First and foremost, a very happy and joyous New Year 2014! May the New Year bring you health, strength, and the courage to follow through with your dreams.
In my inaugural blog post for The Write Practice, I asked three key questions: who you are as a writer, where you’re going, and what you need. Today, on this first day of a bright new year, I would like to invite you to make a commitment.
A commitment to you the writer and your writing. A commitment to rediscovering why you write.
Photo by Tom Magliery (Creative Commons)
Somewhere deep within every author burns an unquenchable flame. This is the desire to create, the need to share our stories, the pull to open minds, enthrall hearts, and to make a difference somehow, somewhere, in a reader's life.
But the flame needs focus. If you are to achieve impact as an author, you must align your work with the reason why you write. Otherwise you're spinning your wheels against yourself.
Below I list four primary reasons we writers write. Disagree? Post your argument in the comments! Feel there are others missing? Do tell! The floor is yours.
To Change the World
Let's not be shy! Let's start with the most shamelessly ambitious reason of them all. Nothing less.
Do mere words possess such power? In truth, words above all possess such power. Writers and their works have been influencing the course of human civilization since humanity learned to read. (I know, most of the writers listed on the linked sites are men—so ladies, get to work! Time for you to make your writerly mark on the world!)
In my humble opinion, this is probably one of the loftiest (and head-spinning) reasons to be a writer. Composed with the right intention, passion, and eloquence—not to mention the right timing—words carry power the likes of which the One Percent can only dream about. No amount of money, fame, or status can replace the significance and impact of altering the course of history, opening people's minds, or improving lives.
But if the idea of having to become the next Nelson Mandela to make your mark is a little too overwhelming, not to worry. You can change your world, as opposed to the world.
There is also no literary formula or prerequisite to making your/the world a better place. You can write fiction or non fiction. You can write novels, stories or essays. Whatever form your writing takes, it needs passion and it needs purpose. And a really wide audience.
To Leave a Legacy
Perhaps nothing can carry your name through generations the way a book or a work of art can. Why is it that we remember the DaVincis and Michaelangelos, the Mozarts and the Rolling Stones, the Shakespeares and the Gabriel García Márquez's, but not the wealthy merchants or politicians of the same eras? Why do we value paintings and books far over and above the banknotes of the same societies?
Why is it that money can measure the success of a book, but a book never tells us a thing about the currency it's sold in?
Because the human heart and soul are wired for art and beauty, not money and influence.
Feel free to disagree with me, but think about it. We think we want money and power, but that's not what makes us happy. It doesn't inspire or improve our talent. All it does is provide us with resources and capital, possibly ensure a comfortable life, and influence over others, but at the end of the day, what have we achieved?
It is when we connect to our core as human beings and when we fully participate in the irreplaceable experience of life, that we learn to align our words with our purpose.
To Figure Out Who We Are
In a recent blog post elsewhere on The Write Practice, some of us discussed whether a writer writes only about what they know. Perhaps some do, but there is much more to a writer’s craft than direct individual experience—plenty of great literature has been written that did not come from the author’s personal life.
But some—if not many—of us write for a reason that’s just as cathartic as it is creative. Often, growing up or living in abusive or otherwise less-than-ideal circumstances will drive a person to turn to writing as therapy or simply escape. In this form, writing can prove to be a more powerful tool of self-analysis and healing than expensive sessions with a life coach or a therapist.
Writing is also an extremely effective tool to share or disseminate knowledge or information we feel is important for others to have. Or it can serve as a guiding light on our path in life, as we discover our inner selves and what it is that drives us.
In all of these ways and more, writing illuminates who we truly are.
To Be Rich, Famous, or Otherwise Celebrated
Don’t be afraid to say this is one of your reasons. In principle, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. But be sure this is really what you want, and be able to say why. What will being wealthy truly give you, besides the obvious financial freedom? Will it change who your friends are (or were), or your relationship with your family? Could it change you or your writing?
