Today I’m thinking about the distance between you and your readers. The audience that you hope your writing reaches. Those who will receive what you create with open arms, and whose lives it will change in some small, but important, way.
This week my family and I took a little trip to Long Island and stayed in an adorable A-frame on the water:
Right outside our window was a dock with a light, and across the water was the other shore of the bay, with lights of their own beckoning. Here is the view at sunset:
Of course, the house had a copy of The Great Gatsby in it:
It’s been awhile since I last read this book, but my memory is that Jay Gatsby lived on one side of a bay, and the woman he pined for — Daisy — lived on the other. A green light on the end of her dock beckoned him. In the end, so much of Gatsby’s life was spent seeking a love and acceptance he desperately desired, yet could never seem to reach.
This had me considering the distance between what we each write and our ability to reach our readers. How the intention of our writing (why we write) meets the fulfillment of that potential (when someone becomes aware of it, and embraces it.) I’ve often said that creative work is complete when it reaches someone. In that magical moment, it is the blend of the intention of the writer, and the life experience and perspective that the reader brings.
I’ve spent decades helping writers reach their readers, and the full-time work I’ve done for 14 years is exactly this. This week is actually the anniversary of my little company, WeGrowMedia, and the moment I took a risk to work directly with writers and forge a new path, instead of seeking the safety in corporate employment.
I spend every day talking with writers. I hear about their goals, their frustrations, their dreams, and their realities. And we discuss the distance between them and their readers.
Staring across the bay on Long Island, it’s interesting to consider how a writer might feel: “Am I Gatsby or Daisy? Am I someone drawing people to my writing, or am I seeking readers who always feel somewhat distant, just out of reach?”
I often hear people talk about how much more challenging it is to reach readers today than it used to be. If I’m honest, I tend to hold the opposite view. I marvel at the idea that you can be a writer living somewhere that may feel distant from your creative dreams — perhaps those around you don’t support your writing, and you don’t have an obvious creative community local to you. And yet, you can:
- Write! The tools of writing have never been more accessible. I keep a collection of typewriters in my studio to remind me that in the past you would have to be able to afford these big clunky machines, maintain them, and have a place for them that was safe for you to write. Today, you can write nearly anywhere on a wide range of tools. I know an author who is incredibly prolific, and does quite a bit of writing on his phone. Or another who has told me about writing their novels while waiting in the car line at their kid’s school.
- Publish! I work with writers who publish in a myriad of ways, from the traditional path of signing with a literary agent and then an established publishing house, to hybrid publishing, indie publishing, and everything in-between. And even this very post sent via Substack is me publishing. I spent years printing and distributing my own zine in the 1990s. It was very expensive, labor intensive, and reached a tiny audience. Today the options are so much more accessible and powerful.
- Share! There are a myriad of ways to share your work in a manner that may actually reach someone. Most social networks are free to use, the internet celebrates good writing, and the offline world of bookstores, cafes, book clubs, and events is still thriving.
- Connect! Is there someone you admire, or an influencer you hope to reach? Today, you have more avenues to reach them than ever before via email, a direct message, social media, or other means. So many people write and create, but feel they don’t have access to others. Yet, that access is possible if you are willing to take a very reasonable social risk of sending an email. Not sure where to begin? Simply send a gratitude email to someone you admire.
- Engage! There are so many more ways to engage with like-minded people today around your writing. Engaging with like-minded writers, readers, and those who support work like yours is an amazing way to not only feel validation and community, but to live a life filled with conversations and experiences around the themes you love exploring in your writing.
I would love to know in the comments: do you feel there is a distance between you and your readers? What is one thing that has worked for you in the past to reach a single person with your writing or creative work?
And a final reminder to join me for Clarity Cards, which begins Monday. Become a paid subscriber to be a part of this:
Thank you for being here with me.
-Dan