I Would Rather Be a Reader, But . . .
I would rather be a reader, but you can’t earn money from reading. Well, that’s not exactly true. There are “Readers,” people who earn money (salary) in Hollywood by reading scripts and passing them on (along with notes) to Hollywood executives who actually decide whether or not to purchase the scripts in question. There are also “Readers” who get paid to read stories on the “slush pile” (you know, those who aren’t written and submitted by “named” writers like Stephen King or George R.R. Martin–in other words, everyone else). Depending on the magazine, journal, or digital platform they may earn a salary, commission are paid by story (rarely), or may even volunteer their time.
However, the closest one can really come to getting paid for being a “Reader” is what I’m trying to do now which is earn a PhD and teach. Even that isn’t truly reading because, although you read and integrate the knowledge, you must then synthesize it and be able to successfully articulate what you’ve read (learned) back to the students in your class. Traditional lecture no longer works (if it ever did) and so not only must you find a way to articulate it back, you now have to find ever-more creative ways of getting that information back to the students (acting as a translator of sorts between the text and the students). Yet, it is only one of the truly acceptable ways in which one can make a living in which the majority of one’s “work” involves reading.
And So I Write . . .
I write because no one, at the moment, is writing what I want to read. Well, again, that’s not entirely true. There are still a couple (in this case three to five) authors that still write in the modes that I like to read. Most of the authors of the “older” generation have died or while they are still writing, their books are no longer considered relevant: David Eddings, Anne McCaffrey, and Robert Jordan are three that fall into the deceased categories. Each author’s books were bestsellers and were “big deals” when they were released. Now, however, they are considered “also rans.” The new generation writes in modes that simply don’t interest me as a reader. There’s nothing particularly impressive about George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire (especially when you know that it takes its ultimate inspiration from The War of the Roses. Hey, other fantasy authors out there: There’s also the 100 Years War, the 30 Years War, The War of 1812, the two World Wars (obviously), the Norman invasion of 1066, and Napoleanoic wars, and that’s just off the top of my head without any research. There you go, pick one of those, add in quite a bit of sex and a lot of head chopping (among other things), create unlikable characters screwing each other over (among “other” things) and you should be all set with your own (modern) fantasy opus.
The things that I write are simply the things that I like to read. I can’t put it any more plainly and simply than that. I like reading about interesting characters who struggle and overcome. They don’t have to be “heroes” per se, but they do have to actually try to overcome their problems rather than wallowing in them and making themselves and everyone else in the story miserable because of it.
For me, writing is something that I do because I can’t find authors (with the exception of a few select ones) who write fiction–fantasy or science fiction that actually matter. The new generation seems to find things like “dream-boat vampires” or anti-heroes that would spit on you just for daring to look at them as the epitome of characters, while sneering down their noses at characters who actually aspire to values (and stands up for the values even though it costs them to do so).
For me, authors like Brandon Sanderson, Elizabeth Moon, and Tad Williams are ones who write characters that I still enjoy reading about and hope to one day emulate. And I won’t lie, emulating their success would be nice as well. Other authors that I still read, although I haven’t read recently include: Kenneth Oppel and of course, Diane Duane, whose original “wizardly kids/teenagers” books never enjoyed the amazing world wide phenomenon that another “wizarding” series did years later.
I write, not be successful (although, I won’t lie, that is an important sub-goal). Mainly, I write because I can’t find anything to read, or rather, I can’t find anything worthy of reading anymore because everyone else’s definition of “what’s good” has changed.
So now I write to (ultimately) so that I have something good to read as well.
Sidney
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Read Skin Deep for Free at Aurora WolfRead Childe Roland for Free at Electric Spec
Purchase HawkeMoon on Amazon.com (Paperback) or eBookPurchase Dragonhawk on Amazon.com (Paperback) or KindlePurchase WarLight on Amazon.com (Paperback) or KindlePurchase Ship of Shadows on Amazon.com (Paperback) or KindlePurchase Faerie Knight on Amazon.com (Paperback) or Kindle
The Independent (Sci-Fi Short-Story)–
3rd Draft of 3 Drafts
Drafting Section 2 (of 3)
Mythic Mag. Deadline = January 31, 2020I, Mage (Fantasy Short Story)
Pre-Production Phase (Planning)
Pre-Writing on Rough Draft & Character Sketch
Mythic Mag. Deadline = July 31, 2020Current Longer Work-in-Progress: Ship of Shadows Graphic Novel
(Sci-Fi) Issue # 2, Currently on Script Page 32
Personal Deadline = December 30, 2019