When we read the dizzying fairy tale stories of riches and success like those of J.K. Rowling or Dan Brown, we forget the media doesn’t tell us everything. We don’t think of the daily details of a celebrity author's life, like being overwhelmed with requests, having your email account hacked (like “Sex and the City” author Candace Bushnell), and at least a partial loss of public privacy.
Then there's the sheer work involved. I read somewhere recently that Lady Gaga typically doesn’t see the light of day when she rehearses: she goes from hotel to parking garage to the music venue and back again, for days on end. The kind of renown she has built for her brand takes nearly superhuman effort, vision, strategy, and dedication. Long-term unrelenting commitment. Well-known writers sing a similar song.
Do you have that in you?
If you are aware of the implications of being a well-known public figure, have what it takes, and are ready to trade your low-profile life for one in the spotlight, I say full steam ahead!
I know why I write. Do you?
PRACTICE
Make a unique New Year’s Resolution. Nevermind the gym or the new diet you've been hearing about. Resolve to be a better, stronger, more focused writer this year. Most importantly, align your work with the reason why you write. Share your thoughts and examples of writing that define why you write.
I write both to figure out me and also to leave a legacy. Writing is the best way I can think of to let the world know about experiences and truths universal to us all.
Robyn,
It’s great to see you have such clarity in your life’s work. I’d definitely second your statement.
I think you have preempted my own reasons! -Sef
I write because I can’t not write
Exactly!
I can relate!
Nice work, Birgitte… and an important question. I think that if a writer probes this question deeply enough, we’ll find out that writing (and indeed reading) takes us to a jumping off place. If we’re on a journey, then, In a sense, we run out of geography. We launch into a world of more subtle energies. We’re no longer on the surface of life, but into its essence. I’ve been working on a project all year that promises to take me to this rare place. I feel I’m close because near to going crazy. Running out of geography will do that to a person. Cheers.
Hi PJ, your project sounds intriguing. I assume it’s a literary work? Are you close to finishing or close to getting to its core?
Re: geography, if you’re referring to physical places, yes, you can “run out of geography” eventually although not as quickly as one might think. 🙂 If you’re speaking in figurative terms, you’re not likely ever to run out.
I wish we could sit down and chat long about this. I’d want to examine what it might mean to “run out of geography” in a psychological sense. People do. Or spiritually, even worse. It’s the worst kind of dead-end. We “lose the ground beneath our feet.” I think all good protagonists persist that far. I think readers demand it. I think we write in order to get to that place, because only then do we truly change/grow-up/evolve. Re. my work-in-progress — I’m not sure what it is — memoir, fiction, essay, it’s all of the above. I hope to have it done “this year.”
I see what you mean now. In the sense you describe, yes, you’re right that one can indeed lose their sense of the ground beneath their feet, and that is a challenging—and illuminating—proposition indeed.
Not sure how far you’ve gotten along in this work, but if you have any appreciable amount done, you should decide sooner than later what it is that you’re actually writing.
You’re right there, Birgitte… I think it’s a personal essay that gets wildly out of hand. By the way, I appreciate your highly personal and astute responses to mine and other commenters.
Sounds like a wild horse that just needs a little tender lovin’ guidance rather than taming. 😉
Tx for the kind words–this is a community, and that’s how communities (should) work.
I have started writing because stories are in my head and its time I let them out and with one of them, I do hope that at least one person finds comfort and peace.
But why just “one of them”? Why not inject this worthy ambition into ALL your stories? I think you’ll find more than one reader who will enjoy your work.
Thank you, the one, at the moment, is weighing heavy and is dark with light trying to shine through. hopefully by the years end I will have a story published (ebook I would imagine) and lets see where it goes.
SK, if it’s a “story”, as in short story, why not up your deadline and commit to getting it done in the next month or two? What is stopping you…?
