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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/24917
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

There are those that claim that bestsellers cannot be made. They advise you to write the story that feels most relevant to yourself, because otherwise your writing will feel void and empty.

Then there are all the professional authors and editors, whose daily work it is to make bestellers. They manage to understand the desires of their target audience and turn a mediocre manuscript into a bestselling book.

The first is called art. Sometimes it results in fantastic mega-blockbuster success. But most often it is appreciated only by your friends (if you have any). The second is called all kind of names, and it often does not reach the New York Times bestseller list, but it consistently makes its authors enough money to lead a comfortable life, and their fans love them well.

What path you choose, is up to you.

* * *

I take a middle path: I do consider what readers want (see [Genre conventions: Which end do readers expect?](https://writers.stackexchange.com/questions/10945/genre-conventions-which-end-do-readers-expect)) and attempt to reconcile that with how I feel about the end myself. You need to be creative about how you find a solution that satisfies both you and your audience, but to me that kind of problem is what makes writing fun.

A vision without a focus is just rambling. It is your attempt to communicate with your readers that gives your writing that focus.

Original score: 1