Write for Fun, Not just for Cash

When I first became a writer I would wake up and think to myself what will I write about today? While I am thinking this, a million different thoughts come to my mind, and before I know it, I am working on more articles than I can finish in a week. I find I don't always get them finished because I am always thinking it has to as perfect or it won't earn. This kind of thinking can sometimes mean that I forget the outside world, and end up sat at my desk for days on end, forgetting to care about myself or other things that I have to do. It also ruined the pleasure I got from writing which turned my writing life into a chore rather than fun.

I would wake up early in the morning and be writing all day to midnight, then I would stress out over readers not thinking it was good enough, and my inability to earn. As a writer, of course, there are certain things to think about when writing such as does it make sense? Will your audience read it? Is it long enough and structured properly? However, if you are writing just to think about earning, you are going to find yourself focusing too much on what you are writing rather than simply enjoying what you are doing. Focusing on enjoying your writing leads to creativity, as it allows your thoughts to flow and just come out on paper. Don't be afraid to make mistakes, as these can be corrected once you read your piece, and I can't stress enough about the importance of proofreading and editing at the end of your article. There may be some of you who prefer to do this as you write, but it can be a laborious task which in return can take the fun out of actually writing. There are cases where word count is important, as I found out after I submitted a poem and ended up redoing it because I forgot to do a word count! However, I prefer to leave this to the end of my work, because I get a more accurate count and it doesn't destroy my fun.

As I said earlier, writing is supposed to be pleasurable. It is ok to make notes on certain important facts to add to your article, but don't turn this into a 'task of labor' by making too many, because you will get bored fast or find yourself making more notes than actually writing. This happened to me when I was studying for my Basic Certificate in Humanities with the Open University. Of course, I had to research, study and make notes for an assignment, but I ended up making notes constantly, and then ended up asking for extension after extension for my assignments. This made my work harder and I nearly gave up. Instead of giving up, I slowed down and only took notes relevant to the assignment, in return, I am pleased to say I gained my certificate and passed the whole course; I now use this routine for my other courses, and so far I've passed at least three of them this year already.

Writers of stories, in particular, worry their story won't sell or be good enough. I am currently writing a book, and I have been here myself! The problem with any writing is, if you worry about what you will or won't make all the time, you'll never get your book on sale! and that would be a shame, especially if yours is a story your readers might love. The only problem here is, you are not going to know that unless you get to the publishing stage, which is another reason to just let your thoughts flow without thinking too much. Remember there are authors out there who may have started off thinking they were going to do badly when they first put their book on sale, and some of these authors have done surprisingly well.

The same can be said for here on vocal. I have spoken with some people who think their writing is bad because it doesn't earn much, or get many reads. However, I have only ever hit over a thousand reads on one article yet and I've been here a few years! The point is, it's not just about earning, it is also about enjoying the art of writing and believe me when I say, I've read the stories of some of these people who worry about what they are earning, and in truthfulness, some are really good stories.

One last note, write without fear. I have mentioned this in a previous article, but my fear stopped me from seeing how creative I could be. I overcame this by writing a couple of stories in 'filthy' that took me away from my usual niche of writing and into another world. Even I had no idea I could write like that until I tried it!

If you write an article today, try my advice. Forget the cash just for one day and write for pleasure. Writing is supposed to be an activity we can enjoy, so throw your worries in the bin, and happy creating!

I love writing for pleasure, and I really enjoy it. I do like the occasional tip, but your hearts mean the world to me.

You may also like to read:

https://vocal.media/motivation/being-me-and-being-a-writer

https://vocal.media/motivation/not-everyone-will-like-your-stories-but-you-should-write-them-anyway

https://vocal.media/filthy/romancing-the-wild

https://vocal.media/psyche/reading-for-mental-health