I am new to this writing, have always had stories in my head but never put pen to paper until recently. So new I don’t even know the terminology. It feels like a “novel”, much bigger than a short story. Thank you so much for the encouragement. By the way, I just read the seventh crane, fascinating!
In that case, welcome to the club! 😉 No worries if you’re still finding your way in the sea of literary terminology. A short story can run anywhere from 1K to 10K words or so; after 10K you’re swimming the waters between a short story and a novella; 50K words is where novels typically start.
I would strongly recommend doing a bit of online research (Amazon for example) using the same keywords you would use to describe your story, and see what types of titles come up. That may shed some light on your own work. And also see my post about attending a writer’s conference: https://thewritepractice.com/writer-conference/
Finally, my great personal thanks for reading The Seventh Crane, I know a lot of people have enjoyed that story. Really appreciate it!
Thank you, I sat down a month ago and an north of 11k with the little time I actually have to write but working at it now. Again thank you for our advice and encouragement
My pleasure. Make sure, also, that you have a one-line pitch and a one-page pitch for your work. That will go a long way with agents, publishers, and in general for your marketing materials.
I write to figure out who I am, because I love nothing better than telling stories other people like, and to try and make a living off it since it’s the only thing I’m kind of good at.
If storytelling is the thing you love most, no reason why you can’t make a living doing it. It may take a bit of work and a bit of time, but persevere and you can make it happen.
Thank you for the encouragement. 🙂 I’ve already had a number of people say that they’d gladly buy anything I published and I’m working on publishing something this year, so hopefully I’m getting there.
You’re most welcome Maure. Just take the word “hopefully” out of anything you say regarding your writing and publishing. It’s a crutch. You don’t need it.
You’re right. 🙂 Things I need to remind myself more.
I write for two reasons. The main one? It feels like what I was born to do. I love spinning tales, weaving the threads of my past and my imagination into something new. It brings sparkle and joy into my days. It helps me make coherent sense of my world, yes, but mainly it is just fun. Is it too corny to say that it feels like my purpose?
Secondary to that, I do write to change the world. I hope that my little stories, which feature strong women, women stumbling and searching for their path in life, will encourage other women to do this. I hope that my explorations of the conflicts they run into will shed light on the difficulties we all face, balancing romantic love, children, and other life issues, with passion for creating something new. Also, with some apocalyptic stories I hope to explore life-giving paths through the coming transformation of our world from global warming and pollution, in a fun manner, without being preachy or boring.
Thanks for this post. I hadn’t really elucidated all of this for myself, especially not the second paragraph.
Hello Ann,
If writing is your purpose, there is nothing silly about stating it. Say it louder and more often!
And I wholeheartedly support you writing about the changes taking place in our world and environment, and about strong and complex women, because that’s how many of us are. Strong, passionate, and multidimensional. No more bumbling objectified barbie dolls.
Bumbling objectified barbie dolls? I love it! Thanks for the words of encouragement.
🙂
Happy New Year! I used to be writer and now I read. I have not written much since 2011. The principal reason that I wrote was because it felt natural and came easily from very young I created characters and told stories and that evolved into writing. In recent years I have lost that fluidity and passion. I want to write again.
I feel as if I was supposed to have already written that next great piece of Caribbean literature. I was supposed to be able to capture the visuals of growing up in rural Jamaica, infusing the music of our language, the intensity of those moments.
I want to write again to share stories of my community and to leave a legacy.
Chantel,
Nothing in your way but you now. Make it happen!
I write because I have no faith. I write to piece together the jigsaw of my odd splintered history. I write to make people laugh and cry and beg me for the next bit.And I write because I walk round all day, every day, with running commentary in my head and that has to have an outlet…
‘Writer’ is the only job title I’ve claimed. The others I merely accept. They are not who I am, but writing, writing fiction is.
-Sef
Sef,
You mean faith as in religion? Why would not having a faith make you want to write? I ask that seriously, because the opposite is not necessarily true so I’m curious.
