The writer is only free when he can tell the reader to go jump in the lake. You want, of course, to get what you want to show across to him, but whether he likes it or not is no concern of the writer.
~ Flannery O’Connor
It has been years since I first laid my eyes on this life-changing quote. Flannery O’Connor was a writer and a darn good one in her time.
I was browsing online one-day several years ago, and read this gem. It jumped out at me, resonated within me and changed my life for the better immediately after I read it.
As writers, this is exactly our job. She nailed it. We are to write the story we have in our hearts…do what we are called to do. We are to write it the best we can. After that, it is not our concern. Of course, we want to write a best seller and in order for that to happen, people have to like what we wrote. But, this quote goes even deeper. We will always have people who do NOT like our stories, writing style, genre, etc. It is those people that this quote is referring to, (At least in my opinion it is.)
- Write your story
- Write the best you can
- Have it published
- Do not worry about the naysayers
- Create your own success and keep writing
More from Author Deanna Martinez:
To the lady who handed me her dirty tissue
Easy book writing tips
How to stay accountable to writing