Poll: Writer or Reader?

[Gavin Luper]

Okay. So this was discussed many years ago somewhere in this forum, though for the life of me I can't find the thread, and in any case, we have different members now, so here we go again.

Basically, most of us here are either writers or readers of both fanfiction and original fiction, more broadly.

If, hypothetically, you were forced to choose between living the rest of your life without reading another book or poem or play, or never being able to write another creative word again, which would you choose?

For me ... it's tough, but it's writing all the way. If I could never read again I would cope somehow. If I could never write the stories and characters and ideas that come into my head, I'm fairly sure I'd have an epic meltdown.

What about you?

[mr_pikachu]

Hmm, I like the idea of being a snowcone... except that I'd melt in any temperature above freezing. Plus, I'd rather be cherry than rainbow.

Writer it is, then, for roughly the same reasons that Gavin mentioned. (I call dibs on the audiobook loophole!)

Seriously, though, I need some manner of self-expression, and I don't have the dexterity for artwork. Nor do I find music sufficient to convey the ideas I have -- beautiful and fascinating though music may be, four-minute lyrics are too short and instrumentals too abstract to say what I'd really like to say. I certainly enjoy reading, and it's definitely vital for any community, but I personally have to be able to write.

[mattbcl]

I'm in agreement with Brian. Self-expression is essential to me. I could write music, but that wouldn't quite cover it, and if I couldn't put down what was rolling around in my head, I'd go completely insane. Reading is a wonderful thing, but I need to be able to write... even if sometimes I don't write much.

[Gavin Luper]

Hmm, I like the idea of being a snowcone... except that I'd melt in any temperature above freezing. Plus, I'd rather be cherry than rainbow.

XD

Writer it is, then, for roughly the same reasons that Gavin mentioned. (I call dibs on the audiobook loophole!)

Shit, I didn't even think of that. Sigh. Just pretend it doesn't exist, yes? ^_^

Interesting to see that of the three of us so far, it's three choices of 'writer'. I'm curious that you guys both wrote about music, too - do either of you write music or lyrics or play an instrument?

Personally, I have an acoustic guitar and a harmonica, and I am so frustrated at the fact that I don't have the patience to learn either of them yet, even though I really want to. I would love to be able to play the guitar really well - I'm not talking Eric Clapton (although that would be a dream ...) but, you know, well enough to play in a rock band. I'd seriously like to take some lessons but I can't really justify spending money on it.

[MeLoVeGhOsTs]

Not that I wrote much, but I'm a reader It's nice seeing fresh ideas and getting teased by the plotline. Also, from the things that I did write, I learned how pleasant it is to receive feedback so I tend to give some.

[Gavin Luper]

Not that I wrote much, but I'm a reader It's nice seeing fresh ideas and getting teased by the plotline. Also, from the things that I did write, I learned how pleasant it is to receive feedback so I tend to give some.

Aha! A reader at last. And indeed, you are quite a good reader IIRC - you do give some good feedback.

PS. Congrats on hitting 6000 posts!

[Shadow Wolf]

I don't know... I feel like both are so close that choosing one would harm the other pretty badly (if you know what I mean).

However, I can step down on writing to be a reader. After all, there are many creative writers both here at the forums and outside of them, so I'm sure they will write bits of my life on their works. Much like a puzzle, quote by quote I'll be able to create myself through reading. (though my feedbacks aren't exactly feedbacks, but more like writing quotes I loved on notebooks or things like that. I definitely have to work on this.)

[mr_pikachu]

I'm curious that you guys both wrote about music, too - do either of you write music or lyrics or play an instrument?

Well, I used to play the piano about 15 years ago (good God, I sound old), but I always had a keen ability to play "by ear," as the saying goes. In more recent years I've tinkered with writing a few short tunes. Nothing serious, but it's something I occasionally do in my spare time when I'm particularly inspired by a jingle in my head. (I personally use a free program called Anvil for composing purposes, if you can call what I do composing. It's hardly the most sophisticated piece of composition software, but it's also free, so who am I to complain?)

Also, readers are absolutely essential, I agree. What impact can a writer have on the world without someone to read his or her words? We can just say I'm selfish for picking "Writer."

