Do you have delusions of grandeur when it comes to your writing?

Question: Do you have delusions of grandeur when it comes to your writing!?

Do you have high hopes!?

-A spot on the NY Times best seller list!?
-Writing the next "great American novel"!?
-The Pulitzer!?
-The Nobel!?
-Make enough money to write full time and quit your 9-5 at the coffee house (or wherever you work)!?
-Oprah's pick for her book club!?
(less extraordinary but still impressive)

OR

Are your goals simpler and more easily attainable!?

-Getting published!?
-Getting respect and admiration from your peers!?
-Being able to call yourself a successful writer without quickly changing the subject during a conversation!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Delusions!? You mean I'm not going to be the greatest writer of all time, with ultimate power over the galaxy as a small reward!?!?!

Okay, okay!. honestly, I hope to become a bestselling author!. I want my stories to be the kind that are funny, impossible to put down, with characters you come to love, and that makes you think!. I know I can, everyone who reads my writing is quite impressed!. Plus, I know my ideas are good, and I know I'm good!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Simple and more attainable for me, although not easily by any means! I think that somewhere in the back of my mind it would be nice to be an exceptionally popular writer, that I would adore being the centre of that attention and to be able to work full time at my craft!. I know that dream is there, but I set my goals much more simply!.

If God wants to grant me a bestseller, or fame, or fortune, or a spot on Oprah's bookshelf then that will happen!. If not, then I will continue on the way I always have; writing because I need to, I truly love to, and working my 9-5 to keep a roof over my head and food on the table!.

Good luck and happy writing!Www@QuestionHome@Com

I absolutely love writing! I want it big! I want a book published before I get out of highschool - I NEVER want a McDonald's or grocery store job! I want to see a book I wrote reviewed in PEOPLE magazine - always, I read those reviews and have fantasies about my own glorified below a row of gold stars!. I want to write acknowledgements in the back, and thank my parents and family (although they don't help) and my friends and my teachers for listening to ideas!. I want to see a book made into a movie! I want to see BASED ON THE NOVEL BY ME in the credits, or at the beginning! I want to read a fan letter and write back myself, and make that kid's heart sing!.

But, I think everyone hopes this, and I'm just honest!. I'm also skeptical!. These are my delusions!. My goal is to at least crack out a book that'll be published and put in my old high school library!. I should have plenty of time over the summers, because I guess I'll have to be a teacher!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I believe that the best way to reach a goal is to aim for something far, far beyond it!. So in essence, all I really want is to be published!. But I constantly picture myself being the next big thing, having record times on the NY best seller list, not being able to take the subway anymore because too many people are there asking for my autograph!.!.!. Yeah!. =) Wouldn't that be nice!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

When it comes to my writing, I follow the KISS theory (Keep It Simple Stupid), and that includes how I perceive my work!. I keep hoping for the best outcome, but I find that simpler goals are more realistic and easier to attain!. Being humble never hurt anyone, especially when you're an artist or a writer: it allows you to remain well-grounded and to better evolve in your creative work!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I am studying to be a copywriter!. Writing every day and reading about writing and observing the world around me is making my life much richer than it was before!. I don't intend to be famous for my creative writing but I intend to make a living with it and to use that income to travel and enjoy life even more with my family and friends!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

My goals are more simple!. I just want to get published!. That should be any aspiring author's goal!. Granted, I do want my books to sell well so I can write their predecessors, I'm a simple girl who looks at each goal as a stepping stone!. When I do get published, then I'll probably be aiming for a spot on the New York Time's bestseller list!. Other than that, it's just one step at a time!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I write for pleasure!. And while I do occasionally slip into la-la land and dream of book deals and screenplays, as I have gotten older I've been able to write more for myself!. Truth be told, I don't even know where to start in the world of publishing!. I dream, but I keep the dreams in check!. IT's hard to explain how!.!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

For most people, just getting published traditionally is pretty much a delusion of grandeur!. As for the Oprah Book Club - she makes mistakes, too!. I really don't have all that much respect for her, and I knew books like East of Eden and As I Lay Dying were great without her telling me!. Pax-CWww@QuestionHome@Com

I've always wanted to be on the New York Times' bestseller list!. I've always wanted to be a full-time author!.
It might not happen, but those are my long-term goals and I'm going to work towards them!.
My short-term goals are probably more realistic!.
Yes, all of the ones you listed!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

even simpler goals are huge for me!. i have this dream of having one of my books published, but if i write in the mindset of ONLY wanting fame, i end up writing crap!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I'll be happy if I actually FINISH writnign a book!. then i'd be really really happy if it gets published!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Hah, I'll be happy if my writing gets me a B in English class this year!.!.!. I really don't expect much else!. I'm not much of a writer!. =)Www@QuestionHome@Com

cool questionWww@QuestionHome@Com

I have simple goals--both in my writing and in what I expect to get from it!. I write to tell a story, not to produce Great Works of Art!. A great work of art comes from a well-told story, and sitting down thinking I'll be the next Solzhenitsyn or Kafka doesn't get me anywhere!.

I expect to tell a good story--the art will come, when and if it comes, and at 27 I don't expect it to come at any given time!. When I was younger I was positive I would be recognized as an awesome genius by the age of 21, that I would have a novel published before I could drink, et cetera!. I think those are important goals to have as a kid, because they keep you writing while your life is in the chaos of adolescence, but by the time you are old enough to make your own life choices, you generally wise up about what your writing is worth!.

Am I bright!? Yes!. Am I a decent writer!? Yes!. Do I necessarily assume anything beyond that!? No--why should I!? I have a 9-to-5 career as a lawyer (or will once I pass the bar) and that is enough to get the bills paid!. I write because _I_ have to, because I have stories that I want to tell--not because I see myself as the next Pulitzer winner!.

I don't seek respect and admiration!. I write a lot of genre fiction--action and scifi and fantasy mainly--and while I'm good at what I do, that won't get you respect and admiration!. I write to entertain my peers, instead!. I'd rather be the author of the book they loved, rather than the book they respected!.

I'd say I have reasonable hopes, not high ones, and I have a solid plan for attaining them in due course!.Www@QuestionHome@Com