Real Words

“Authors who never give you something to disagree with never give you anything to think about.” -Michael LaRocca

I don’t particularly like confrontation. I don’t enjoy it when something that I write causes someone to get all upset and send me nasty messages or leave me unsettling comments. Frankly, I think that my opinion is just that - one opinion - and while I don’t expect everyone to agree with me, I kind of assume that we all know that everyone is entitled to their opinions. So it irks me, bothers me, frustrates me when someone gets upset by something I wrote.

But I write it anyway.

That’s the thing about being a writer - and especially one on the web where people can fire off responses to you without even a second thought - you can’t censor yourself if you want what you write to really reflect what you believe. I think it’s important that we all remember that for every person that disagrees with us, someone else will agree. For those who disagree, there is the potential we will change their minds or help them see another viewpoint. For those who agree, our articulation may serve to inspire them.

You can’t make everyone happy all of the time. And you shouldn’t have to. Put your thoughts and opinions out there for others to read. Don’t take yourself too seriously; your opinion is just one of many. But don’t shortchange yourself either. What you want to write should be said.

This quote was found on a terrific site that has a whole lot of quotes about writing. This post is part of the daily Inspired! column in which I share the many things that inspire me as a writer.

Question of the Day: Have you ever failed to write something because you were afraid of the response?

[Tags] writing, censorship, readers, fans, creativity, inspiration [/Tags]