Readers and Writers Creators Both

I've read some Bloggers claim no shame they're not good writers? Post a stream of consciousness text. Upload the mind dump. Gossip post. Call it what you want. "My Cat Ate the Parakeet." Anything to drive the proverbial numbers. Quality damned. Numbers are all that matters!

Most Blogs recommend a 7-minute reader attention span. A sentence of 12 words or less, and grammar at an 8th grade or lower reading level? After I got over the shock and thought my MFA (Masters in Creating Writing Degree) worthless. I spent $20,000 at a major University that said I knew something about the craft of writing.

My first impression that VOCAL was a platform for the TikTok generation was wrong. Don't judge a book by its cover. I kept digging. I changed my mind after I read others who wrote for the integrity of the story. No matter the length. And they were high quality writers.

Quantity versus quality wouldn't get you an MFA degree.

Write shorter pieces and get more readers but earn less? Write longer pieces earn more but risk losing the reader? Somewhere therein lies the sweet spot? I rely on if the content is engaging enough the reader will finish it regardless of the time.

If the reader won't open the piece because of the time? Punt. We can't win them all.

The case for quality

Think of a book like Toni Morrison's Pulitzer winning novel "Beloved" took years to write and it's a classic. Quality lasts a life time and quantity is flash in the pan?

There's nothing wrong with being a quantity only scribe. Some quantity only flash texting is good. It's a specialty niche. But I doubt it's longetivity. It's like planned obsolescence. The definition. Producing consumer goods that rapidly become obsolete and so require replacing, achieved by frequent changes in design, termination of the supply of spare parts, and the use of nondurable materials - the Dictionary.

There's no explaining how a person with no writing experience can post an article. And make $9,000 on it is mind-boggling. Right place right time? Don't even try and figure it out. It's not worth it. Move on. If you want to read their stats article and how smart they are be my guest. I've read many of these article types and no one mentions the word "luck."

If one of my essays wind up being two minutes. It came out that way. But I don't do it to create filler. I write from the heart and for the sake of the story. Not the pocketbook. I don't get frantic over stats. I want my writing to last not be part of the next trend. If I lost $1.00 so be it. I figure if the quality is there the money will follow.

Don't drown in the writer stats pool. They're out of original ideas so as a last resort publish their bank account statements?

My education did not make me a writer. Much like going to music school is not going to make you a hit songwriter.

My education in writing did teach me how to be a reader. Remember two things. Nobody can teach you how to be a writer. And the golden rule. Readers and Writers creators both. It's a talent like any other art. What you are paying for in writing school is a critical thinking toolbox on how to approach writing. What makes writing well. A road map through the wilderness of words.

Posting for quantity might build some income. But, a foundation of understanding the basics and classics will last a lifetime.

The best advice I give writers is to write to their muse. No matter what it's about. Find your voice. Are you a Novelist, Creative non-fiction, Fiction, Memoir, Science Fiction, Business, Copywriter, or Journalist? Experiment. Write for passion. Write for freedom. Write like you're dying! Don't get sucked into the quantity kicks quality ass debate.

Tips

You don't need a college degree in writing to write. Most writers are good writers because they have a talent for it and don't quit. Use the free version of these services. Download/install Grammarly and check your grammar. Use the online Hemmingway editor and check your sentence structure. Analyze your headline. Read Strunk and White's "The Elements of Style."

If a writing advice article tells you it's a numbers game and there's no money in writing about yourself?

Eat the fuzz between my toes.

First, consider that the writer has no talent to write about themselves? Of course, their money came from business articles.

I let the Vocal curation algorithms and the Vocal human curators settle the score.

Getting curated is not the end-all to being a successful digital writer. It's better than a pencil in the eye and waiting for a New York agent to return your call. But, I'm not bragging. Not everything I write gets curated or published and if I dry up it could end anytime.

Are you a dabbler or in it for the long haul? Remember Norman Maclean, the author of "A River Runs Through It?" He did not start writing fiction until he was 70 years old.