Why Writers Can’t be Famous

In the 1920’s, it was the authors who were the focal point of American popular culture, but nearly 100 years later the author is nothing but a name with an unknown face on a book cover, well unless you are a celebrity. The likes of Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald were in the spotlight not only for their original and innovative writing and ideas, but because they were the celebrities of the 1920’s.

The difference between the celebrities of then and now is that they were producing works of art that would continue to influence the world, not just be on the cover of a magazine for staring in the latest blockbuster. Hemingway and Fitzgerald once lived scandalous and controversial lives, but the celebrities of today make their struggles look like child’s play.

It is unfortunate but the authors of today are just not cut out to be celebrities and this is why:

1. Authors aren’t glamorous- let’s face it, writers, especially before their first publishing, are living just to make ends meet. This means no brand name fashions, trendy expensive restaurants, and the time to do anything but work. The majority of celebrities in magazines today have time to be glamorous because they don’t have anything better to do. Paris Hilton is famous because she lives to shop, party, and be pretty.
2. Authors are non confrontational- Authors write better than they fight.
3. The Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award is awarded for excellence in writing and innovation, not for marketability- In the entertainment industry it is those with the prettiest face and controversial acts that make them more famous than anyone else, not the quality of their “profession.”
4. Authors cannot be marketed- Authors will not change who they are to gainmore publicity. They already allowed another person to edit their masterpiece in the publishing process they will not allow themselves to be edited as well.
5. Authors write for the love of it, not the money- Has any of the most influential authors ever been wealthy before their first publication? Challenges and hardships are what produces the most authentic and real writing, something every writer aspires to obtain.

Although it is clear that authors just don’t have what it takes to live the glamorous and controversial lifestyle of today’s celebrities, but that doesn’t mean that it should be that way. The majority of the influences on the youth of our society are controversial celebrities who barely graduated high school. Literature has always been and will continue to be the cultural mile markers in world history, do we really want to let future generations see the majority of our literature “written” by reality television stars, troubled actors and actresses, and people famous for no reason at all? Even if they are not known in every household like most of today’s celebrities, our generation’s writers should at least be getting the credit they deserve for writing legitimate and worthwhile pieces of literature.