The Writing Boom and the Reading Bust: An Uneven Literary Landscape

Feasting on:

I’m Done Publishing Aarsh Malik

On Vocal Media, and I felt his pain. So, I went deeper into myself as a writer who had been writing for more than twenty years, had written more than five books, co-authored some books, and published more than 2000 articles on various writing platforms. His words forced me to ask myself this question:

Am I failing as a writer?

Why?

For the last year and a half, I have been writing here on Vocal, Medium, and other platforms. When I started, I thought consistently writing would be enough. If I kept writing, publishing, entering competitions, and showing up, I believed eventually something would happen. One story would reach the right reader. Maybe one poem would stand out. Maybe one competition would finally recognize my work. I have entered many competitions during this journey, hoping that one day my work would finally be recognized. It didn’t happen. Aarsh Malik

From my understanding, and from listening to the cries and complaints of many writers over my more than six years on Medium, Vocal, and other writing platforms, I have seen writers who want success on their own time and terms. They organize their portfolio how they want, do what they believe is right on their time. Many believe that after they do what they think is right, then success should have the decency to show up.

They don’t realize success has a mind of its own.

You don’t decide when success comes. It decides when you are ready, depending on the time, energy, resources, blood, sweat, and tears you have invested to let it grow. Then it shows up. If you aren’t there, it moves to the next door. The next heart, soul, mind, hands, feet, wherever it thinks it should start from.

I found out that the writing world is crowded. So, I have concluded that the Literary world may be unbalanced.

We have more writers than readers. I don’t think people stopped reading. It’s easier now to read from your phone or tablet. I have seen many writers come and go, but the winners will be the ones who stay. Success can’t find you if you aren’t in the game.

I came here hoping writing would help me financially, but things didn’t work out the way I hoped. Aarsh Malik

The reason for writing and a lack of knowledge of the literary world are two reasons many writers fail. I did my research and noticed that very few writers become bestsellers. Like plants need water to live, every dream needs care, time, effort, and money, whether it’s writing, running, singing, dancing, whatever.

With writing, writers are always learning new things as fresh ideas find them.

When I started writing, I didn’t make writing my only source of income. I worked as a live-in caregiver and wrote between jobs. My job gave me an income to build my life and stay in the game until success decided it was time to visit me Literary.

I am still waiting. But the bank doesn’t own my dream anymore. It owned it for 8 1/2 years. I am mortgage-free and debt-free. I keep telling my children, and everyone who will listen, that you can’t have only one door open for success. You must have other entrances for success to come in.

My writing is not where I want it to be. Aarsh Malik

Bestsellers’ writing didn’t go where it was sent immediately. It took years for Steven King, Robert Ludlum, Sidney Sheldon, V.C. Andrews, Barbara Taylor Bradford, J.K. Rowling, and others to achieve bestseller status. Writing wasn’t their only source of income, and that gave them the power to stay in the literary world until success found them.

They maintain their dignity, ethics, and morals, writing how they want to educate, entertain, heal, help, and stay clean and honest, using their creative, innovative imagination, allowing the power of their words to live on long after they are gone. They won because they didn’t give up.

I do believe there are more writers than readers, and that has caused an imbalance in the literary world. But don’t give up, writers. Stay in the game. Don’t have only one entrance for success. The moment you lock that door, success might knock, and no one will be there. With another door, success will have another entrance. That gives you another opportunity.

Don’t give success only one entrance. Open more doors with your creativity, innovation, and imagination. Annelise Lords

Thank you for reading this piece. I hope you enjoyed it.