Writing that no one reads
I just glanced at the Mark Sample blog as I was going to the next section. He talks about how only in colleges would we ask people to write things nobody would read. I certainly agree that you should have some kind of public component to writing, but I also stress to my students that this is about developing a writing practice. Athletes play practice games that no one but the team will ever see, musicians and dancers rehearse for no one but themselves, as do actors. School is a place to practice. Math, sciences, no one expects their students to take their practice into the world, so we should we as writers and writing teachers feel the need to approach it any differently? I write lots of stuff that no one will ever read, started and abortive essays, short stories, etc.
