It’s the first Wednesday of August, and guess what! I’m co-hosting the Insecure Writer’s Support Group blog hop today along with Lisa Buie Collard, Lee Lowery, and Tara Tyler! Be sure to give them a visit.
July saw my character hashing out his trauma with a long-hated enemy. I admit I’m disturbingly gleeful with how terrible this villain is. She’s a cold-blooded, psychotic killer, and sarcastic to boot. She murdered my character’s family, caused a war, and nearly wiped out the world with her single-minded selfishness. And my character’s stuck with her for the rest of eternity.
It’s been incredibly fun forcing him to face this foe, which brings me to the question of the month.
IWSG Question of the Month – When you set out to write a story, do you try to be more original or do you try to give readers what they want?
That’s a weird question. It implies readers don’t want original stories. Probably not what the question writer intended, but the either-or setup leaves me with the sense that I’m doing it wrong because neither apply. (I guess I prefer open ended questions rather than trying to shove this squirrel into a box.)
I shamelessly admit I don’t think about the reader when I’m writing. Writing is a purely self-indulgent hobby. Sure, I try to grow, improve, and do my best for other consumers to have a positive experience. But I write to entertain myself.
Does that make my work original? Sadly, no. My magic system stems from my tweenaged Sailor Moon days, with the alt-world travel of Sliders and extensive family trees rivaling Xanth’s character sprawl. The latest short story I wrote was a combo of two ideas I saw online.
Nothing I do is original, but that doesn’t bother me, because I’m having fun.
What about you? Are you having fun with your writing? Do you think readers want original stories? Do you draw inspiration from other sources?
About Insecure Writer’s Support Group
You can find the sign up for the IWSG here. We owe Alex J Cavanaugh a huge thank you for thinking this blog hop up.
Writing is all about my personal pleasure too – and I say so unashamedly 🙂 But it’s not how I earn my living so I guess it’s easier to be self-indulgent. If I needed to earn my living from writing, I would probably *try* to give the reader what they want, but I’m not sure how easy that’s to do.
Thanks for co-hosting this month.
Hi,
I write my stories the way I would like to read them, and I hope that I will catch the heart of the reader that enters my world.
Thank you so much for co-hosting.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange
You just write and enjoy and that’s a good place to be.
Thanks for co-hosting today!
I agree with you. The question was strange.
Oh, the lighthouse was my favourite eyecandy this month. I’ve discovered that lighthouses really sell in my area. Must write more lighthouse stories 🙂
Thanks for co-hosting this month – and please pass said thanks to Lisa, too, as I couldn’t get her blog to let me comment.
Jemima
I believe, reading hones a writer’s pen, so to say. And from all those books we’ve read, writer’s absorb various ways in expressing ourselves though our writing. Loads of books are somewhat similar when it comes to certain genres, except for, hopefully, an original plot.
Loni, thank you for co-hosting. Enjoy the summer!
Nothing is original, Loni, it’s just our personal spin on the known and understood. Nice spin, BTW! LOVE your art. And squirrels – in or out of boxes. Thanks for co-hosting!!
I love that you’re having so much fun! Keep it going! 🙂
Don’t feel bad. The inspiration for my first book came from Twilight.
Thanks for co-hosting.
Have fun, then! Why be miserable when you’re writing?
I had difficulty with the question, too. Instead of what readers want, I interpreted it as what readers expect. Thanks for cohosting this month.
Those are some well-done pictures. Good that you have fun with writing. That is how it should be! Thanks for co-hosting.
I’m with you, Loni; I don’t write to please my readers. I have to admit I do feel a tinge of guilt about that. Ha, not true. Thanks for co-hosting.
Thank you for co-hosting the blog hop this month, Loni!
I agree with the fun part! Whenever I approach my writing, having fun is top of my list.
The only time I really think about the reader when writing is when I write a scene and I think something like, “Oh, my sister-in-law will hate that *this* happened…” but then I do it anyway, because it’s what’s best for the story.
I’m glad you’re having fun with your writing. That’s the most important thing, in my book.
Love the artwork!
I love the sound of your character–“cold-blooded, psychotic killer, and sarcastic to boot”. My kind of villain hero!
can’t help but adore a deliciously evil villain!
writing for fun and entertaining ourselves is a sure-fire way to entertain others who are like-minded—I love it!
thanks for co-hosting =)
There’s nothing wrong with being self-indulgent when writing. Thanks for co-hosting today.
Thanks for co-hosting. I think writing for fun is important too. Sounds like you’ve been having tons of fun with your villain lately.
I agree. I write things I want to read so I really only think about the one reader – me!
Good for you, Loni, to entertain yourself first. You have a following, so you must be doing something right. More power to you. Thanks for cohosting IWSG’s question this month. Have a beautiful August!
Thanks for co-hosting this month! After reading your post, I almost think that “self-entertainment” should have been a third option in the prompt! Some of my favorite creative time is writing content for my homebrew D&D campaign. But it’s so full of inside jokes, shameless ripoffs, unfortunate cliches, and over-the-top hijinks that I would never dream of even publicly posting it, let alone trying to publish it. And yet… it’s so fun! (Is there an emoji for guilty pleasure?)
