>>The fastest way to drive away an audience is to make them feel like hostages to an artist's ego.<<
That's true.
>>Our readers aren't here to validate us; we're here to give them something.<<
I think there needs to be a balance. Most creative people don't enjoy it if their audience just mooches and never gives anything back -- although "give back" can be anything from linky love to comments to cash to whatever else people think up. And online, many audience members enjoy having some kind of interaction with the creative folks they admire.
>>That's got to be enough. Because for 99% of the time we're working, that's all the satisfaction we'll get.<<
There are different aspects to bear in mind. Some people write because they have to, whether or not they get anything else. Some people write and want to make at least some money from it. Some people write because they want attention; they may not care about cash, but feedback sends them into squeeing gales of glee. Some people write for the sheer fun of it, and just enjoy sharing it with friends, whether or not anything else is forthcoming.
It's important for each person to know why they write, and why they choose the subjects and genres they do, and what their goals are. If you don't know those things, you can frustrate the heck out of yourself and everyone around you. But those aren't necessarily the same things for everyone; what fuels one person's engine may be unusable or insufficient for another.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
zvi![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
Re: Hmm...
Date: 2009-11-18 05:04 am (UTC)That's true.
>>Our readers aren't here to validate us; we're here to give them something.<<
I think there needs to be a balance. Most creative people don't enjoy it if their audience just mooches and never gives anything back -- although "give back" can be anything from linky love to comments to cash to whatever else people think up. And online, many audience members enjoy having some kind of interaction with the creative folks they admire.
>>That's got to be enough. Because for 99% of the time we're working, that's all the satisfaction we'll get.<<
There are different aspects to bear in mind. Some people write because they have to, whether or not they get anything else. Some people write and want to make at least some money from it. Some people write because they want attention; they may not care about cash, but feedback sends them into squeeing gales of glee. Some people write for the sheer fun of it, and just enjoy sharing it with friends, whether or not anything else is forthcoming.
It's important for each person to know why they write, and why they choose the subjects and genres they do, and what their goals are. If you don't know those things, you can frustrate the heck out of yourself and everyone around you. But those aren't necessarily the same things for everyone; what fuels one person's engine may be unusable or insufficient for another.