As I am out walking tonight I shared a few steps with a librarian. Not metaphorically. I actually walked with a librarian for a while. I asked her what books people seemed to check out and enjoy the most. Perhaps I will tap into something here I can use...
She told me it was the familiar. The readers that came in most often were people of routine, and they liked books of routine. They liked familiar stories, form stories, and stories that had an action hero that came out on top or romantic stories that a woman was treated well. They were willing to read the same story over and over again, merely changing the character's names and setting a bit.
I guess that is why certain writers are so successful... and why some truly great talents get ignored... give the people what they want...
So, this is a blog about why I don't write.
Maybe that is reason # 89 why. What if I don't always see the happy ending? There is a reason I think the greatest American book is the Great Gatsby. Because nothing is what it seems for so many. Thoreau said that many men lead lives of quiet desperation. What if there is only happiness in ignorance of reality? What if dreams are not meant to come true, because when they do, we find out... well, we find out something. That is the stuff of literature.
By the way, I am a relatively happy guy. I am not bemoaning the loss of the American dream in my daily life, but perhaps to become I writer, I should...
If you're not what a typical reader wants in their habitual routine, perhaps your writing could appeal to someone who doesn't typically read? Find a non-reader. Ask them what sparks them to do the occasional read. Find out what stands out in those special books/writings that kept them reading to the end, since they don't normally seek out books for pleasure.
ReplyDeleteAlso, write a bunch. Two blogs? Why not four? Cast a bigger net to increase the odds of a catch. You want a reader, so put your writing out where they can find it.