[ChobiChibi]

I'd like to be a rainbow snowcone please. Since my main writing output is for RPG, I end up spending just as much time reading posts as I do writing them ^^; I do beta stuff from time to time, but as CT will tell you, I'm not the best for feedback >_> I dunno, maybe cos I just love the worlds she creates *shrugs*

Y'know, despite being a musician by trade, I can't write it. Ever. I've never tried writing a song, but I just can't write music (orchestral or whatever) that doesn't sound like something else I've heard. This is why I didn't do composition at all during my degree. I can arrange music though, really love doing that and am quite good at it.

I love performing though. Much better at expressing myself through other people's music than my own. My iPhone is almost constantly playing something and I'm always looking for new songs. I don't listen to as much orchestral stuff as I should, but I've got a lot of orchestral game sound tracks (read: FFX and FFXIII) and film scores (Pirates of the Caribbean, Laputa: Castle in the Sky). I love them, cos I get lots of visual ideas from them (whether it's just reliving the moment in the game/movie, or my own that pop up) and rar. They're so good.

[mattbcl]

I'm curious that you guys both wrote about music, too - do either of you write music or lyrics or play an instrument?

I've dabbled in trying to write something meaningful, music-wise, but never anything really serious. I worry that the moment I start viewing it as anything other than a hobby that I can lay to the wayside whenever I please, it'll become less fun. That tends to happen with my writing in general - I don't want the feeling of being obliged to do it. I just want to do it.

I own a B-flat clarinet and a B-flat bass clarinet, but I don't touch either one most of the time. I'm also fluent in saxophones; I'm a single-reed nut. No strings experience, though, and keep me far away from the brass. But if you sit me down at a basic drum kit, I can pound out a few good beats. I can also tap out basic tunes on a piano.

I think my family regrets that I haven't kept up with my musical skills on my woodwinds. I know my mom, in particular, was disappointed. Long before I joined any school band, she suspected I had "perfect pitch" - the ability to discern and memorize which key a tune was played in - and wanted to see me apply the talent. It wasn't an extracurricular I was interested in pursuing, but as with so many other things when you're a kid, my mom made me do it anyway. Now I kind of miss it. Lately, one of my roleplaying buddies has expressed an interest in seeing me get an acoustic drum kit so that he can put together a garage band. I must say, it'd be a new application of my creativity - though my other friends tell me I'd be far too boring and level-headed to be a legitimate rocker.

[mr_pikachu]

Y'know, despite being a musician by trade, I can't write it. Ever. I've never tried writing a song, but I just can't write music (orchestral or whatever) that doesn't sound like something else I've heard.

Heh, I've had that problem. I remember a few years back, I was playing around with Anvil, and I realized that the song I was crafting was coming together way faster than anything I'd ever done before. It was almost as though I knew what note was supposed to come next, what would sound perfect, before I was even fully conscious of the melody. It was as though my musical mind was more alive and energized than it had ever been in my life.

About halfway through the composition, I realized that the song I had been writing note-by-note was actually "Be for You, Be for Me [Kanako's version]" from the Love Hina Again soundtrack. I closed the program, listened to the tune on my iPod, and went about my day.

[Becky]

I picked reader! I don't have the ability to write fanfiction, or really, any kind of literature. But I do love to read. I read a lot of books, and I've discovered several great stories here on TPM.

[Sike Saner]

Went with reader on this one. Something about the idea of never getting to experience another book without squeezing it from my own brain just strikes me as really daunting--I think writer's block would drive me all the crazier if I knew that I was depending on being able to write in order to be able to have anything at all to do with the written word!

Not only that, but there are a lot of ongoing stories whose endings I still want to see. And I love stumbling upon brand new favorites, not to mention the surprise of having absolutely no idea what's going to happen next because it's coming from someone else's mind. (Granted, sometimes my own stories will pull out surprises on me as I'm writing. But it's not quite the same feeling, at least not for me, and it doesn't happen nearly as often as it happens when reading others' writings.) I don't think I could give these things up.

Plus giving up reading would mean no more getting to reread all of my old favorites. Yeah, I don't think I'd enjoy having to say goodbye to that, either.

