Summary

The author, a Black woman writer, reflects on her journey, critiquing the monotony of white male writers and emphasizing the importance of authenticity and the influence of female writers in setting trends and inspiring deep thought.

Abstract

The author shares her personal experience in the online writing world, initially captivated by the raw honesty of female writers. She describes how the pursuit of writing success led her to focus on the works of white male writers, who dominate the financially successful writing sphere. However, she critiques their content as formulaic and less risk-taking compared to the groundbreaking and thought-provoking articles written by women. Recognizing the value of authenticity and the impact of female writers, especially Black women authors, she decides to strike a balance between creating content for financial sustainability and content that challenges readers and resonates with her own artistic fulfillment. The author advocates for a return to reading and being inspired by female writers, aiming to set trends and provide honest, resonant work for readers, particularly young Black girls.

Opinions

The author initially found artistic satisfaction in diverse, less popular forms of writing before succumbing to the financial pressures of the writing industry.
She criticizes the lack of originality and risk-taking in the content produced by white male writers, who often follow a predictable pattern in their articles.
The author acknowledges her own mistake in undervaluing the work of female writers, whose honesty she previously dismissed as negativity.
She emphasizes the trend-setting nature of women writers and the lasting legacy of Black women authors, who inspire others to be brutally honest in their work.
The author has decided to

White Male Writers Are Pretty Boring

And it’s my fault for feeding into the hype.

I’ve lost my identity.

I thrust myself into the online writing world after reading amazing female writers that gave me everything raw. These women weren’t afraid to be brutally honest in their articles.

They never backed down from challenging their own line of thinking — and the thinking of others. They kept me in check while comforting me without a soapbox in view.

Now — I’m a slave to white male writers.

Let me explain.

I became obsessed with white male writers after I became obsessed with writing success.

Online writing is a cruel world.

If you’re not pushing out content your audience wants to read, you’re donezo. I used to be a lot more artistic with my writing at the beginning of my blogging career. I wrote poems, anime reviews, satire, music reviews, you name it.

Those moments of creating something that obviously wouldn’t get views gave me the most artistic satisfaction.

It empowered me knowing that I can create something most people don’t like, yet it leaves the few people who do like it a great message.

But alas, I had to change my tune.

I needed money, views, and writing jobs (sadly, the starving artist trope is true). So I entered the cesspool of white male writers. They were the ones making the most money. They were the main ones talking about how they achieved their success in every damn article.

I fell so deep into this abyss, that it changed my perception of female writers.

Not only did I stop reading their content — I began taking the much-needed honesty they display in their articles as “being a negative bitch.”

And that’s the dumbest thought ever coming from a Black woman myself.

Women writers set trends while men follow them.

Most of the groundbreaking articles online that cause readers to think are created by women.

Most of the white male writers I’ve read follow this same formula:

Post 3 self-help articles a week
Post 2 articles about entrepreneurship
Post another one about a billionaire’s morning routine
And JUST MAYBE, one raw, unfiltered, opinion piece

There’s nothing groundbreaking.

To me, writers stumble onto a raw article that shakes the table when they write about their unfiltered opinions. Sure, a lot of what they write will be said already, but you have a better chance of striking gold the more you do this.

I don’t see this enough with male bloggers.

Heck, if you want to go back to the EARLY days of writing, Zora Neale Hurston is a perfect example of someone who sets trends. Now you have Black activists using “All skin folk ain’t kinfolk” as their catchphrase. The names of Black women authors like Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou, Lorraine Hansberry, etc, will always stand the test of time.

You also have bloggers nowadays like Rebecca Stevens A., Jessica Wildfire, and Shannon Ashley that are willing to go against the grain and say something everyone’s been thinking, yet are too afraid to say.

Now I’ve figured out the answer to my dilemma.

Should I create content that makes money or should I create content that makes people think?

The latter sounds much better, yet the beginning sounds more sustainable. So I do both.

It’s all about balance.

I don’t want to be remembered as the type of writer who followed trends. I want to set trends. I want to inspire others to be brutally honest in their work, even if it means costing myself a little moola.

I’m writing more content that makes me artistically fulfilled.

I’m reading more female writers that give me that brutal honesty I lost oh so long ago.

I’ve cut down on reading white male writers. Most of their content adds to the white noise (see what I did there?) of the writing world.

I want to create national libraries of work that give little girls (especially Black girls) something they can resonate with.

Final Thought

Never lose yourself on your writing journey.

White male writers aren’t terrible. But their content is definitely more monotone than female writers because they don’t take as many risks. They don’t go deep enough.

My obsession with writing success is what caused me to leave female writers to the wayside.

Now I’m getting them back — and I couldn’t be happier.

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