Who Are You Writing For?

Do we write from our hearts, or for the acceptance of others?

Art is a beautiful thing. As individuals, I believe the greatest contribution we give to society is our unique brand of expression.

Whether you are an artist, writer, painter, sculptor, performer, musician, or actor; our unique ability to create and share with others, is what sets us apart. It is what makes our world the wonderful technicolor circus that it is. Wouldn’t the world be a boring place if we were all the same? If we all thought the same, talked the same, dressed the same, or liked the same things? What if everything was colorless—if we viewed everything in black and white? I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to exist in such a world.

This calls to mind the movie “Pleasant Ville”. Could we exist in a colorless world—a world where a monochromatic theme doesn’t stop us from going about happily each day as normal? Sure, we could, if we didn’t know any different. As the saying goes, you can’t miss what you’ve never had. But for those of you who have seen the movie, you might recall the reactions of some of the town’s people when things started to change; when their world started to color. The vast majority was afraid. They viewed it as something evil—something orchestrated by the devil himself. Even while at the same time, being inexplicably drawn to it. Very few were brave enough to openly explore this new phenomenon, to embrace it, for fear of what others might think of them.

I view creative expression as I do color; it comes in every different shade and hue. For example, I love the color green, but there are many different shades of green—such as olive, kelly, emerald, mint, and forest green. The beauty of it is that I’m not limited to just green, I can enjoy the color in all of its variant glory.

I also view writing as the same. Whether the genre is romance, sci-fi, fantasy, suspense, thriller, horror, or dystopian; there is no shortage of creativity to go around or audiences to cater to.

But as writers, do we worry more about what others might think of us—what we believe people prefer to read? Or do we stay true to ourselves; perhaps going outside the box and writing about something that might be viewed as taboo? Well, I don’t see the point of writing if we can’t write what we love or about what interests us. Thankfully, times have changed—it isn’t as taboo to write about things that were previously only thought or talked about behind closed doors. Topics such as erotica, same-sex relationships, interracial relationships, or infidelity. All of these things are a societal reality, so why not talk about them?

Sure, not every view will be openly received by everyone; luckily there is a unique audience for just about every subject.

Yeah, I know, that sounds good and all, but isn’t necessarily an easy thing to do for some of us. This was initially the case for me.

When I first started writing Wreckless Engagement, my first book, I was hit with a dose of biased reality when I revealed the title (not the current title) of my upcoming book to someone. Mind you, it was only a working title and that individual had no inkling of what the story itself was about. Yet, this person drew several instant conclusions and immediately rejected it. I must say, I was surprised—even a bit flummoxed by their negative response. But where as I could have gone into an explanation—tried to explain the relevance of the title, perhaps even, attempted to sway their view, I figured, why bother? If a person could deem a book as being “unrelatable” from just the title alone, they were woefully closed-minded, as well as not likely to be my audience. And, two years later, I can say that I was one-hundred percent correct in that!

The point is, there will always be people who are unable to see color in the way that we do; it’s what makes us unique as humans. Everyone views the world differently. Some of us see it in black and white, while others see it in color. This is the reality of creative expression—not everyone is going to understand it or love it, or get behind it and support you. As writers, we won’t be able to please the masses, but there will always be an audience who gets us.

So, in the end, I believe we should always stay true to what interests us and write from the heart. Don’t be afraid of other people's opinions or acceptance. We should write about what naturally pops into our brains; the stories that take shape and evolve seemingly without our permission. After all, if author E.L. James had been afraid to put her story out there—to enlighten many on the subject of bondage and fetish, we would still be under the impression that there were only about five shades of Gray instead of fifty (Ha-ha).

But there is a reason her books were so successful and eventually made into much-anticipated movies. James brought to light a taboo subject—a subject that was only whispered about but never openly discussed in most circles. It was referred to as “mommy porn” for that exact reason! Because button-downed, respectable wives and mothers were coveting her books and enjoying reading about something that they would never dare to talk about in real life. James's courage opened the door for a whole new genre now known as erotica--millions of similar books have been written since then.

The bottom line is, stay true to yourself and write whatever is in your heart to write. Don't worry about others opinions or acceptance--those people aren't likely to be your audience anyway.

QUESTION

Are you afraid to write about things that your family, friends, or even community might raise an eyebrow or laugh at? Have you written books, short stories, or poems—only to never share them with others because you were afraid of being judged?

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