Hi Birgitte and yes. I believe this life is it, so if I want to carry on in any way after death it has to be through ny children and what writing I leave behind. I made this connection after I thought I couldn’t have children and both ideas were profound. -Sef
PS. But the fact that I write v light hearted stuff may totally negate such deep thoughts!
Very profound, and life-changing as well. The ability/choice to have children is one of the most life-changing events and impacts on our psyches and lives, if not the most. It’s also the most emotionally charged, since it is so fundamentally rooted in our biology. Thank you for having the courage of sharing this in a public forum. Blessings to you and your work. (I mean that in a non denominational way 😉 )
I started because I needed a new creative outlet. I am a very visual thinker. Sometimes my mind comes up with random scenes that play like movies. Sometimes they are of nature and other times they are of people. Sometimes these scenes come as a day dream or while I’m asleep. I needed to get them out of my head somehow. But the only way I had was to paint or draw. After several years of trying, I found that didn’t satisfy my needs so I searched for something else. Writing was the cheapest and best way for that to happen. When I write something I am able to leave those emotions or that dream of mine on the paper, instead of it being in my head for weeks.
Like for example, this past week I dreamt of a post apocalyptic America and several characters who just lost their paradise and began on a quest to find a new home. I can still remember the landscape, the faces, the way the city was set up.
How could I NOT do something with that?
Also leaving a legacy would be nice. One of my ancestors pinned a memoir about her family pioneering Texas and my grandmother has it on her shelf. Pictures are nice and all but when you write you leave bits of yourself. When I am gone and my children/grandchildren miss me they can read something I have written and feel like I’m there with them.
I am also a bit of a control freak and the ability to create entire worlds, people, or relationships, is too good for me to pass up.
Alyssa, to be able to leave a legacy that survives you is in my opinion one of the most extraordinary gifts you can make to your children and their children, and to the rest of humanity. To this day it is the writing and the stories of ancient cultures that fascinate us most. There’s a reason for that.
A legacy would be nice. But I think it was Kafka who wanted his best friend to burn all of his manuscripts upon his demise. I’m sort of the same way with a LOT of the stuff I’ve written and hoarded. Some of it may be worth reading down the road, though.
I used to see it that way with my sketches. I hated showing my work to others if it wasn’t where I wanted it to be. But my teachers taught me to not rip anything out of my sketchbooks, no matter how bad it is. You never know you may look back at what you did and find inspiration for it that will make it what you want it to be. It could also show you how far you have progressed in your craft when you look back and see what you used to do.
Part of the fun for me is the creative journey you go on when your working on a project. All of the mistakes you learn from, all of the time and skill you have to put in to make something worthwhile. I wouldn’t mind showing my children that talent isn’t just natural that you have to practice and hone your skills.
I like your idea of a “creative journey.” Maybe that’s why I keep a lot of my stuff, too. You can go back and see the phases you’ve gone through, which means there are more phases ahead. Good luck with your writing.
This is why I write. http://www.etiennetoussaint.com/your-story-has-value-share-it/
Etienne, I read your thoughtful blog on your site. If only more people were as thoughtful and considerate… especially those running corporations and governments!
I have many stories in my head, and while I can entertain my psychiatrist with them, I prefer to share them with others not medicating me. (As you can read, writing is my creative means of handling my BPD.)
Agreed, much better to share your stories with the public than your shrink!
Thanks!
Well, for me, it’s OCD, so I know what you mean. But for the rates psychiatrists charge, they should be the ones entertaining us!
You speak the truth!
Happy New Year, everyone! As to the question of why I write, hmmm…. About like everyone else has mentioned.
I write because I have to write. I think I’ve forgotten how to do anything else! When you’re immersed in writing every day, other duties can fade into oblivion. Until you visit someone else’s super neat house and remember that yours could–should–look like this, if you didn’t spend so much time in front of the computer.
