I can’t tell you how many paragraphs in this article really resonated with me. It made me wish that I could use emojis on individual paragraphs. Then, I got to the part where you quoted me and later where you recommended my Substack. That was shocking and kind.
Substack is such a strange approach to social media. It doesn’t have a feed unless you subscribe to someone. So there’s less opportunity for random people to stumble across our writing. However when you do connect with someone it has more meaning. I have more to say but it’s time to leave for church. Be back in a few hours.
I think there is a barrier to getting people to read fiction online. It almost needs some third party praising it before some people are willing to commit. I don’t know why that it, but I think it’s true. You either have to be doing something outrageous and unexpected, be part of a collective movement where people have to read stories from several sources, or be the subject of a lot of recommendations. I’m sure you’ve heard about how The Martian by Andy Weir started off on his website as something he was writing for himself. Eventually, someone at NASA found it and contacted him to correct some of the science in the story. When he fixed it, the story spread among other people at NASA, and then from there out to other places where people enjoy science based stories, and it snowballed into a book contract, and later a movie. It seems like fiction needs some kind of external validation (albeit on a smaller scale) to cross over that barrier people experience.
Pay attention to your initial reaction next time you stumble across a piece of fiction somewhere online. Do you read it instantly or move on to the next post?
Sometimes, I wonder if including a short blurb before the story might help people ease their way into experiencing fiction. That’s what stores do. It’s also what Rod Serling does at the beginning of the Twilight Zone (if you’re old enough to have seen that TV show). These are the kind of things that keep me awake at night. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the topic.
Elizabeth, I love this type of writing. It’s really rare to find people being so open and honest about their thoughts and struggles. When I do stumble across it, it’s like a breath of fresh air. I only mention that to let you know how much I enjoyed reading about your journey as you wrestled with the question of whether to turn what you do out of love into something you do for money. the article also raised several questions for me because I’m curious... and sometimes, downright nosey.
You say that at one point you were pursuing medicine, then law, then you worked in comms before becoming a reporter, and now you’re a nurse? Is that close to right? What do you do now? Are you still a nurse?
At the very end you mention how you’d love to pay to subscribe to more newsletters, but that there are issues with exchange rates between your country and others. What country do you live in? Is English the national language there? I’m asking because you write English quite proficiently. If it isn’t your first language you certainly write as if it were.
I noticed that many of the 'big names' in self publishing seem to make money from courses and books about how to make money from self publishing, which seems a bit self referential to me. Also, I started to feel guilty about not being as productive or proactive as I might be, but after some time spent bashing myself over the head about it I just thought "to hell with it!" I enjoy what I do and don't feel I need to prove anything to anyone, including myself! Your post really chimed with me
I can’t tell you how many paragraphs in this article really resonated with me. It made me wish that I could use emojis on individual paragraphs. Then, I got to the part where you quoted me and later where you recommended my Substack. That was shocking and kind.
Substack is such a strange approach to social media. It doesn’t have a feed unless you subscribe to someone. So there’s less opportunity for random people to stumble across our writing. However when you do connect with someone it has more meaning. I have more to say but it’s time to leave for church. Be back in a few hours.
I think there is a barrier to getting people to read fiction online. It almost needs some third party praising it before some people are willing to commit. I don’t know why that it, but I think it’s true. You either have to be doing something outrageous and unexpected, be part of a collective movement where people have to read stories from several sources, or be the subject of a lot of recommendations. I’m sure you’ve heard about how The Martian by Andy Weir started off on his website as something he was writing for himself. Eventually, someone at NASA found it and contacted him to correct some of the science in the story. When he fixed it, the story spread among other people at NASA, and then from there out to other places where people enjoy science based stories, and it snowballed into a book contract, and later a movie. It seems like fiction needs some kind of external validation (albeit on a smaller scale) to cross over that barrier people experience.
Pay attention to your initial reaction next time you stumble across a piece of fiction somewhere online. Do you read it instantly or move on to the next post?
Sometimes, I wonder if including a short blurb before the story might help people ease their way into experiencing fiction. That’s what stores do. It’s also what Rod Serling does at the beginning of the Twilight Zone (if you’re old enough to have seen that TV show). These are the kind of things that keep me awake at night. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the topic.
Elizabeth, I love this type of writing. It’s really rare to find people being so open and honest about their thoughts and struggles. When I do stumble across it, it’s like a breath of fresh air. I only mention that to let you know how much I enjoyed reading about your journey as you wrestled with the question of whether to turn what you do out of love into something you do for money. the article also raised several questions for me because I’m curious... and sometimes, downright nosey.
You say that at one point you were pursuing medicine, then law, then you worked in comms before becoming a reporter, and now you’re a nurse? Is that close to right? What do you do now? Are you still a nurse?
At the very end you mention how you’d love to pay to subscribe to more newsletters, but that there are issues with exchange rates between your country and others. What country do you live in? Is English the national language there? I’m asking because you write English quite proficiently. If it isn’t your first language you certainly write as if it were.
I also meant to say, I too start the day reading Substack!
I noticed that many of the 'big names' in self publishing seem to make money from courses and books about how to make money from self publishing, which seems a bit self referential to me. Also, I started to feel guilty about not being as productive or proactive as I might be, but after some time spent bashing myself over the head about it I just thought "to hell with it!" I enjoy what I do and don't feel I need to prove anything to anyone, including myself! Your post really chimed with me
I hear you, loud and clear. I write poetry and fiction, but am very happy to keep doing my day job too. :)