I have found more and more a particular type of writer. They are not seeking the limelight, but they do want a certain fame. It's like they want to be completely separate from their stories. They want to affect people, but don't want any responsibility for it.
Talking with them, I notice that they live their life in a similar way. They are transient in nature. They don't have many friends, but they have so many people who come into and out of their lives. These writers want to show up, change people's lives, and leave when the change is complete.
Although none of them ever said it explicitly, they all sort of said the same thing: I want to be a story. By showing up, redirecting people's thoughts (if not their very lives), and disappearing, they end up becoming a kind of legend. Those affected people will tell their future friends about "this awesome guy who totally changed my life." And then the writers become raised above the level of regular people.
I find this mentality an interesting one. So often, I think of writers as trying to become famous, trying to get their own and make it big. But to know that there are people who want to change people's lives without seeking any kind of reward for it seems pleasant to me. In my opinion, that's what writing is all about.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Being raised above the level of ordinary people, becoming a legend; that is the reward that these writers seek.
ReplyDeleteThis is true, Robyn. What I find so intriguing about it is that, in order to do so, you have to give up the standard human life. Sacrificing the deep friendships and other relationships we have in order to become this ethereal being of legend - I can't help but wonder if it is a worthwhile trade.
ReplyDelete