I write because I’m opinionated. (Ask me what I think, any subject.) Also because I’m a natural-born teacher. I love helping others learn, which is why I so much enjoyed tutoring immigrant ladies learning English. Folks appreciate it.
Some people avoid learning–don’t want to hear about needed improvements –so I use humor at times to illustrate how life works when you don’t know. I like to use humorous fiction as a kind of mirror to show folks how our human weaknesses look when you stand back a bit.
Yes, I’d like to leave a legacy, enlighten the world just a bit on subjects where I myself have seen the light. I’m also discontent with current trends in children’s literature. In a society where people drive their children to school every morning for fear they may be abducted, to see the promotion of protagonists who run hither and yon without any accountability–or even parents–makes me shudder.
I write because my grandchildren beg for story-telling. They say, “Grandma, you should write a whole stack of books!”
Christine,
Your comment warmed my heart. Teaching and sharing are the most wonderful reasons to write, especially when children are concerned. I very much share your sentiments about children’s literature… especially being a parent. When I was growing up in the Czech Republic, I was reading The Hobbit, The Monkey King from China, a book of fables from Oceania, and a beautiful illustrated novel called Amis and Amil, in old Czech. There is real beauty in these works, that seems to be missing from so many books sold to/for children, especially the older ones.
It’s one of the reasons why the novel I’m working on now is targetted to the older child readers. To give them that sense of wonder and beauty, but also the ancient wisdom and life lessons they so deeply need in life.
I’d love to see some of your work. Do you have a web site? If your work is good I’d be happy to introduce you to my publisher who is currently looking for good children’s authors in the area of historical fiction (novels, not illustrated books).
Yes, I have a website and that gives the links to my blogs, also a short historical fiction story I wrote. the address is
christinegoodnough.ca
Great thanks. Can you point me to the exact URL of the short story?
http://www.christinegoodnough.ca/en/short-stories/
This was written more for adults, but it gives an idea of my writing style. Thanks very much for being so encouraging!
Thank you Christine. I’m happy to pass these links along to the publisher to see if your style would be of interest.
That’s why you are so beautiful! You are from the Czech Republic! So was my grand-father (although my own dad was adopted by grandfather), who always bought the seven (7) of us children ice cream when he visited us in Dallas. Needless to say, we loved him very much! And I loved that beautiful accent of his !
Christine, you and I could be soul sisters! You with your English and MOI avec mon français! I wish I had grandchildren…..sigh! Keep writing!
I just read the comment below: “I can’t not write by “ee.” I feel like that as well. I have always had stories in my head, always imagined my own stories from the time I was very small.
Fascinating username! Brings together one of my favorite languages and physical activities. 😉
If you cannot exist without writing, you’ve got the writer’s soul. Go with it. use it. Don’t ever stop.
Our culture teaches us that we should not exercise our creative side. We are taught to leave it to people like J.K. Rowling and Alanis Morissette to be creative. We, ordinary folks, should just go to college, graduate, get a job, get married, have kids and live another ordinary life. Unless you’re good enough to become rich and famous using your creativity, what’s the point?
I write because I think that’s bullshit.
Directly and honestly put, right on! Although, to be frank, either it’s because I come from another country or I must have had blinders on growing up professionally, but I never got or heard that message.
Maybe it’s because I’m brazillian, but generally we don’t get classes that stimulate our creative side in high school, and other things. I actually had people asking me what’s the point of writing if I don’t plan to make living out of it.
Also some other stuff: business students and medicine students are generally respected while we try to avoid that our kids go to arts schools. It’s more important to have a job with a good salary than one that fullfills you.
That comes as a surprise to me, I would have thought Brazil would encourage creativity in its people. However I’ve never been there so that is just an uninformed assumption. It’s really too bad—what’s the point of writing? That’s like asking what’s the point of human civilization.
What you describe reflects a general trend that’s gotten progressively worse with globalization–the trend to define success and happiness through money and status.
