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There Is A Reason Why I Don't Stick With One Niche In Writing.

It Restricts My Creativity.

By Carol TownendPublished 2 years ago 5 min read
Top Story - July 2022
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There Is A Reason Why I Don't Stick With One Niche In Writing.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

I love writing, just as much as I love reading.

Reading feeds my imagination, while writing sets my imagination free.

I often get advised by other writers to 'stick with one niche.'

Their reason is that if you become a popular writer in one niche, then people will be more willing to read your work, and you'll get more top stories.

I'm here to tell you that is not true, and writing in different categories will not stop you from gaining a top story.

Gaining a top story from my point of view is about the effort you put into creating your story, and how that story creates interesting reading.

You could gain a top story in your niche and it still might not get as many reads as you would like it to. Writing should never be restrictive because writing is about being free to create.

When I read, whether on platforms or in books. I read many different stories.

Sci-fi, Romance, Realism, Sexual, Real-life, Children's, Poetry, Classical, Humor, Fantasy, etc.

I am not restricted by the genre and I don't have a specific niche. I like to read a wide variety of stories.

In order for a story to gain my interest, it must be engaging, warming, resonate with me, thrill me, excite me and have flavour, no matter what type of story it is.

I treat writing in the same way as I treat reading.

I write in a variety of styles, some serious, others not so. I do not stick to writing about true life or how-to's, and I prefer to write about my journey as a writer rather than my 'career progress.'

There was one story that was turned into a top story on Vocal, in which the idea was based on a Common that I visit on a regular basis. The link to that story is below:

This story is as it says:

"A Fictional Story: Daydreaming About What to Write."

We all have that one special place that we see as beautiful.

The Common near me is full of scenery as depicted in my story. Streams, lush greens, birds and many other nature scenes.

It is so dizzying that it can lure you into a daydream. In daydreams, magical things happen, especially in a place like this where you can imagine fairytales told through the scenery.

I took inspiration from the scenery around me and used the imagery in magical ways in order to depict the magic of writing in this story.

Another story I wrote, which also gained top story was a tribute to the singer of my favourite band MeatLoaf.

Be warned this story is a tearjerker.

The sadness I felt when I found out about the passing of the singer in this band is something I find very difficult to describe, even today. The best way to explain my pain was to put it in an article and take you on a true life journey about how this band saved my life and enabled me to find the strength to work through the pain over and over again. You can read this article below:

Talking about and writing about sex was very difficult for me at first. I used to be deeply ashamed of it, and I used to be ashamed to reveal my own sexuality. I started by reading a few stories here in the 'filthy community' on Vocal. Sure, I've read explicit stories before, including many Alpha stories which I am now hooked on. However, reading it is one thing, but writing about it after trauma is another. Nevertheless, I decided to have some fun, so I chose to bravely write some of my own. My favourite story is this one:

I vape instead of smoking, and while there have been many stories about vaping, some true and others taboo. I have had many benefits from doing it, and while I'm not generally encouraging others to start vaping, I wanted to share my own honest findings. You can read more here:

I love horror. I find it thrilling. I went off horror for a while when I was recovering from trauma, though after my recovery I managed to get back into it. I started becoming engrossed in writing horror on Vocal. I then came up with the idea of a Halloween horror about Zombies, though I broke the traditional rule of Zombie stories in this series, of which I am writing many chapters which are taking me a while because I am working hard on this one. You can read the first chapter below:

I know strip clubs well because I have a past with them. I loved the thrill of being part of the team, and I love movies and stories about them. I decided to add some thrill to my writing and write a story about one. This one is also going to be a series!

I also write children's fiction. This one is also a series, and it is going to be a really fun series! I am having fun with this one, and I hope that the staff here at Vocal and our creators love it too!

The above links show that I write a lot of fiction.

However, look close and you'll see that I write many different types of fiction.

At least two of the articles I have shared here are true life.

I have many other true experiences and serious topics in my profile. Two of which I will share below:

These two articles were written to express my feelings about issues that I have deeper feelings about. They are true-life experiences and are written from the heart.

In my profile, you'll find many different stories; even some around mental health which is also a topic that is close to my heart.

I find sticking with one niche is restrictive.

It limits our creativity because it keeps us captive to those subjects we know we can write about, and it doesn't allow us to explore away from our comfort zone.

Writing is meant to free your mind. It is an explorative journey that unlocks your prison gates. We were not meant to be 'creatively restrictive.

We were meant to be creatively free.

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About the Creator

Carol Townend

Fiction, Horror, Sex, Love, Mental Health, Children's fiction and more. You'll find many stories in my profile. I don't believe in sticking with one Niche! I write, but I also read a lot too.

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Comments (8)

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  • Chau Trieu2 years ago

    "I find sticking with one niche is restrictive." Absolutely! This is why I don't niche down either. I have so much to say about so many things and I'd like to keep my creative space wide.

  • Gina C.2 years ago

    Great piece; thank you so much for sharing! I agree with all your points. It's so important to challenge yourself and feed your creativity by exploring with different niches. :)

  • Kendall Defoe 2 years ago

    This is me... And maybe I should write about sex and my favourite bands (The Clash getting it on?) ;)

  • Carol, it’s perfect timing reading your inspirational points. Thank you!!!! I’ve been tempted to box myself into a niche but my instinctive nature is to honor what my many muses stir up and care to share with the world. I surrender with grace to what arises. I love that as writers we don’t prescribe the ideas and spigots, but get to be portal through which they flow as they choose. Why would we discriminate? Let it all out.

  • Novel Allen2 years ago

    Hearted and agreed. Variety is the spice of life.

  • D-Donohoe2 years ago

    Great article Carol. I’m the same, write so many different genres. Sadly some of the one’s I’m most happy with don’t get as many reads but it’s about writing what I’m happy with as much as what my audience is.

  • Luna Quill2 years ago

    Can't stick to a niche to save my life

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