I absolutely loved this: “My magic system stems from my tweenaged Sailor Moon days, with the alt-world travel of Sliders and extensive family trees rivaling Xanth’s character sprawl.”
Thanks for co-hosting the blog hop today!
I think most readers want originality in stories, but they also need to be able to somehow relate to them. A skillful writer can do that. What I don’t like is when writers experiment too much with language and style to the point that it distracts from the fun of reading. Sometimes it can work in the hands of, once again, a skillful writer. Some part of any writing needs to stay grounded in some sort of reality or familiarity.
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out
Hi Loni!
You are definitely living your best writing life! Good, that’s how it should be. Certainly, we want our readers to love our work, but how will they know until it’s written?
Thank you for co-hosting!
Ha! Same. I write for me in the first draft.
Aren’t villains fun? We do love torturing our characters. It makes for great reading. Not that we want near that much drama in our own lives. 🙂
Yes. I subscribe to your motto: “I write to entertain myself.” I do too. So when the readers like my stories too, that’s a bonus rather than a goal.
I also wanted to add (but I hit ‘post comment’ too soon) that I absolutely admire your illustrations. Your aesthetic sense coincides with mine 95%. 🙂 I like to give myself 5% of wriggle room.
Fair enough! And self-indulgence is probably the only way to stick with this writing gig. It’s incredibly difficult to muscle through without at least enjoying it a little. Thanks for co-hosting this month!
I love your attitude! Thank you for cohosting this month 🙂 Keep the squirrel chatter going!
I agree that it shouldn’t be either or. You can’t really avoid be original–no one is like you–but at the same time now one can be completely original, because we’re all influenced by the books we read. I like how you described your villain and main character, like they’re real people.
I don’t think about the reader at this point, and I am totally enjoying myself. I love my characters, I love the setting, I love the research.
And I know I’ve said this before, but I just love your ninja squirrel graphic. It makes me so happy every time I stop by to see that warm, fuzzy squirrel hugging the Red Bull. ❤️
Yeah, I wouldn’t know what to do with this question, either. Your answer makes good sense. It sounds like you’ve make progress on your work, so that’s good. Happy August.
I have fun creating the first drafts of my story, but after 10 drafts, it’s just plain hard work! Thanks for co-hosting this month!
I think if the writer is having fun that will come through in the story and hopefully, ensure the reader has fun also. My daughter is a huge Sailor Moon fan. She called me after she saw Thor: Love and Thunder to tell me it was a ripoff of a Sailor Moon story.
Just enjoy the space you are in. Nothing wrong with writing for ourselves. In my experience, it has been therapeutic.
Personally I believe many readers like original stories even though they may not be looking for them intentionally. They just like to be entertained and if an author can entertain them while writing original work, he/she has done good work and has truly mastered storytelling. Youve brought upsome really good points, thanks! And thanks for co-hosting, too!
I think if you’re having fun with your writing, your reader will too. I love it when I sense the author’s cackle behind the scenes and their glee at writing.
I’ve always heard that everything’s been done and there are no original ideas out there anymore. What we have are known ideas that we take and make our own with our unique twists and voice, so I think that makes them original in their own way. And writing for fun is the only way to do it. Love the artwork! Thank you for co-hosting!
Readers wanting or not wanting original stories only matters if they can access them, which means either independent publishing or getting an agent / publisher to take a chance on something original. And then figuring out how and who to market that book.
“Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries.”
―Anne Herbert
My IWSG blog post discussed my love of originality. I’m looking forward to the bout of books readathon and WEP’s flash fiction later this month.
Life threw me a curveball with a neighborhood crisis this week, but we got through it.
Winnie the Pooh is the world’s Ambassador of Friendship. In the US, National Friendship Day is the first Sunday of August. #FriendshipDay2022
J Lenni Dorner (he/him 👨🏽 or 🧑🏽 they/them) ~ Co-host of the #AtoZchallenge, OperationAwesome6 Debut Author Interviewer, Reference& Speculative Fiction Author
This month’s IWSG question threw me for a loop as well because I get immersed in the story and the characters and don’t really think about readers as much as what’s happening next! Maybe during revision? And the latest challenge a reader threw me — deep point of view. Aargh! research needed. Thank you for co-hosting and just opening up about the writing process. Have a great month ahead.
First, thanks for co-hosting, especially in August, a month I’d love to abolish.
Next ? Write to entertain myself ? Olga too ?
Stuck in an alarming rut, and gridlocked traffic too, – a sudden gift – an idea so exciting,
I couldn’t wait to get home,
Doesn’t happen often, meaning hardly ever, but when it does, treasure every moment.
Moon Prism Power! Oh that Sailor Moon reference threw me into nostalgia mode. I have tried to get my husband to dress up as Tuxedo Mask, but no luck. I see tons of Sailor Moon merch in stores these days, but back when I was a tween there was next to nothing. I did find a few things in KB Toys which I still have in storage in my parents’ basement… Anyways, sorry this comment had nothing to do with writing.
That’s why my answer was such crap!!! My brain didn’t wrap around the idea that a story can’t be both. I mean I think of the reader when I polish up a story– I want the story to be entertaining and enjoyable. I certainly don’t want them thinking they just wasted 2.99 on a piece of crap.
I’m glad I stopped by. I was reading all these posts that were honestly making me feel a bit like a sell out.