If you are in Brazil now, I can imagine trying to make it as a writer is more difficult. But the great thing about social media and web sites like The Write Practice is that you can find new circles, new communities that will support and encourage you. I for one certainly encourage you!
So what kinds of works do you write? Do you have a web site?
It’s funny, Brazil paints itself to the rest of the world like this really big party (which is not entirely wrong, but it’s far from an accurate description of the country), when we have big social issues (mostly with health and education). Maybe you heard of the protests here this year, they were mostly about those matters.
Also, you can’t really make living out of your writing here, even if you’re a big name writer. You better have another source of income otherwise you may starve, even if you have best sellers published. Maybe you know Clarice Lispector? She’s my biggest inspiration and is probably the greatest jewish writer since Kafka. I’m not sure how known she is outside the latin america. The woman was a legend and still struggled with money issues till her last days.
I love studying the humanities so I write a lot about how ordinary people view philosophy and our culture and other cultures. I’m obssessed with simbolism and ritual in modern societies. I don’t have a website, but maybe I’ll create one soon.
I’m majoring in anthropology in college, so I write a lot about stuff I learn in college. I love anthropology so I don’t think I’ll be quitting my future job to be a full-time writer.
Yes of course I know about the protests… a country that does not or cannot support its artists is not a fulfilled society.
Have you thought about running an online group or forum with other young Brazilian writers? What about connecting with the expat readership, i.e. Brazilians who live abroad? You have the whole world open to you, through the Internet. If you do not find success in your home country, that doesn’t mean you won’t find it elsewhere. Just gotta push the accepted “boundaries” a little.
Yes, yes. I’m working on trying to establish an online group of Brazilian writers. Let’s see how that turns out.
Good! Keep me posted on how things go. If you do get it going, email me and I’ll feature it in my newsletter. 😉
info (@) birgitterasine (dot) com
Will do, thanks!
Gustavo, came across this book during some research recently that reminded me of our conversation here, check it out; http://www.amazon.com/Out-Our-Minds-Learning-Creative-ebook/dp/B005CKKETU
I think a lot of cultures do this. I think our culture one hand idealizes creativity while on the other de-values it. Like your creativity doesn’t matter unless you can also perform well academically. It’s stifling.
I write to make a difference, my words to become a bridge from one heart to another. I struggle with the intensity of what I want to write and what people want to hear. But I’m growing and becoming more brave. I would lie if I said that each of the four reasons to write didn’t surface on occasion to some degree. But mainly it’s a change I’m seeking.
The story I most long to tell is of brokenness and healing. My dream is to travel Europe to meet women rescued from the sex trade, and the people who have helped them be free. To tell their stories. To put a face on the numbers, to inspire hope and motivate compassion. I have a good number of contacts in Eastern Europe already now all I need is the courage and resources!
Beck that is one heck of a project. Tough, emotional, complex. My hat off to you! Please keep us posted on your progress. This is a crucial story to tell.
I believe that each of us is given a calling. We’re welcome to suck at it, but a calling it is. Honestly, it’s the only thing I’m good at (I hope my crit partner isn’t reading this, she may have just shot milk out her nose). But honestly, I have an engineering degree, but I’m not sure why. I’m not much of an engineer (don’t worry, I didn’t design your brakes, they found someplace safe for me). I’ve tried woodworking, gardening, child-raising. Suck at all of them. Just ask my kids. But writing is the one thing I’ve ever done that seems to work well. It doesn’t matter if I make money. Even bad engineers get a nice paycheck. But if I hit the end of my life and I’d never written, I would honestly feel like God would say, “Whoa…I gave you 80 years and one decent talent, what have you been doing?” I really don’t want to have to answer that. I’m sure that hitting the highest score in Mortal Combat wouldn’t be acceptable.
Thanks for the opening pitch for 2014! Happy New Year and God bless a great website!
