“Writing is a Bad Idea”
I got this note a few days ago from a writer named Kati Reijonen. I have no prior acquaintance with Kati. In a raw and quite brave way, Kati’s letter expresses the “heart of darkness” that all of us as writers and artists carry around in our guts. With Kati’s permission I have reprinted the entire note below. If you like, please respond to Kati in the Comments section. I’d be very interested to hear what we all think. I’ll post the answer I sent to Kati next week.
Dear Pressfield and company,
I am a Finnish writer, just submitted my 3rd manuscript to the publisher.
I have been reading Steves blogs and also books. They are very encouraging and uplifting but I have to say I disagree with Steve.
Writing is not for everybody. It is really hard, lonely and above all, financially disasterous.
I am a great example of things gone wrong,
I left everything to pursue my dreams. I wanted to write and so I did. I got book deals. Great. But the fact of the matter is that writing doesn’t bring you income, particularly if you write in Finnish, only spoken by 5 million people.
So the situation is that at the age of 60, I am broke. I have spent whatever I had saved and owned to support myself while writing and its all gone now. I have no idea what to do next. Writing another book seems like a bad idea.
There are no jobs for a person my age in this country.
I would no recommend anyone to do what I did. I am stressed sick. Only the tough and resilient survive this. Others, like me, fall. And fail.
So here I am – a victim of the creative path so many self help writers recommend walking. I wish I hadn’t.
My Muse has left me. I guess I wasn’t worth hanging around with.
I feel sorry to have written this but what I have written is my truth. Failing is really hard, particularly when you are too tired to get up anymore…
I hope I am the only loser. I really do. I want everybody to succeed. Maybe I am just a sad exception…
Anyway, all the best to you,
Kati
Helsinki
Finland
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I'm sympathetic to the writer's situation, but I am not sure I agree with the sentiment "Writing is not for everybody".I have always believed that everybody on this planet has a story waiting to be told and the power within themselves to churn out at least ONE decent piece of writing - very few, however, have a second or third in them...
I feel like you have to be so passionate about writing that it has to be about more than just a paycheque at the end of the day - many writers do it just because they would simply go mad if they didn't. Even if it doesn't bring in any income, writing is essential for many because it is therapeutic, cathartic, empowering, etc.
Of course it isn't easy, and failure can be disastrous, but I feel like an even worse outcome would be to have not even tried or made any attempt at all whatsoever. The worst thing for a writer to do is to "pre-reject" him/herself. It is necessary for a writer to go through the stages of rejection and criticism in order to grow and prosper.
The fact of the matter here is Kati is not a failure - not by any stretch in my books. The writer has already gotten book deals which is more than many aspiring writers out there will ever achieve.
Unfortunately, many writers nowadays have to sustain themselves with tedious and uninspiring "feeder" jobs in order to survive and maintain their artistic endeavors. Of course, for an artist this is no simple task, and my heart breaks for Kati even more also because at age 60 it could seem almost impossible.
However, I am not willing to give up on Kati just yet, and I feel like Kati's story, or the stories within her, aren't quite finished yet.
Cheers to the blank page...
I write to save myself. I write because it is my true art. I write because I am wired to be a writer, for a long list of reasons. That said, Kati's letter resonates. I shifted my career towards writing in my fifties, and my income has suffered. I have oher resources, so I am not broke or failed, as Kati put it, but we struggle.
It is possible to get the benefits of writing that others speak of in comments here, without giving up on day jobs. Writing is finding Voice, putting words to a life—and all lives have suffering and joy,
and one benefits from writing it down. And re-reading, sharing.
The problem Kati describes is the economics of writing, not writing per se.
"I have been reading Steves blogs and also books. They are very encouraging and uplifting but I have to say I disagree with Steve."This is where she lost logical part of me..
And I agree that writing or any art career is not for everybody. I don't even consider it career. Either you breathe it or you choke on not breathing it. It is not equal to financial success.
Sometimes financial career kills art, just like "creatives" working in many corpos do it every day. I like this little piece of writing though because it's so painful. It drips with emotions. We feel her pain.
I wish I had a magic wand for Kati. My heart breaks for her. I try to encourage everyone I know to chase their dreams, including my 3 children who have all chosen careers in the arts - one actor, one writer, one videographer/movie maker.
I work is business, and I've been very, VERY lucky. That's my secret - luck. And perseverance I suppose, and a good dose of surrounding myself with people smarter than me.
I'd like to think that Kati's situation has nothing to do with the choice to be a writer. I have a nephew who can't find work; he's an electrician. I know entrepreneurs who have chased their dreams and launched companies, and are now broke.
I believe in the words of Howard Thurman: “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”