Who are you writing for?

'Who are you writing for?' is not always the first question that people ask when you tell them you're a writer. Often, we'll be asked, 'what are you writing?' Or, 'how did you come up with that?' When writing about an interesting topic it is often easy just to talk about the plot, characters and world rather than the writer behind all these things - and the existential reasons for us taking on these often Sisyphean tasks.

Even if it might not be the burning question on your friends' and family's lips, 'who are you writing for?' may be one of the most important questions we need to answer for ourselves: both if we want to start writing and if we ever want to finish what we started.

Who should you be writing for?

Now, I think I've said this in an article before, but in writing there are no rules: no 'shoulds'. I would go as far to say that in life there are no 'shoulds' - but we can talk about that later.

While I won't tell you what you should do , I am going to let you in on a few ideas that might help you discover who you could be writing for - and maybe a bit of how the idea of 'should' might just kill your writing drive.

(Is anyone else out there thinking that 'should' doesn't look like a real word at this stage?)

We can hear the thoughts of ancient monks and people who we may never have the chance to meet.

Writing has to be for others

Writing has always been our greatest way of documenting things: small ideas can spread worldwide. We can hear the thoughts of ancient monks and people who we may never have the chance to meet. Writing has always been a way to record and share things - so surely we would be writing for other people, right?

Well, maybe. Kind of? But... not really.

Of course, there are texts out there that have been written to be read - many, in fact. This article you're reading right now has been written to be read, in a way. I will click share once I'm finished and maybe you'll get notified. Or you'll see me post in on my public Instagram - surely I could only be writing it for the general public, if I go out of my way to share it?

Well, that is true, in a sense, but I don't think I'd ever be writing this if it was only for you. No offence.

In all honesty, these articles are not read by many people. I love to write but I don't really like to advertise and I'm not great at it. I don't really mind if lots of people read it or no-one reads it at all. If I did mind about how many people read anything I wrote, I don't think I'd write much!

So why am I writing this? Who am I writing for?

Writing for yourself

Here is that phrase. I think you knew this was coming, didn't you?

We have to do it for ourselves!

You might have heard this phrase thrown about in regards to many activities. In most creative sectors, you will see people 'doing it for themselves'. Working out, cooking, looking after yourself, starting a business... but what does it mean to 'do something for yourself'?

Writing for yourself goes further than indulging in your own word-wizardry. In fact, learning to hit delete and admit that some of our more self-indulgently, unnecessarily complex writing is not actually great is a big part of the learning curve of writing.

For me, writing for yourself means many things. It means being in the moment. Enjoying the writing as you do it. Seeing your writing improve with each article, story or journal entry. Exploring topics you're interested in. Finding time to sort your thoughts out on paper. Working out ideas that have been jumbled in your head in order to make them into a coherent spiel.

Writing for yourself is the first step, I believe, to thinking of yourself as a writer. Once you stop dreaming of that large audience who will read and revere your words you'll actually be able to get them out onto the paper.

You might also start to answer the question of why you write here - and it will often be because you need to in some way. You need to write to stay sane, to figure out the world, or to explore ideas that you find interesting and entertaining.

Writing for fun

You might think this is a cop-out. Fun isn't a person! Fun can't be a 'who'! But this leads on well from my last point. Writing for yourself should mean you're having fun. Writing shouldn't feel like a chore. Maybe you have to remind yourself to do it sometimes but once you sit down, you're in a great place! There's nothing like the rush of adrenaline when your character does something completely unexpected but something that is so them. It's like watching the best movie, reading the best book, being in the world you created. The closest we can get to magic. So writing should be fun.

And if you're thinking, 'oh no, I don't always feel that!' or 'I haven't ever felt that writing' well, you're not failing. This is just some experiences of the joy of writing.

Maybe you feel a certain calmness. Maybe you get that little buzz in your head from creating. Whatever good feelings are coming - keep them coming by doing more writing!

If you don't find writing fun at all, that's okay too! This might be the point when your feelings that you 'should' write are overpowering what you want to do. Listen to yourself. Maybe you're forcing yourself to write something you don't actually want to write. Or maybe you're too tired to write and you should rest. This is all okay - your happiness should come first. Writing should be fun - if it's not, then take a break!

(You can take that piece of advice into every part of your life too - life is far too short to be forcing yourself to do something you're not enjoying because of some idea of 'should'.)

Writing for the big picture

Sometimes we do have ideas we think are important for other people to read. This is great too. If you're interested then chances are someone else will be.

Writing for yourself still comes first and foremost, but believing that your idea might help someone out there is also important. Perhaps you hope your writing could help someone else who has struggled with the things you're sharing. Maybe you feel some part of history has been overlooked and more people should have the option of learning about it. Maybe you have an idea for the future that could inspire scientists in some way - and this has been done by the way. Many scientific discoveries were discussed in sci-fi literature long before they were explored in the lab.

Writing for many people and many reasons

Writing, and finishing things, takes a big mix of all the 'who's and why's' above. To write at all you must do it for yourself and enjoy it. It must be fun. To tackle a big project, or to put yourself out there, having some belief that someone could enjoy your writing, or gain something from it helps.

Overall, who you write for is a fluid thing. There are many layers. Getting the foundation of being happy just 'writing' with no reader is an integral part of writing. Then, you can have fun with the idea of who you're writing for. When we don't imagine outside (or inner) critics it's far easier to enjoy writing.

I certainly wouldn't be writing this if I was constantly imagining who I was writing for - but it really is a lovely thought that you're reading it, too. So thank you.

I feel like I got very personal with the second person today, so this is a very personal thank you note at the bottom - it really does mean a lot to me that you've taken the time to read my work! As always, let me know if you have any ideas you'd like me to write about. Please let me know what you think of this article too and if you think I've missed anything!

Sarah x