If I had to give up writing right on the spot in order to not have to give up reading... well, yes, it'd be hard. I have a work-in-progress on my hands here, and I'm horrible at letting myself give up. :p But in time, however long it'd take, I think I might actually be able to learn to look back on what I did manage to accomplish with no regrets. I could find myself viewing it as a nice retirement, looking fondly back at my past work while continuing to enjoy others' work into the future.

I think if I tried to give up reading, I'd fail in that endeavor pretty quickly. As it is, there's quite a few things I'm following that I check pretty damned often for updates. I just know that after... pfft, maybe a week tops of wondering, Oh geez, what if there's more, what happens next, ARRGH MUST KNOWWW, I'd totally cave.

So yeah, I think letting go of writing would be rougher yet ultimately easier for me than letting go of reading would be.

[Dryk]

I could never give up reading. I just don't have the want-to right now to even try to become a good writer, but I always have and always will enjoy reading and re-reading books.

[Gavin Luper]

Also, readers are absolutely essential, I agree. What impact can a writer have on the world without someone to read his or her words? We can just say I'm selfish for picking "Writer."

Nothing wrong with selfishness if it's for the sake of art, my friend! And okay, in this hypothetical, everyone else in the world can still read, but you can't. There, loophole closed! Bwahaha. Still don't know how to fix the whole audiobook loophole though.

I'd like to be a rainbow snowcone please.

I'm so glad someone picked rainbow snowcone! I'm also glad EVERYONE didn't pick it, otherwise it would have been a waste of a poll!

I've dabbled in trying to write something meaningful, music-wise, but never anything really serious. I worry that the moment I start viewing it as anything other than a hobby that I can lay to the wayside whenever I please, it'll become less fun. That tends to happen with my writing in general - I don't want the feeling of being obliged to do it. I just want to do it.

I own a B-flat clarinet and a B-flat bass clarinet, but I don't touch either one most of the time. I'm also fluent in saxophones; I'm a single-reed nut. No strings experience, though, and keep me far away from the brass. But if you sit me down at a basic drum kit, I can pound out a few good beats. I can also tap out basic tunes on a piano.

I think my family regrets that I haven't kept up with my musical skills on my woodwinds. I know my mom, in particular, was disappointed. Long before I joined any school band, she suspected I had "perfect pitch" - the ability to discern and memorize which key a tune was played in - and wanted to see me apply the talent. It wasn't an extracurricular I was interested in pursuing, but as with so many other things when you're a kid, my mom made me do it anyway. Now I kind of miss it. Lately, one of my roleplaying buddies has expressed an interest in seeing me get an acoustic drum kit so that he can put together a garage band. I must say, it'd be a new application of my creativity - though my other friends tell me I'd be far too boring and level-headed to be a legitimate rocker.

Okay, we have a whole bunch of musicians here - you guys should form the TPM Experience or something epic like that. I will totes volunteer for (dubious) lead vocals.

Interesting to see some more "reader" responses coming through from Louis, Becky, Sike and Dryk (oh God, I rhymed, sorry). I wonder if the poll will eventually get to half-half?

[mistysakura]

Damn, I voted for rainbow snowcone before seeing that only one more vote was needed to reach half-half! I'd be a reader, because, well, I don't exactly write any more anyway. Plus, if I could never reread what I wrote, I wouldn't see the point of writing.

Basically, I bow down to the wisdom of others. I figure that anything I feel, someone has written about, and someone has written about better. I wouldn't give up for anything the joy of resonating with what someone across the globe has written. People amaze me all the time.

[Leon-IH]

I read a little and write a little (mostly poems, I tend to lose interest in my own long form narratives).

[DarkestLight]

Hell yeah, rainbow snowcone.

I thought this would be tougher, but after reading through everyone's posts, I realized I would be able to give up reading for writing. I haven't written much (aside from ac/cc..) and that's just plain laziness, I have the story up in my head. Well not just laziness, me not wanting to write due to real life kicking my butt counts too, right?

But yes, I would forego reading House of Leaves forever, in order to write my own just as crazy sequal