Tip #2: Writing for Its Own Sake

At the Eckerd College Writers Conference, Stewart O'Nan told us something interesting. It's much healthier, he said, to enjoy the private side of reading and writing. You do it because you love it. Not because you want to write something people want to read. You write something you want to read and then if other people want to read it, well, that's great, but it's not the point. What struck me the most though was the word he used in the next sentence: "Publishing," he said, "is extracurricular."

As the author of more than ten novels, Stewart knows what he's talking about. He holds an M.F.A. in Fiction from Cornell. You can read about his tenth novel in The New York Times profile of him and his book, Last Night at the Lobster, by clicking here.

Stewart pressed that he didn't mean publishing was unimportant. But I think he's right that the writing is more important (maybe that's self-aggrandizing or naive, but I really don't feel like it is). It is better to worry about the story for yourself. Don't think about focus groups and marketing. Embrace the vivid and continuous dream and see if the writing you're doing creates that dream for you. Go deeper into the dream, use it to make the story stronger. If you write something good enough, you will eventually get it published. One of the mistakes writers make, I think, is trying to get their books out too soon.

In short, it's better to enjoy the private side of reading and writing. Publishing is important, but it is not the point. Writing is a job, but it's a job you do for yourself and hopefully in the end you make some money.