Write What You Want
Stop giving in to the pressure to “find your voice”
My Medium feed is absolutely saturated with articles about writing. This seems to be the sure-fire way to get read around here: talk about the thing that makes you money, and people flock to it hoping to learn the shortcut to fame and fortune.
Much of the content on this subject centers on “finding your voice” or “discovering your niche.” The rap seems to be that unless you hone in on a single type of thing, you’ll be perceived as unfocused, desperate, failing.
Do me a favor, ok? Take that negativity, ball it up, and throw it in the nearest trash can to your current location. Even if you have to walk to find one.
Want to know what I’ve learned about online writing and the path to success? I’ve found that doing this in a way that makes you happy feels a whole lot more rewarding than trying to guess what people want to read.
See, my goal isn’t to be read. My goal isn’t even to hit it big and win whatever the internet’s version of a Pulitzer is. I’ve won gaudy trophies that didn’t put food on my table — they didn’t even get me noticed outside of my immediate family.
My goal is to both learn and inform. I read tons of articles around here because I want to learn from the people writing them. I want to learn from the subject matter, but I also want to learn from their way of writing.
I also write on a number of different subjects because I have a ton of different interests. Sometimes I find an audience with something I write — most of the time I don’t.
I don’t have a niche because, frankly, there isn’t one broad enough or interesting enough to contain me. But don’t get it twisted — I’m not just throwing stuff at the wall to see what sticks. Everything I write, regardless of subject, means something to me. I may look like a scatterbrain, but I’m very intentional with my writing, regardless of subject.
Just write. Write what’s on your mind. Write what’s in your heart. Write about what inspires you, pisses you off, makes you sad, turns you on (or off). Write to say something meaningful, whether it’s a deep topic or a silly one. Write to educate.
If you put in an honest effort and stay true to your inner voice, it will matter to someone. The most important someone, of course, is you.
Frank Vaughn loves to write, loves to read, loves to learn, loves to laugh. Hit him up at frankvaughn@gmail.com.
