Medieval writing desk (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Well, why do you? If you are a writer, that is. 
It’s an interesting question. Me, I’ve been writing for years, but it’s only the past five or six years that I’ve taken it seriously at all. After reading a lot of books, I started to think that some of the stories in my head could find an outlet in that way too. Let’s face it, with a lot of the stuff I was reading, I was sure I could do better.
Of course, that’s easier said than done, but the feedback I’ve had on some of my completed works (unpublished, that is) is that maybe I can. Do better, that is. If nothing else, it’s been encouraging, which is why I kept at it. I’m not someone who is so full of ideas that I would still be writing even if everyone hated my work. I need to believe that I can get somewhere with it, that I can have people I’ve never met read my words and be moved by them, in order to do it.
I know that this may be considered conceited, admitting that I don’t necessarily write for the love of it. The thing is, though, that I do, albeit in my own way. The way I see it is that I’ve already written the never-to-be-published stories. What I want to do now is take that next step, and write something that could be published, perhaps even by a publishing house. I have nothing against self-publishing and I may go down that path myself, but there’s a part of me that wants the external validation that getting an agent and a book deal provides.
Perhaps you write to be published, too. Perhaps you feel, as I do, that it’s time for you to try to take that next step. Or perhaps you write because you need to, because it’s your raison d’être, because if you didn’t you would go crazy. Perhaps you’re somewhere in the middle and you’re writing something that you think might end up in the wider world, but you’re not sure. Perhaps you’ve got a story you want to tell and you have no idea where it will take you. Perhaps you’ve seen The Hunger Games and want to get in on that whole YA dystopian thing, or maybe pen the next erotica mega-hit. Perhaps you just like the feel of creating something and you have no intention of ever showing it to anyone.
The thing is, we are all different, and while our reasons for writing may sound the same on some levels, I suspect that once you delve right in, they are in fact all different too. Unique in their own way. We have different motivations, different expectations and different hopes and dreams about where our writing might take us. And I think we should celebrate this.
There are some people who judge others based on the reason they write. They turn up their noses at the idea of jumping on a bandwagon or writing for profit, saying that it should be for the love of the craft. Or they wonder aloud why anyone would waste their time on something that can never earn them a pay cheque. But I think this is self-defeating behaviour. We all have something in common, in that we all write. We all share a passion. And this is something that should be celebrated; that should be used as a reason to meet new people, not alienate them.
Why do you write? It’s probably a reason unique to you. And, really, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you do it at all.
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That was another excellent post today. You make it look so easy. Thanks so much for sharing. I really enjoyed reading it very much. Have a wonderful day!
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Because I love to communicate and share stories. I suspect I am more storyteller than writer!
I think that’s a common thing, Pauline. There are a lot of great storytellers out there. Trouble is that a lot of them can’t write very well, I’ve found … but then again, plenty of them can. If you’re a natural storyteller then I cant’ wait to read that book you’ve told us about.
This is really honest, and really refreshing. It’s almost like writing for the purpose of *gasp* earning an actual living is taboo in the writing community; if you’re one of “those writers,” you aren’t supposed to admit it, or you risk diminishing your credibility and perceived love for the craft, which really isn’t fair.
I’m very young, and not very experienced on the professional side of writing. I’m a college student, and by no means on authority on what it means to be a writer. But my story is this: I’ve never been the kind of writer that writes in a constant, feverish, have-to-get-this-out-of-me-or-I’ll-explode sort of way. I don’t write all the time. Sometimes my writing is spaced out; it can be weeks between pieces. But every so often, seemingly out of nowhere, I’ll get a thought, an idea, an urge, and my innate response has always been to let it pour out on paper. Believe me when I say that there is nothing, absolutely nothing, in the entire world, that I love more than sitting down at my desk and writing. It is, and has always been, when I feel most alive.
And that’s how I know that I’m doing the right thing; that I picked the right major, that my career path is one that makes sense, and that I have chosen a life of fulfillment. That’s how I know I’m telling the truth when I say, “I am a writer.”
Thanks Emma! I think that there is a lot of destructive behaviour, not only in the writing community but within every profession. The trouble seems to be that when there’s creativity involved, some people seem to get hung up on being “artistic” rather than just focusing on what the craft is. I think we should just celebrate the fact that we are all creative rather than making judgements about where that creativity is focussed.
I think you’ve gone about things the right way. You know what you want to do and how you want to get there, and no one should criticise that. If you love writing, then write. It’s as simple as that.
Good luck!
Interesting post!
Here’s an blog on why I write:
http://lanceeliotadams.com/?p=268
I hope you have a great week!
Lance
@lanceliot
Thanks Lance! I’ll certainly check that out as soon as I have a spare minute. *bookmarks page* Cheers
Great post! I think that my motivation for writing pretty closely matches yours. I do write because if I don’t, I’ll go crazy, but I have a hard time believing that I’d finish anything if others hated it.
I, too, would like the validation of having an agent and getting published the traditional way, though I don’t have anything against self publishing.
And finally, there was that frustration of going to the bookstore and not seeing what I wanted to read. Set out to write it myself, then
This post, as another commenter said, was refreshing. I think we writers tend to get a little “hipster” and many of us attack those who want to do this for a living, or for the praise/criticism of others.
Thanks Avery! I knew I wasn’t alone out there – while writing in itself is still a joy, I would lack the motivation to finish things if I didn’t think there was an audience. It sounds like your story is remarkably like mine.
Best of luck!
Another great post. Emily, you always touch on the things I want to express but take infinity to beyond to say it so concisely. Also, my reservedness makes me so afraid of being honest. So I commend your honesty! You and Avery are people I can relate to
It’s time for me to be honest.
I used to have the tagline ‘writing for the love of writing’ on my blog. and I wrote my first book because I wanted to get it out of my system; to grief in a legitimate way for a sister gone and other tragic events in my life which has caused me pain and grief and illness. Hence, my new approach to my blog: musings on life and writing moments. I still love writing but in the same way you have honestly commented on. Writing is a means of expression, yes? even though I’m self-published, I wouldn’t say I truly am. I published with a subsidy press only because I wanted to get my book printed for me and my family and friends – a showcase to prove I can do it. Dreams do come true. Like Avery too, I wrote a book I couldn’t find in the bookstore. No books could give my sis the love story she deserved.
Thank you, Emily. You have an uncanny knack to tell it as it is.
Thanks Alison! I think it’s important to understand why you write, but I also think that getting uptight if that reason doesn’t match some sort of ideal is not very productive. I think it’s great that you wrote the book you needed to read and that creating it helped you get through a difficult time in your life. That should be more than enough for anyone. Thank you for your lovely comment about my blog, too. I feel very flattered that I’ve been able to strike a chord with you like that.
Judging people because they do things differently from yourself is always stupid/unnecessary, so I totally agree that those attitudes you mention (‘What? You’re not an artist?’) are pointless to the extreme, but then, I find that there are lots of people who look at it from the perspective of a craft, which seems to me to be an entirely sensible point of view.
My reasons for writing are somewhere in the middle as well. I have stories in my head that I need to get out because they won’t let me be, but I also really, really need people to like those stories. And I had to smile when reading that you think you can do better than a lot of the books in the bookstores, because, as arrogant as it sounds, I think the same. I don’t admit at easily and feel a little guilty for saying it, but while we’re being honest…
Thank you so much. There is some conceit there,I think, but that doesn’t mean it has to be misplaced conceit. Maybe both of us really can do better – not necessarily better than the classics and the great authors, but perhaps some of the others. But we will only find out if we try. Best of luck to you!