Define Bad Writing.

As someone relatively new to Substack (joined June of this year) I feel like I shouldn’t really have an opinion. I was not here when the platform joined the ranks but I’ll be here as long as it stays up. There’s been discourse after discourse lately of posts among posts about ‘who should be able to write’. My heart crumbled reading some of the headlines. I don’t want to jump on the bandwagon and agree or disagree or share my opinion because that’s exactly what it is, my opinion. I share a lot of my personal life on here, yes. But will I be opening up about all of my controversial takes and polarizing views, no. Frankly, I find no reason to and that might be taken the wrong way in itself.

Define bad writing. Define writing that doesn’t fit the standards. Define writing that shouldn’t exist. I can’t and I guarantee every person reading that won’t be able to agree on one thing either. That’s the beauty of it, writing is a universal culture that should exist in all ways, good and bad and evil and gross and joyous, and epiphany-worthy. Writing is one of the only unique spaces left in the world where you get to be yourself and push out almost anything you want to. Will it be loved by everyone? No. Does it really matter? Ask yourself that question. If you enjoy the process and you even halfway like a piece that you’ve spent hours on, why would you let anyone tell you how you’re supposed to feel about it. I’m all for conversations and debates but there comes a time where you need to ignore what you don’t like and enjoy what you do.

One thing brought up over and over again is over-monetization. I have a unique perspective because it is not my aim to make money off of my work at the moment. Until the day I publish a book and want to sell it to the masses (because I’ve fallen in love with it and want people important in my life to read it) I will not be forcing a paywall upon everyone. There’s too many things in this world people optimize to benefit financially. I am not one of them. I’m not saying that people who do are wrong or cruel or anything like that. I’m simply saying this is how I am and how I feel and how I want to build a community. No ulterior motives, no over-glorifying numbers, no pressure, just words on a digital page.

I had someone ask recently if I was on here for followers or if I was on here to write to sublime. I enjoyed this question a little too much because I had so many ways that I wanted to answer. I have spent all of my teens in the digital age, deep in the world of social media where everyone is a number and someone is always selling something to you (whether they’re disclosing it or not). I remember wanting to be famous so badly when I was 12. I started YouTube channels and Instagrams. I used hashtags and wanted to get rich. Now that I’m more authentic and reserved and adult, I’ve realized that there’s so much more that matters to me. I wrote a post all about wanting to be an author and make it big like the people I looked up to. But what I truly wanted all along was for people to take something out of what I wrote. To feel something too familiar or even something they’ve never felt before.

If you’re new to Substack, if you’re just starting out with writing, if you’re beginning your journey no matter what it is and where it leads you to… block out the noise. Remind yourself why you wanted this, what dreams you’ll be accomplishing along the way. How much you’ll grow and evolve. This world is so big yet so small and somehow there’s still a place for us.

Thank you for being here.

07/18/24 - 12:07AM