are coming from. I had no intent on being insulting or critical toward anyone, I just want realism.
    I don't see anything wrong with indulging oneself. It's important to do so sometimes. I do it frequently in many different ways.

    Writing notes to oneself, grocery lists, journal entries are all indulging in self-specific writing needs that may be purposeful. However, if someone writes a novel, or short stories, or a blog with no desire or intent that anyone might read their writing (and of course it would be unrealistic to think that most of us could require anyone to read our writing), then from my own personal standpoint it would be an indulgence that would be a waste of time, but like I said that's me and no intended slight on anyone else as to how they want to spend their time.

    Thank you for your acknowledgment of my comment.

    Lee
    A to Z Challenge Reflections Mega Post

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  10. Yes.

    Getting published is a benchmark for me. I do not want celebrity; I want to create really great books.

    Being rich would be nice, mind you. I keep that dream around just because it's a fun place to visit. :-p

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  11. Hehe. We all have our own views. It's just that I've seen similar language used a lot more negatively towards others, so it was more like your comment was a trigger than that I actually read all that into it.

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  12. Lee and Atsiko, I think you've tapped into something interesting here. It's so odd that some people can see writing WITHOUT seeking publication as self-indulgent (because you know it's just for yourself), whereas I bet many other people would argue that SEEKING publication is the self-indulgent choice (what, you think everyone wants to read words from little ol' you?)

    Tricky.

    Thanks for all the comments everyone! I *like* our reasons for wanting publication...

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  13. You said this so well, thank you. I may link to this post in one of my own, if that's okay. I've been having major trauma over publishing lately...

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  14. I often think that agents don't understand writers at ALL. I think they know how to react to them, and even moreso, how to make them react. But I don't think most of them 'get' writers. Agents may love books, but I suspect that they think dealing with the writers of said books is just a necessary evil.

    On the other hand, I may just be feeling annoyed at agents in general at the moment. :)

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  15. Hell to the yes, good lady. I'm with you on this. It ain't paying, it ain't giving me much free time, and it ain't letting me sleep much, but I wouldn't have it any other way, because I love writing. I'll never be as good at anything as I am at this, for better or worse, and best believe I'm aiming high.

    Well said, Carrie. Very well said indeed.

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