Reason 23: I want to change the world
100 Reasons I'm Retiring
Writing can change the world. The “pen is indeed mightier than the sword” was a phrase coined by Edward Bueller-Lytton in 1859. But the origin of the weight words carry is best illustrated in John 1: 1: In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.
Wow.
Writer and Civil Rights Activist James Baldwin has said this about the power of words:
The bottom is this: You write in order to change the world, knowing perfectly well you can’t, but also knowing that literature is indispensible to the world. The world changes according to the way people see it, and if you alter it, even by a milimeter, the way people look at reality, then you can change it. If there is no moral question, there is no reason to write. I’m an old-fashioned writer and, despite the odds, I want to change the world.
I, too, want to change the world, or at least the way people look at the world, particularly through the lenses of autism, grief, and widowhood.
Want to help me?
HOW TO HELP A SUBSTACK WRITER
To an author, an email list and reader engagement are vital. It shows potential publishers and agents that others are interested in our words. Unlike social media posts, we OWN our email lists. Every writer wants to see their lists grow.
Equally important is reader engagement. “Liking” a post you read on Substack is great, but there’s a bit more you can do to help your favorite writers find a publisher:
Comment on posts. My posts include a “comment” button. I see the comment as soon as you make it and I try to respond because I do appreciate the time you take.
Share with others. All of my posts also have a “share” button. You can share it on Substack or on your other social media outlets. You can even send it in an email and a message to someone.
Restack a post. This new feature on Substack allows you to “restack” a post so it comes to the top of the queue.
Consider becoming a paid subscriber. At the top of the post, you’ll see a button that says, “Upgrade to paid.” Most of my posts are free to read, but I really APPRECIATE those who pay a small fee to read what I write. I currently earn about $33 a month from subscriptions. I Timothy 5:17-19 says that a laborer is worthy of his hire and writing is HARD WORK!
Great post. For all of us who love the written word, we have our favorite lines from books we've read. These are lines we will remember forever. Some of my favorites were from the character Atticus in To Kill a Mockingbird.