Why It's Okay to Write Junk Food Media

As a writer, we’re always told to improve and get better at the craft. This can lead to fear of failure and perfectionism. That can lower your productivity and writing quality.

I’m here to tell you that’s okay to write junk food media. You don’t have to pump banger after banger. We’re not perfect, especially not in the beginning.

Here are 5 reasons why it’s okay to take a break from serious writing and just write anything. Regardless if it’s good or not.

Experimental Ideas

You might have some ideas that are risky, edgy, or maybe the seed of something greater.

If that applies, experimenting with those ideas in a low-risk story can help future projects.

These stories can either warm your audience up to the idea or warn if an idea is poor. Depending on the reception you can learn how you can write the idea better.

Improve Your Writing

The best story was only told after the sacrifice of previous failures. At least for most of us anyway.

The most obvious reason why writing junk media is fine. Writing every day is common advice and it does work along with feedback.

But you won’t write a 10/10 every day, most days it will be average or even bad. That’s okay and it will improve your writing steadily.

Learn from the mistakes pointed out by your beta-readers and any willing editors.

Another way it can help your writing is contrast. One day, you will write your worst work. On that day you’ll know exactly what not to do, all tailored to you.

Study it and tear it apart. The faster you get to this point the better. No way but up from there.

But maybe you need a break from all the serious writing. Junk media can help do that too.

Mental Break

The only time I think it isn’t okay to write junk media is when you’re writing a series. A series needs your best to be consistent in quality.

Whether it be a film series, books, TV shows, or video games. Those stories and your audience deserve the best you can offer.

But it’s unreasonable to be at 100% all the time so it’s okay to take a mental break. Yeah, you can stop writing altogether but not everyone has that luxury.

In these situations, you can write junk media and low-risk material. No need to be perfect with these, have fun and rediscover why you like writing.

You don’t have to publish them either. If you have a public standard you have to keep it’s better to keep it hidden.

If you don’t have a huge public standard yet, let your audience know that junk media is a part that your writing process at the beginning.

Have a place on your website, or wherever you store your writing, that houses all of your junk media. If they like it, that means that your base form of writing has improved.

They’ll think:

“Wow, if their junk media is good then that must mean their good stuff is great.”

A little easy passive promotion for your big projects.

Don’t abuse these mental breaks though if you have an unfinished series. Resist being like George R.R. Martin, you can’t take a break forever.

I’ll take my own advice, eventually, I’ll have a place like that here.

Money and Exposure

Let’s be honest, quality doesn’t always equal success. There are some stories out there that are cliche and appeal to the lowest common denominator. Some even get movies and anime for goodness sake.

So if you have a dumb idea then there’s no shame in cashing it in to fund something better.

Try Wattpad or Webnovel if you want to publish bad ideas. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a Netflix adaptation.

If you want to keep your reputation then become a ghostwriter for these smaller projects. If you don’t then this can be a way to get your name out there.

Be careful not to be too attached to the dumb ideas you cash in on though. Cover yourself with a Pseudonym if it suits your situation.

Can Be Fun

I’ve read many stories and not all of them are great but they are fun to read.

I’m mostly thinking of isekai manga but this can apply to short stories and webnovels.

They can be fun for your audience to read and a break from the normal.

They can be fun for you if want to take a break like suggested before. Writing whatever you want during writer’s block can help you rediscover the joy of writing.

When you’re having fun then creativity can flow easier than your thought. Take that renewed energy and put it back into serious writing.

Think of it as a self-invest for future writing projects that will be draining.

Conclusion

Those are the 5 reasons to write some junk food media. I hope this helped you to take a breather and lift any burden to be perfect.

Relax, we can’t read or write 10/10 stories all the time. The world needs the contrast and there’s no shame in adding to the other side every once in a while.

Be sure to check out your free creative writing tools to help you further.

With that, I’m done.