Do you write, or are you a writer?

I want to link to a NYTimes Magazine article by James Traub that I read towards the end of the semester. Traub is, I think, such a clear writer, something that I aspire to be. Here's a favorite piece of reportage from that article:

One of [Biden's] former aides — Washington is rife with them — told me that she had learned an important life lesson from her boss: “Question people’s judgment, not their motives.”

That seems like a great piece of advice. It also says something about Traub who's able, probably in limited conversation with a person, to elicit a fundamental lesson that Biden gave to this aide of his. It's like if you asked someone, "what's the most important thing your parents have taught you," and they gave you a gem like this.

Being a good writer is something that won't wane with the economic woes of brick-and-mortar newspapers. If communication is a good skill to have, and it is, then thinking and writing is the best exercise at improving at communication.

Something that writers encounter is thoughts about who is reading their work. How will they judge me? Will they like what I'm writing about? Andrew Sullivan doesn't have comments on his blog. Seems like a big affront to the democratic standards of the blogosphere. So, I asked him, does he ever edit what he writes when he considers how readers might perceive it? He said he doesn't ever self-edit, or second guess what he's going to write based on thinking about his audience. (So, you might ask, why not allow comments?)

Consider Mark Pincus. Mark a successful Internet entrepreneur, and on top of the social networking applications market right now. He keeps a personal blog where he writes about business decisions and shares personal thoughts. He writes about his thoughts on the Congressional deal-making here, and writes about his conception of the new Internet era here. This is a terrific line (especially that latter post) to the thoughts of someone who is doing very important things that shape the lives of many in society. But look at the comments he's getting. They're not reflective. They're people who are bringing their gripes about his company's products to his personal blog. That's a chilling reception to someone who wants to share their thoughts. Which should prompt the question, is the best form of blogging to broadcast to the Internet? Will the best kind of writing come from a form where you write with consciousness of how others will perceive your post and comment on it?

No doubt that blogging is important. It's a chance to share ideas with people who might be able to build on your ideas. It allows you to transcend people in your immediate space and reach out to the .005% of the world that has substantive thoughts about the ideas you have.

But sharing with everyone is a weird concept. Weird? But why? Writers (like Jon Chait and his TRB) do it all the time. But I think successful writers in the public space have had years to hone their voice. To wit, you don't just start writing by signing up to write TRB. If you can firm your voice before the limelight, it seems like that preparation could be useful once you're getting attention.