Write Away

I think for story and audience, that's just the way it is. Storytelling - it has to be told to someone. But I also think that a story's creator can count as an audience. If you read over your own work to enjoy the story, you are an audience. Most storytellers, I think, just also feel the desire to tell their stories to others as well. I do write little bits that I only enjoy privately, but most of what I've written I have shared with at least one close friend, because I wanted to try to share the excitement I felt about it.

I wouldn't call a novel a diary just because you didn't intend to share it, but I can see how many people would see keeping novels private as counter-intuitive, simply because writing is generally seen as communication. Storytelling, emphasis on telling. That's just how many people see it.