Ron, you should write for SNL. 🙂
Blessed are those who know their calling, I say. I knew mine at age 6, but it still took forever to get published. So yes, stick to it, persevere at it, don’t let anyone take it away from you. It’s yours and yours alone, for life.
I will never forget what an ex once told me, when we were both very young—he told me he envied me having a passion, because he didn’t have one.
So if you have one, nurture it.
p.s. Ok, so where are you working as an engineer so I know not to buy their products? 🙂
Ron, you and I might be soul brother/sister! I teach French, but sometimes I think I am just not that good at teaching! I do adore my two grown children, however, and they seem to adore me back. So that is a major achievement! I am positive that each of us has something absolutely unique that we are supposed to do in this life. More on that later — and don’t give up ! Keep writing !
I write to see my thoughts outside my mind and compare them to the thoughts of people. I write because I am so bad at saying what I feel with my mouth. I write to slow down my thought process enough so that I can see where it came from and where it is going. I write to explore ideas in a way that I can share with others and combine with other ideas to make them stronger and clearer. I write to reach outside my little bubble in time and space and maybe connect to other people looking for ideas and stories to add to their collective conscious journey. We are all traveling in time. Writing is a way to jump forward, reading builds a bridge from the past to the future. We are building that bridge.
Amen to that! I too often feel the way I express myself vocally comes nowhere near the eloquence of the written word. Although… you sure can practice! 🙂
I thought about this question a lot yesterday. And I thought about it some more today. I don’t write to change the world. I’ve written to figure out who I am, but that is nothing I’m going to publish–that was for me. I don’t want to be rich and famous. And I certainly don’t write to leave a legacy. So that brought me right back to the question: why do I write?
I guess the only answer I have is: why the hell not? Why NOT write? I love it. I’m sometimes good at it. If I practice and work hard I might one day be published. And if I never am published, if no one ever reads a word I’ve written creatively, so what? I think it was Byron who said something along the lines of at least I’d have gotten some enjoyment out of it.
Is this is a good enough reason to write? I don’t know. It’s the only answer I have at the moment however.
Giulia, it’s great you spent so much time thinking about this. The four “reasons” in my post are by no means exhaustive—there are myriad reasons to write. You’ll find the kind of writer you are, in other words the kind of writing you do, generally aligns with, or follows on the heels of, your reasons for writing.
If the only reason you can think of now is that you love writing, great. If you’re equally happy whether or not anyone reads your work, great. But just as you ask, why NOT write, I ask you, why NOT want people to read your work?
Keep thinking about it. Maybe let it simmer in the back of your mind for a while. You might suddenly realize a deeper reason, some day.
I do want others to read my work. What I meant was, even if no one ever does, say if I never get published or takes me ten years to get published, then at least I’ll have done something I love. But I’ll keep thinking on it for sure!
I think as long as it’s something you’re doing for YOU, then you can’t go wrong. I like your attitude toward publication, too. All you can do is submit and hope for the best. The rest is out of your control anyway.
I would respectfully disagree with “the rest is out of your control” — not anymore. If a traditional publisher turns you down, you can set up your own publishing firm, or just publish directly. It’s a lot more work, but the options are out there if you do really wish to be published.
Of course, you still need to pay as much as attention to quality and professionalism as any other established publisher.
I agree with you, Birgette. There are lots more options for getting your work “out there” these days. I guess what I meant by “out of your control” is you can’t control an agent’s or reader’s taste, you can’t force people to buy your book (although you can certainly entice them), you can’t control your number of sales (although you can definitely keep promoting). But this is the case whether you self-publish or go through traditional channels.
I know exactly why I write. I write to dream big. To teach the new and the old. To do God’s will. It’s more komplex than that, so maybe you want to read a bit more about it? Here we go:
http://rickenba.ch/blog/en/2013/05/22/why-i-write-this-blog/
Ralph, let me ask you something I’ve always wondered when it comes to infusing faith into one’s writing: is your writing part of God’s will, in which case do you consider your words to be truly your own, or do you write to express various aspects of your faith through your writing, or is it meant to bring the non believing into the fold?
