Embracing a Reader Abundance Mentality
A shift from competition in writing to supporting other writers
Have you ever fallen into the trap of viewing other writers as competition?
Many writers find themselves in the mindset of their fellow authors are somehow their adversaries and are stealing their readership. However, this idea is not only strange but totally wrong.
The adversarial mentality
This idea is a philosophy that many of us can relate to. The feeling that we must outdo our peers to succeed in a competitive world can be self-defeating. This often leads to an unhealthy sense of pressure and comparison.
We all know the expression Keeping up with the Jones’
This is where we are measuring our worth against others, obsessing over metrics like follower counts, frequency of publication, and even how much per month others are making in comparison to ourselves.
This mindset not only breeds stress and anxiety, but also can create a hostile culture of isolation and distrust among writers.
Roots of the competition trap
So why do so many of us fall into the competition trap? Many times, it’s fueled by a scarcity mentality. This is the fear that there’s not enough to go around, so we must fight for our share.
But if we sit back and think about it. This is stupid! Readers aren’t only going to read one blog post and decide that’s it, I am never going to read another writer’s posts ever again!
Even posts on exactly the same subject! I am a reader as many of you are and I don’t just read one post or book on a subject. I read many blogs and books from different writers. This is because writers are not all the same. They have their own ideas, opinions, and life experiences to add to the subject.
Unlimited customers
Buying a book or reading a blog is not like buying a car.
According to Google, the blogging platform Substack has 20 million monthly subscribers.
Medium has 100 million active users per month.
Finally, WordPress gets on average 400 million readers per day viewing blog posts created through their site. Yes, I said per day!
So you see readers are not limited. And some of those readers are going to read not just my post on Reader Abundance but your post, too!
Content clash
What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. -Ecclesiastes 1:9
Why this quote? I am not a religious person at all! However, this Bible quote really hits for a writer. There is nothing that you are writing that hasn’t been written before!
Yes, the product or service might be new and you might be the first person ever to review it, but you are only writing a product review. Switch the product name with something else and it’s exactly the same!
However, you are putting your thoughts and ideas into the writing, and this makes it unique. But if you think you are writing something that has never been written, then you are sadly mistaken!
This is something many writers get angry about. I wrote that blog post months ago! You copied my idea! I called my character Europa after my niece so you copied me! No, they didn’t.
Zero-sum game
People often view writing as a competitive field. In reality, it’s far from a zero-sum game. Success in writing doesn’t diminish opportunities for other writers. It often opens doors for further works of a similar nature.
I remember when Fifty Shades of Grey was popular and erotica absolutely took off on Amazon. Suddenly these sexy or even smutty stories were in demand and a lot of writers made good money writing short naughty books. And why? Because readers don’t only read one book!
Boomer thinking
When writers could only get their work in print through traditional publishers, magazines, and newspapers, there was a lot of competition between them. They were competing for word space in a magazine or newspaper or to be on the client list for the publishing houses.
The digital age has changed all of this by giving access to huge audiences. Writers have unprecedented opportunities to connect and share and indeed sell their work globally. We don’t have to submit to magazines only for the editor to reject it because “They don’t like that kind of story”
A call to collaboration
Whatever the reason for this thought process, it’s time to embrace a new way of thinking. One in collaboration and support rather than competition and envy. Other writers and bloggers aren’t threats, they are opportunities for growth and learning. Each of them brings a unique voice and perspective to the writing world, and there’s much we can learn from one another.
Thanks for reading!
As usual give some Claps, a Follow, and if you want a Comment!
Paul
