I like your essays. I feel the same way about my personal essays, for which my aspirational standard is, "something needs to have changed by the end." That's my guiderail. I don't always achieve that. But, the word "ridiculous" is a judgmental label... I think writing like mine, and maybe yours?, can be evaluated not as "ridiculous" or "serious" but as "either it gets more readers, or it doesn't get very many." When it's the latter, we can try to change something for the next piece if we want to, and see if anything changes. To me, getting very few readers or getting more readers are both okay, and ridiculous or serious doesn't figure into it (ideally!).
Thank you! It is lovely to hear that you like these essays. Judgemental labels have their place when it comes to writing, I think, so it’s fascinating to decide what one thinks matters at the end of the day; what one is willing to judge by. The readership is one way, but I’d actually reject it as the main standard… nice things to think about!
Thank you for sharing these thoughts! I can very much relate. On the one hand, I know I can’t appeal to everybody so my criteria has to be: Is my writing something I would want to read? But what if nobody else finds it the least bit interesting or valuable? If only I had a focus group, or at least an editor, maybe I wouldn’t need to agonize over it before I publish each time!
It's not easy! The thing that's helped me most as a guideline while writing is to think of some people I know, whose well-being I care about, and think: would I be happy if they encountered this (written by someone else, I mean)? Would I think that it added anything for them? It's led me away from false starts any number of times, usually not so much with content as with tone. This stuff is tough!
That is great advice — thank you! I’ll remember that next time. It definitely is tough. This all takes courage but also self-awareness and the willingness to try to see through the eyes of others.
Maria - Montaigne is a good guidepost, since he seems to reject all guideposts beyond interesting himself in his own thinking. Of course, it is not necessary to pull up a Latin quote from a capacious memory every dozen words or so as he does, and that is not his appeal. He also has some obstinate, and thoroughly backward opinions that can rankle the reader. But the impression of a gracious, humorous interlocutor persists.
You give an impression of graciousness in your essays that is easy on the mind. I can’t imagine not being interested, as long as you are. Signed by a new subscriber happy to have found you.
I like your essays. I feel the same way about my personal essays, for which my aspirational standard is, "something needs to have changed by the end." That's my guiderail. I don't always achieve that. But, the word "ridiculous" is a judgmental label... I think writing like mine, and maybe yours?, can be evaluated not as "ridiculous" or "serious" but as "either it gets more readers, or it doesn't get very many." When it's the latter, we can try to change something for the next piece if we want to, and see if anything changes. To me, getting very few readers or getting more readers are both okay, and ridiculous or serious doesn't figure into it (ideally!).
Thank you! It is lovely to hear that you like these essays. Judgemental labels have their place when it comes to writing, I think, so it’s fascinating to decide what one thinks matters at the end of the day; what one is willing to judge by. The readership is one way, but I’d actually reject it as the main standard… nice things to think about!
Thanks for sharing!! This feels like a very poetic representation of what I tried to shine light on in my version. Absolutely love it 😍
I'm glad!
This stuff is really hard. I felt as though Tove Jansson took every anxiety I had about writing and laid it bare..l
Thank you for sharing these thoughts! I can very much relate. On the one hand, I know I can’t appeal to everybody so my criteria has to be: Is my writing something I would want to read? But what if nobody else finds it the least bit interesting or valuable? If only I had a focus group, or at least an editor, maybe I wouldn’t need to agonize over it before I publish each time!
It's not easy! The thing that's helped me most as a guideline while writing is to think of some people I know, whose well-being I care about, and think: would I be happy if they encountered this (written by someone else, I mean)? Would I think that it added anything for them? It's led me away from false starts any number of times, usually not so much with content as with tone. This stuff is tough!
That is great advice — thank you! I’ll remember that next time. It definitely is tough. This all takes courage but also self-awareness and the willingness to try to see through the eyes of others.
Yes!
Maria - Montaigne is a good guidepost, since he seems to reject all guideposts beyond interesting himself in his own thinking. Of course, it is not necessary to pull up a Latin quote from a capacious memory every dozen words or so as he does, and that is not his appeal. He also has some obstinate, and thoroughly backward opinions that can rankle the reader. But the impression of a gracious, humorous interlocutor persists.
You give an impression of graciousness in your essays that is easy on the mind. I can’t imagine not being interested, as long as you are. Signed by a new subscriber happy to have found you.
Wow, thank you so much!