Six Reasons People Want to Be Published

I’ve been following the comments on super-agent Rachelle Gardner’s Friday post, Why Do People Want to Be Published? and find them quite fascinating. Though the answers are varied, they seem to cluster into categories. After reading through the (now 130+) comments, these six reasons seemed to emerge as to Why People Want to Be Published:

• To fulfill a lifelong dream — Commenter mi tells the story of being inspired in the 7th grade by a published alumni, and wanting to return to her school as inspiration for the students. Mike said, “All I know is that I’ve wanted to be a successful writer since I was eleven.” Keli: “I want to be published to prove to myself I have what it takes to turn a lifelong dream into reality.” And Monique said, “its no[t] about the money or the fame or any thing else it is simply the title and the thought that one day i may actually fufil my biggest dream since i was 13.” Josin wrote, “I’ve known publication was my route since before I could write. It’s just there flashing ‘This Way’ in bright neon.”
• To share their story or vision — Chantal said, “I just can’t imagine doing all this work just for me.”  Katherine wrote, “what I have to share with the world can ultimately only be shared through fiction. And if I don’t get published, it isn’t being shared.”  Leanne, “I have a story that I think people need to hear.” Wendy wrote, “I feel selfish keeping my characters all to myself. I want to share them and their stories.” Elisa simply said, “I want to be published to share my story.”
• To make money or acquire fame — Creepy Query Girl said, “I see publishing and selling my books as the best way for me to make money doing what I love.” Jason stated, “Money. Plain and simple.” LJ King wrote, “Fame is not a goal for me, but I wouldn’t mind a best seller’s paycheck.” Michelle quipped, “man, I just need some money!”  And according to T. Anne, “it would bring me that much closer to scratching off ‘make NYT bestseller list’ off my bucket list.”
• Validation or personal accomplishment — Aimee simply wrote, “To prove I accomplished something” and Freya adds, “it has always been about a personal accomplishment.”  Rondi said, “I would like validation for the time I’ve invested.” And Lance’s three word answer was, “To be validated.” The Alliterative Allomorph wrote, “I suppose I want to be accepted as a writer in my immediate world without people thinking that I’m wasting my time.” Kathryn said, “I do ‘crave’ the audience and the validation. I like looking on my bookshelf and seeing my books.”  Melpomene commented, “For me, it’s having something physical to point to and say ‘I did that.'” And Carol, “Having my work published provides validation that what I’ve done is ‘good.'”
• To inspire and connect with others — Steve stated, “I want an audience more than anything else,” and Katherine said, “That’s why I want to be published–to make a connection.” Stephanie wrote, “Bottom line… as a published author, I can reach more people.” Tiffany said, “Words feel like friends and they touch my heart. My hope is that mine will touch others.”  Andrea: “Publishing, to me, is the chance to have stories which are important to me, become important to someone else.” Nic said, “i want to tell a story to the world and have if not the world but 1 person to be inspired.” Ashley answered, “Mostly I just want to inspire people with my words.”
• To fulfill a higher calling or find personal meaning —  Pam wrote, “I think it’s because people need to know their life has meaning.” Tchann: “I think it comes down to wanting validation. But not for the time spent writing. I think it’s more for my existence.”  Angela said, “…when I look back to my very earliest memories, I recognize that this is my God-given talent from birth… I want to be published so that I can use that gift.” Amanda wrote, “for me, it’s about the ‘don’t neglect your talents’ concept.” And Loree H. said, “God put the writing on my heart for His purposes.”

Yes, there were other answers about sharing the Gospel or entertaining people.  But all the comments seemed to gather in one of those six coves. I suppose what this proves is simply that people write for different reasons. But while some of our motivations clearly overlap (like sharing our stories and inspiring others), others seem incongruous (like making money and finding personal meaning). The person who writes to fulfill some lifelong dream or make the NYT bestseller list seems world away from someone wanting to inspire others or uncover the reason for their existence. But I’m not sure you can charge anyone with egocentricity simply because they want to be a huge hit.

It’s funny, but when I think about why I write, I often think of this quote by Truman Capote: “When God hands you a gift, he also hands you a whip; and the whip is intended for self-flagellation solely.” Yes, I write as a means of growing my gift and to inspire others. But for the most part, writing is a whip I use for self-flagellation.