Or something completely different?
I am sharing what I learned. I do not weigh my words, but try to be precice in what I say. My writing flows from a life lived in awe towards God, hungry and thirsty to go deeper in my relationship with God.
I am a teacher in the church, but mostly so far for people that already are believers. I see myself as called as a teacher as in Ephesians 4:11-16, and so do my church and my leaders.
Lately I find that unchurch people with little background in christian religion react positive to my writing – much more than some conservative christians do.
I believe that it is God’s will that I write my blog. I also think that he points me to the topics to write about and guides me both in life and bible study.
I hope that answers your question. Thank you for your interest.
For years I didn’t really question WHY I write … I just wrote … compulsively. Then a year ago I was diagnosed with OCD and started to realize that’s exactly what my writing is … a compulsion. In fact, a psychologist asked me if I enjoy writing, and I responded I was too busy writing to know if I did or not. At the same time, I started to realize that querying agents on a daily basis was having a VERY negative effect to the extent that I found myself writing to please agents rather than my own “Muse.” So, now I’m trying to “get back” to the basics, the way the Beatles tried with “Let It Be.” Of course, it didn’t work out so well for them. BUT … I think my main reason for writing is really fairly simple: to see what happens next!
Bob, this is so interesting. It’s not every day you hear this particular reason for writing. What kinds of works do you write? Has that changed over the years or has it always been the same?
If you can somehow slow down and feel out what it is that inspires you to write, tease out the difference between the physical process of writing, the rush of completing X number of words, and the real passion of creating and telling stories, you might discover there’s more to your writing than a compulsion.
I think the question to ask is not whether you enjoy writing but whether you enjoy telling stories.
Thanks, Birgitte. I see where others have also posted that they write because they need to or have to. Slowing down is something I’ve been trying to do lately. I was always trying to hurry up and complete a couple of novels at once, but with novel writing you can’t hurry the process (unless you’re Kerouac or Faulkner maybe). Lately, I find I’m enjoying shorter pieces: nonfiction essays and satires. These are things you can post to places like Yahoo! Voices or The Spoof right away.
Speed is a curious sidekick, isn’t it? You can spend way too much time researching, editing and re-editing, or mulling over your characters. Or you can bulldoze through and end up with too young a wine, as it were.
I find each work has its own natural rhythm. My own short story “Confession” literally poured out of me over a few days in 2001; while “Verse in Arabic” took several rounds of fine-tooth editing. So don’t worry so much about your velocity in general, just find the right rhythm for each work you’re doing. Enjoy the short fiction! It’s fun.
I should do a blog post on speed.
Sorry to jump in late, but thanks for the great post. I have many reasons to write, but a major one is—as others have said—I have stories and ideas in my head that I can’t just bottle up. For me, writing out those ideas is only half the fun. The other half is exploring, twisting, and tweaking those ideas into something I can share with others.
It’s never late to write in, Jesse. At least not here. 😉
It sounds like you really enjoy writing. Good for you! It should be fun. It’s supposed to be fun. Of course, the other side of it is all that craft and research and editing and sculpting your narrative into a work of art. But that shouldn’t change why you write.
That’s true! From my own experiences, research and editing has been a lot of work, but I do enjoy it—at least in this stage of my writing progress.
why we write can be a sweeping question.i tried to question myself and understand the passion of writing.I have even tried to write a post about it in my personal blog.I have not discovered a complete or thorough answer but i know how it all started. i was writing diary in my early college life to vent my anguish, unexpressed emotions and everything worth noting. few months later , i revisited those pages and was surprised to see what i have become.This inspired and prompted me to write more. For me this is acknowledging my life and realizing every bit of myself. I’m hopeful to contribute something significant to the world i live in.