Why We Write
I found this little gem on twitter. It was born during the writer's strike last year and it has some really very interesting stories from some very well known (and some not) writers answering the question - why we write.
Here's my take. Feel free to add your own, you writers out there.
http://whywewriteseries.wordpress.com/
I was 16 when I started writing, more out of low self esteem rather than delusions of grandeur. Mr. Christianson, my 11th grade creative writer teacher, would pick a story to read every Monday. Mostly they were funny anecdotes about cutting the crotch out of ex-boyfriend's jeans or mildly interesting fiction. I didn't pay much attention to it; I only took creative writing because I needed the extra credit. I wrote a story about a woman who has her coffee maker taken hostage by the mail man. I was seriously bored. One Monday, he picked mine to read aloud. The first time someone laughed at the appropriate spot in the story, I was hooked.
I suppose the question should be – ‘Can I write?’ as opposed to why I do it. Technically, I'm not the best writer. The commas eludes me. But why does anyone do anything? Fame? That would be awesome. Money? Yeah, that’s awesome, too. Is it to right the world of obvious injustices or to convince yourself, for even a few hours, that what you’ve created would interest other people as much as it did you?
There is nothing more spectacular, or addictive, than creating a character out of nothing. To be able to convey emotions through the written world is fucking hard, but when you succeed, it’s exhilarating.
I write because I want people to see what I see, to feel what I feel, and to dream what I dream; to give that person the ‘ah ha!’ moment and to elicit a specific emotion is sweeter than the sweetest jeebah.
I write because I’m good at it. Granted my grammar and punctuation isn’t all that great, but writing enables me to live beyond the confines of my 3 bedroom, 2 bath duplex. Every day I take a tired, used up idea and make it my own, hopefully making it better…and then I let it go. Imagine writing like a sift, filtering a hundred ideas but keeping the good ones. Take that goop and turn it into a moment in time AND have it make sense, giving the reader your understanding, your sympathies, and forcing them to see your words as a wondrous entity. It’s like whispering a secret into someone’s ear and making them think about what you just created.
I write because it allows me to conversationally curse properly. It allows me to say what I really wanted to say; to verbally backhand without the jail time. I can make fun of myself without the embarrassment. I can show you how painful I think love is without having to suffer. I can do all these things with just words on a paper.
How fucking cool is that?
Den
16 years ago
Well said :)
tamaelia
16 years ago
It's very fucking cool, Roz :) I like your writing, I enjoy reading it and find it easy to read and definately keeps me interested. You have a style I enjoy and am glad you like writing.
I like to write but am too lazy to stay at it. I have written the odd short story or character background. I have not studied writing techniques beyond highschool. I think I would enjoy it in the same ways that you describe. My mother writes, and she is quite good at it. She has won the odd prize for short stories and had a couple published. I would like her to finish her novel. She has it about half done on paper, though I am sure she has it all in her head.
I think writing becomes easier the more you do it. I think it helps to have a good proof-reader. I like to read my writing aloud to check it for cohesion and readability. Even just boring essays for study. One of my biggest peeves is poorly written text, especially in documents purporting to be news. If Fairfax can't take the time to proof-read their own articles, why would I want to read them? And TV tickers that have typos half an hour after they first start scrolling... doesn't anyone in the station actually watch what is on the screen? It kills me.
I like to read. I like to read lots of different things. I am glad Roz likes to write, I like reading her thoughts. Keep it up!
I like to write but am too lazy to stay at it. I have written the odd short story or character background. I have not studied writing techniques beyond highschool. I think I would enjoy it in the same ways that you describe. My mother writes, and she is quite good at it. She has won the odd prize for short stories and had a couple published. I would like her to finish her novel. She has it about half done on paper, though I am sure she has it all in her head.
I think writing becomes easier the more you do it. I think it helps to have a good proof-reader. I like to read my writing aloud to check it for cohesion and readability. Even just boring essays for study. One of my biggest peeves is poorly written text, especially in documents purporting to be news. If Fairfax can't take the time to proof-read their own articles, why would I want to read them? And TV tickers that have typos half an hour after they first start scrolling... doesn't anyone in the station actually watch what is on the screen? It kills me.
I like to read. I like to read lots of different things. I am glad Roz likes to write, I like reading her thoughts. Keep it up!
LillianaSapphire
16 years ago
I tend to write to vent the way i feel. i started a diary again this year, and I've already written 50+ pages. Its a way of release for me so i can vent my troubles on a book, instead of infiicting them on the world.....
Jetamio
16 years ago
I love making up fiction in my head, but I am way too lazy to actually sit and write it all down. There is also the fear that if I took all that time to write it down, that no-one would like it and I would have that sense of failure...again. While I am still emotionally recovering from my past, I am not ready to face the prospect of failure yet.
But one day I will be ready to take that plunge and actually write one of the many stories in my head. I would love to be a professional writer, but I feel that it is something that is going to be a big part later in my life rather than now.
I know I can do it, but still doubt I can do it good enough to make it yet. Hell, I know I only passed high school English because I had to write fiction for the exam instead of writing an essay about something that does not interest me. It was never my grammar or spelling that failed me, its my ability (or lack of) to write what I think or feel in words. I can only do it in fiction, writing about someone else who is or has experienced some of the issues I have faced.
But one day I will be ready to take that plunge and actually write one of the many stories in my head. I would love to be a professional writer, but I feel that it is something that is going to be a big part later in my life rather than now.
I know I can do it, but still doubt I can do it good enough to make it yet. Hell, I know I only passed high school English because I had to write fiction for the exam instead of writing an essay about something that does not interest me. It was never my grammar or spelling that failed me, its my ability (or lack of) to write what I think or feel in words. I can only do it in fiction, writing about someone else who is or has experienced some of the issues I have faced.