I'm a writer who enjoys crafting stories that delve into unusual, niche, or unconventional themes. Lately, I've been struggling to balance my passion for esoteric writing with the desire to find an audience that appreciates and engages with my work. I wanted to reach out to see if anyone has advice or experiences to share regarding this dilemma.
Challenges I'm Facing:
Finding the Right Audience: While I know there are readers out there who would appreciate my themes and storytelling style, reaching them has proven difficult. I often feel like my work is too niche for mainstream platforms.
Balancing Art and Accessibility: I don't want to compromise the integrity of my stories, but I also want them to be accessible enough to attract readers. Finding this balance is a constant struggle.
Marketing and Promotion: Traditional marketing strategies seem ill-suited for my kind of writing. I'm looking for creative ways to promote my work and connect with potential readers who appreciate esoteric themes.
Questions for the Community:
Have you written esoteric or niche stories? How did you find your audience? What strategies have you used to balance artistic integrity with accessibility? Do you have any marketing or promotional tips for unconventional writing? Are there specific platforms or communities you recommend for writers with niche themes? I appreciate any insights, experiences, or advice you can share. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I look forward to hearing from you!
It largely depends on what kind of niche audience you are attempting to reach. I've also faced this challenge (not in writing specifically, but I create mods for videogames and for DnD) and I guess there's no correct answer. Sometimes it's up to luck if people finds you at all.
I don't like compromising my artistic integrity for improved marketability. I'd rather remain unknown but happy with what I create, than making things I don't like. There is an argument to be made about finding a compromise, but I'm not that good at giving up my vision. Of course this doesn't mean that you shouldn't take feedback into account: accepting criticism is the number one step to get better, and I've always been grateful for other people's feedback on what I create. But I want feedback focused on improving what I want to do, not aimed at changing it to make it more preferable to others.
I think it depends on what the nature of the content is. For me I got feedback from some people about erotic sex scenes I’d written and how they might be problematic for some people. And in general I’ve been told my ideas are very strange. For me I’m not sure if I can write in a more mainstream context, that doesn’t come naturally to me.