Motivation Monday: Write What You Love

Don’t write for anyone but yourself. You’re going to encounter lots of people… Dad, I’m looking at you… who don’t understand your work. I’ve been writing books since I was twelve, and of course, looking back, those old books are what I like to call, garbage. I was young, knew nothing about story structure, character arcs, blah blah blah. But what I did know is I loved my work. 

I loved my work because I wrote it for myself. I wrote what I wanted to read, not what some magic demographic wanted, not what my teacher wanted, but what I myself wanted. My dad to this day will ask why I don't write “real world” stuff. He grew up in 1970s Queens. His favorite movies are Serpico, The French Connection and Goodfellas. He’s not going to understand the nuances of fairy and mermaid lore. He’s also not going to want to read love scenes, especially when they’re written by his daughter. I will always argue my work is rooted in the real world, whether or not there is magic or fantasy surrounding it. The point of this diatribe is if you’re not true to yourself, if you’re not writing something you love, then why are you writing it?

Writing to appeal to the masses, or writing to please someone else, isn’t going to do much for your creative soul. You’ll end up feeling empty after, and there won’t be much satisfaction. Write from your heart, for yourself, and your people will find you.