What does it mean to be an aspiring creator?
I unpack why I'm not a fan of the term aspiring creator, and think it has a negative connotation much like the term 'self-published' which we should reconsider.
I want to unpack some thoughts here on two issues that continue to bug me when it comes to creativity.
First is the use of the term ‘aspiring writer.’ I think we’ve all seen people describe themselves this way, but to be honest I’m very confused by its meaning.
Medical students rarely describe themselves as aspiring doctors, they’ll tell you (whether you wanted to know or not) that they’re in medical school. Heck, some students who aren’t even in medical school will even describe themselves as ‘pre-med.’
Similarly, those who are training to be lawyers don’t describe themselves as ‘aspiring lawyers,’ and to be honest - if someone did describe themselves that way, they’re probably not the kind of lawyer you want to hire.
Or, for a more creative-adjacent example, take development executives. Have you ever heard anyone say there were an ‘aspiring development executive?’
Of course not.
Yet, I constantly hear creators describe themselves this way all the time. What does it mean? Does it mean they want to write/create, but haven’t yet done so? Does it mean they want to have something published? No. It typically means they’re not doing it full-time1.
The fact that they may have to work a day job, or that they’re not getting paid six figures for their projects, somehow gets interpreted that they’re somehow inferior, and they use the term ‘aspiring’ in an apologetic tone.
I think this is bullshit, but somehow it’s tolerated in the creative industry, much like the second term I want to discuss, which is a cousin of the first.
Self-publishing.
I don’t think this is quite as egregious as ‘aspiring writer,’ but it’s definitely up there.
There’s an assumption, amongst certain people, that if you publish your own work that it’s somehow inferior to traditionally published work. In their eyes, the term ‘self-publishing’ is a negative, something to be cast in the same breath as sharing your work on social media, or - heaven forbid - a blog.
Self-publishing is publishing.
Don’t believe me? Go and fucking try it.
You think those who publish their own work don’t use editors?
You think they don’t work with artists and designers to create their books?
You think they don’t hustle and market their work and themselves to an incredible degree?
This is also true of those who go the traditional publishing route too, by the way. There are many traditionally published creators who work extremely hard to get their work out there. But my sense is that these aren’t the ones who look down on indie creators.
As literary corporations continue to eat one another, the number of opportunities for traditional publishing, is going to reduce, and those slots are (for the most part) going to be taken up not by great creators, but by people who can create buzz.
Most traditional publishers don’t give a shit if you read the books they put out. I would wager they themselves barely make the effort to read them, that’s why we continue to find books with typos or printing errors (even entire pages missing! Hello?!) or poor design, or - more often than not in the comics space - poor/non-existent marketing.
Yet, much like Big Tobacco, the industry needs to convince its audience that its business model is the only path to salvation. Trad publishing has a vested interest in mocking and smearing and diminishing indie publishers (including those who publish their own works) in order to maintain their profits.
This is why reviews and awards are the last holdouts against non-traditional works of art, who don’t meet the ‘eligibility’ criteria and are therefore kept out of the limelight, ineligible for grants and funding support, and struggle to get reviews and therefore market penetration.
What it doesn’t mean, is that their work is no good.
What it may mean, is that the creator has gotten tired of being ripped off, by being the last person to earn money off their creative work, by seeing publishers put no effort into marketing and then blaming creators for not creating to market (while simultaneously paying themselves out for their marketing work).
Just like with ‘aspiring writers,’ I refuse to recognize ‘self-publishing’ as a term.
Self-publishing is indie publishing.
If you write, you’re a writer - you’re not aspiring to write.
If you create, you’re a creator - you’re not aspiring to create.
I believe that language matters, and I believe terms these negatively-loaded terms are thrown around by an industry that is scared of change.
Publishing, as a business, has been around for over 500 years, and has been more or less static over that time - with the biggest challenge being the shift from purely analog to a digital infrastructure.
The gatekeeping. The elitism. That hasn’t changed.
What has changed is the ability for creators to find alternative ways to publish their work through independent channels owned by others, or by ones they own themselves.
Creators should embrace whatever path works best for them on any given project, but that doesn’t mean we should denigrate other pathways or processes because they may not conform to tradition.
What do you think? Are you an indie creator who uses different pathways to sell their work? Are you a reader who is only interested in traditionally published material? Drop me a line in the comments and let me know.
I don’t say this lightly. I think people mean professionally, but the reality is that even those who get paid industry standard rates for their work, are often still struggling to work as a full-time creative. Those jobs are reserved only for those breathing the most rarefied of air.
💯 agree with this sentiment. Thanks for sharing it. It’s got me fired up again 👏