Nobody Cares. Right? Ignored Writers

May you all be safe, warm and happy. Wherever you are.

Its a disease that mostly afflicts us writers. I've been a victim myself.

We write in our favorite fandoms, or original work, and we pour everything we have into our writing. Blood, sweat and tears infiltrate every letter on every page. We work to uplift and excite. And when we hit that submit button, we become excited. We await rave reviews and/or faves the way we used to wait for Santa.

An hour passes. Nothing happens. Two days quietly slither by. Still nothing. Then a week. At the most, you've got a single fave and no comments. Or perhaps nothing at all. Your work is still ignored after you've posted it to dozens of groups. Meanwhile, artists with digital pictures and famous characters/pairings are awarded instant stardom. Colorful, instantly engaging pictures end up with hundreds, if not thousands, of faves and comments in five minutes. The same applies to writers that frequently write about famous pairings (Naruto/Sasuke, Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy, etc) and they amass super stardom, regardless of what the story's about. They could write about Naruto and Sakura going to the grocery store, and in minutes, they'll achieve mass stardom.

You look at your stories and think: "why do I bother? No one reads this stuff anyway. No one cares."

I know. I've been there myself, many times. I still go there. We as writers write and write, only to end up with feelings of helplessness. But its okay. In the end, its okay. Why?

Because in the end, someone always finds what you've written, and their lives are changed by it. Someone somewhere, sitting at their computer/laptop/netbook, or holding their tablet or phone, will find your work and smile.

It happens. It happens to me, so I know it happens.

We may not end up breaking world records for the most comments and/or faves. We may not get a hundred comments for something we write, and love with every fiber of our being. But someone somewhere will smile because of what we've written. Someone will fall in love with the experiences we present, and the stories we weave. Maybe its a close friend that reads everything you write. And yes, its only one person. Perhaps the same person over and over again. But you're sprinkling pixie dust into someone's life.

In the end, its worth it.

I'm not bashing those with mass comments and/or faves, whether they write or draw. I'm just saying that so many of us writers experience 'Nobody Cares' Syndrome, myself included. Because we feel grossly overlooked. But in the end-

We change a life somewhere.