Writing is probably not going to change your life.
But by all means, write like crazy...it's a wonderful hobby! I've written ten (bad) novels in the last ten years and I've loved every minute of it. They've been read by less than 5 people.
If I cook dinner but only my family eats it is that a failure? If I play the piano but only for myself is that a failure? If I paint paintings that nobody buys is that a failure?
Of course not.
Writing is no different than any one of a thousand other human activities. Some pianists will reach a huge audience and change their lives as will some painters and some chefs. Most won't and that's totally fine.
We need to stop believing that "all is lost" if we don't "succeed" on the narrow terms defined by others. That goes for writing, coding, and everything else.
I agree. I found a great framework for thinking about personal projects:
1. You need a hobby for exercise
2. You need a hobby for creativity
3. You need a hobby to make money on the side
I'm reframing my own music making from the standpoint of, "I'm not trying to become famous or get signed. I just want to make some noises and play some shows." It relieves a lot of the self-created pressure of perfectionism and self-doubt and lets me just focus on having fun and... making some noise!!
Did you ever consider publishing your writings online anonymously?
I think they could be very interesting to other people who also write as amateurs and show the results only to a couple of the closest friends, or don't show to anyone at all.
I've had some friends read things in a few cases and the reaction was basically "hey good job" which I interpreted as "it was ok" :)
If I thought there was a particular audience that would be interested I wouldn't be shy about sharing, but one thing that's kept me from going down that route is that I'm not really looking for feedback per se.
What I mean by that is that I'm not actually trying to become a "better writer" so my interest in ideas for improvement is a little low. It's mostly self-indulgence on my part and I'm somewhat inclined to keep it that way :P
I have found it enjoyable to talk to my wife and daughter about the stories and see what they thought, but I'll be perfectly honest and admit that my interest in that is also self-indulgent...it's a way to keep enjoying the world I created at their expense :D
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[ 2.5 ms ] story [ 20.6 ms ] threadBut by all means, write like crazy...it's a wonderful hobby! I've written ten (bad) novels in the last ten years and I've loved every minute of it. They've been read by less than 5 people.
If I cook dinner but only my family eats it is that a failure? If I play the piano but only for myself is that a failure? If I paint paintings that nobody buys is that a failure?
Of course not.
Writing is no different than any one of a thousand other human activities. Some pianists will reach a huge audience and change their lives as will some painters and some chefs. Most won't and that's totally fine.
We need to stop believing that "all is lost" if we don't "succeed" on the narrow terms defined by others. That goes for writing, coding, and everything else.
1. You need a hobby for exercise 2. You need a hobby for creativity 3. You need a hobby to make money on the side
I'm reframing my own music making from the standpoint of, "I'm not trying to become famous or get signed. I just want to make some noises and play some shows." It relieves a lot of the self-created pressure of perfectionism and self-doubt and lets me just focus on having fun and... making some noise!!
I think they could be very interesting to other people who also write as amateurs and show the results only to a couple of the closest friends, or don't show to anyone at all.
If I thought there was a particular audience that would be interested I wouldn't be shy about sharing, but one thing that's kept me from going down that route is that I'm not really looking for feedback per se.
What I mean by that is that I'm not actually trying to become a "better writer" so my interest in ideas for improvement is a little low. It's mostly self-indulgence on my part and I'm somewhat inclined to keep it that way :P
I have found it enjoyable to talk to my wife and daughter about the stories and see what they thought, but I'll be perfectly honest and admit that my interest in that is also self-indulgent...it's a way to keep enjoying the world I created at their expense :D