by Kellie McGann |
I had always dreamed of making it as a full-time writer. Somehow, here I am, every day waking up and driving to a coffee shop to write a book.
In the midst of that, as I’m filled with amazement that I’m actually doing this writing thing, I have to ask myself—why? Why do I write? Why do any of us write? Why write?
I used to think I was writing to make a name for myself. I thought I was writing to one day sell lots of books and make money. But while it’s only been a couple of years since I’ve become a “full-time” writer, each day I come to realize more and more that writing was never about the prestige or money.
I want to take a minute to reflect and remind us why we write.
by Pamela Fernuik |
Our past writing can keep us from writing now. We may feel discouraged and not write if we think our past writing was horrible. Or maybe we think we were brilliant and not write because we feel we can never write that well again. Or maybe we think we are better at being typists for our cats than we are at writing our own stories.
I met a writer last week, Sheila, who destroyed her past writing. She told me she had just shredded everything she ever wrote—journals, poetry, and short stories. I asked her if she still had the shredded paper. I wanted it.
by Jeff Elkins |
Ever sit and stare at the page, unsure what to write? It happens to me at least once a week. You sit down to write and draw a complete blank.
Panic sets in. You worry, “Will I ever think of anything worth writing again.” Your mind screams, “Has the well run dry? Is the journey over? Woe is me; the world is coming to an end!”
Then, I take a deep breath and go to my Thoughtful Spot.
by Kellie McGann |
It’s been proven in many scientific studies that we writers are significantly more emotionally healthy than the general population.
Why is that?
Because we write about the hard things of life. We write about the things that haunt others’ souls. We write about our pain, share our torment. We write about the worst experiences of our lives.
While the rest of the world lets their agony steep, we write.
by Ruthanne Reid |
Have you ever seen an expert do something so brilliantly that they made it look easy? Writing is like that.
Here’s the thing: when our favorite authors write, they sit down and they write and they make it look easy. We see (or imagine) their facile skill with words and phrases, and we think, I want to do that. For a while, we even feel like we can do that. But when we put words down . . . well, they just don’t come out like that.
The truth is, though, no writing is wasted—not even your worst words, the pages that will never see the light of day.
by Monica M. Clark |
I have a theory why the Olympics are so exciting (despite all the Zika gloom and doom leading up to them). It’s the stories!
So much is at stake every day of the Olympics. The veteran Olympian hoping to clinch his last medal, the refugee who went from swimming for her life to swimming for gold, the gymnast finally getting her shot on the world stage.
Since the Olympics provide such great material for story writing, they obviously provide great material for writing prompts.
