I know this video relates more to youtube. But this is the kind of attitude a writer really should have. It helped me and I hope it helps some of you guys out there too.

"One person took time out of their life that they will never get back, to spend it with me on something I made for both of us."

Someone give this man a medal.

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Insightful.

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Always something to remember,

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Yeah...He is so right.

I mean, I know that not all of my fics (all 16 of them) are going to be as big as the other. I know that not all of them are going to be major hits or going to be as awesome as my runaway hit, "Still needed". But you know what? That doesn't matter to me.

I wouldn't trade in all of those faves for nothing. I have 13 faves for Supernatural Pony Tales and I love all of them equally. Each of them are special and unique to me, and I love them. I also love how my views show that someone, out there, decided to pay attention at least once to me.

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This is awesome

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I feel better about life

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now that is something every author needs to know, it is important. this is so true.

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I've found that number of views and likes don't drive my inspiration anymore than anything else (which was, originally, how I thought it would work). Take Hearts Heal Slowly, for example. It was one of my most rapidly-liked stories since I began on this site. Literally, the prologue had nothing but a WALL of likes (and a few dislikes going in), and I sure got excited about it at first.

At first.

Once the initial thrill wore off, however, I found myself no more prepared for the next chapter than I'd begun. I always had an idea for where I was going with it, but no real idea for how to get there, and no number of views or likes or dislikes could dig me out from underneath that pile.

To those who really want nothing more than views, watches and likes, take a bit of advice that Rated Ponystar gave me: "Write what people want to read."

To me, however, that's an empty writing experience. If you're writing only for someone else's pleasure, then what are you really writing for?

This is why I stopped caring about the number of views and/or likes I had on my stories. With The Sunshine Chronicles, I had begun it to please the readers of the AppleDash forum. But no matter how much the statistics improved on the story, no matter how many people seemed to enjoy it, it felt like a hollow victory. I wasn't writing it for myself, and for that reason, I scrapped most of it and started anew, only with the mindset of I wanted to make it my story and no one else's. Now I'm much happier with where it is, and it may not be a once-a-day-update schedule like it used to be, but the quality's improved, the flow is better, and people generally seem happier with it as a whole.

Point is, write for yourself because it's what you want to write, and that's how you'll produce your best work that garners you all those reviews and likes, etc. that writers live off of. Somewhere along the line, I think a lot of people missed out on that. Ever wonder how so many random-seeming stories make it into the Featured Box?

Happy writing!
-TUC

1974534 I'm not unhappy with this. Sure. But I'm honestly sick and tired of how stupid the audience is that all the fics that I've written. I feel like I'm being mocked to the face when my 3 greatest fics have the least views. Quite honestly I personaly am happy with how the fics are, but honestly? There's playing the blame game, and there's the mature thought that if X has more views than Y there's something that attracts more views to X than Y. And I really gotta know what that is... It's not like it's happened once or twice. It's something that's happened a lot of times. The first time you call it coincidence, the second luck, but the third time? Either the sail's broken or we're not sailing straight... that's what my mind says.

1974534 It's an easy thing to say and feel when you're already successful.
It becomes essentially meaningless, when it's released by this dude, who by his own admission "has made it".

Yep

1974534 Okay, now you've made me feel so much better. I guess now I'll stop worrying about views and stuff for a change as much as I used to and just write because it's fun.

5195033 Good for you m8.

5196386 Ee-Yup, as Big mac would say. And if I happen to get people liking along the way, well that's just a bonus isn't it?

1974534 Mike Falzone is great. I found him a few years ago and watch his stuff whenever I'm feeling low.

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Late to the party, but thanks for posting this! This solidified what I had decided for myself a while ago when I wondered how some stories could go for hundreds of thousands words with only a few dozen likes. Really nice video.