With the official release of the How To Think Sideways Writers Anthology, I thought it might be interesting to explore the reason we are driven to create, and specifically why some of us are drawn to making pictures with words. Why is it that I sit down almost every day to write some words, even if sometimes my head hurts, or sometimes I’m so tired my 
eyes are ready to fall closed, and write until my cat comes around to remind me that it’s time to eat? Why do I sacrifice overtime at work, turn off the telephone and the television, even put aside a book to write my own words? It didn’t take me long to figure out why, but I thought it might be fun to share my thoughts.
Why I write:
- Writing enhances my experience of the world around me. Everything I see, hear, touch, smell and taste gains a new dimension as I fit words around it, trying to store as much as I can for future story reference. It’s a fun way to live!
- I write to escape. Ah, the irony. Even though my experience of the world is deeper because I write, I still yearn to escape it? With words, though, I take the experiences I have and turn them into something completely new and different. I can live inside a world of my own creation if I choose. What could be more fun than that?
- I write to make happy endings, or at least find some meaning in how our world works and why we’re here in it.
- I write because I love words. Even though it makes me want to tear my hair out when the words come out crooked, once I get a sentence that sings there is peace in my universe.
- I write to leave my mark upon the world—these are my cave paintings, this is me howling at the moon.
Holly Lisle’s Adventure of Creation Anthology features thirty-five talented writers from her classrooms, each with their own story about creation leaving a mark upon the world, and it’s available today. I’m looking forward to checking it out!
Why do you write? What brings peace to your universe?
Kirsten, it’s a great question and I can’t completely say. I do get some of the charge you have here, describing the alleged-real world in writing terms, seeing things from a narrative point of view now.
But overall I was hounded into it- by the characters themselves, and one in particular. When I finally gave up claim to rationality (overrated anyway, I must say) and adopted the view “this world I’m seeing is fully real, and my job is not to write- as in making things up- but just to chronicle what I see”, I not only was able to put tales on paper, I felt much more at peace. Like a pressure valve was cracked at least part-way open.
So I chose to value my own sanity over the good opinion of the world! And that probably goes a long way to explaining the sales report… but I am far happier now to be up and doing this job in my spare time than before when I tried to pretend it was a question of “writing”.
That is so cool, Will.
I have to agree that I often question my own sanity, as these worlds within my mind claim more and more of my real world time, not to mention having characters (and a wayward Muse 😉 ) tell me what to write. But the fulfillment I get from it is immeasurable.
Well put!
I write for some of the same reasons as you. Mainly to escape and to leave something of me behind. 🙂
I had no idea so many writers share my wish to have some time away from the pressures of reality! It was hard to share that, actually, but now that I know I’m not alone I feel a bit relieved. 🙂
Escape!! It usually starts that way, but often my writing turns into affirmations – we can rise above chaos, the weak can triumph and, my personal favorite, love can fix any boo-boo. And, besides, my characters are so damn cool sometimes I just want to spend time with them.
Love can fix anything is one of my themes as well. 🙂
Is it wrong to want to spend time with imaginary people? I think not! (For writers, anyway …)
Very cool.
Escape was my first reason. (Same with reading.) I also wrote to read the stories I couldn’t find anywhere else.
Yes, this too. 🙂
I think Toni Morrison nailed it when she said, “Write the book you want to read.”
I saw that quote after I wrote my first story (a mess, but I loved it) but agreed that is exactly what I had set out to do. 🙂 It makes the writing so much fun to think I’m creating a story like no other!
This is such a beautiful post Kirsten, thanks for sharing! I write because it’s how I find my creative and spiritual centre and how I process the craziness that is me. It wasn’t until recently I realised not everyone writes and makes up stories in their heads. How crazy! The world needs more people in tune with their creative self 🙂
Thanks, Anushka 🙂
I think a lot more people have stories inside them than we think, but it’s true–not everyone does. These pictures in our heads are something special, aren’t they? But writing is certainly a great way to come to terms with ourselves and the world.
Beautiful post. I write because it brings me peace. It is a way to explain my world and gives me courage.
Thanks, Kate.
All of us sharing stories and posts via the Internet sure makes the world a happier place to be, doesn’t it? There’s something magical about that …
I write because I am fascinated and that is how I explore questions, thoughts, ideas, possibilities, answers—through creation. That is why I think fandom is largely so different than traditional writer mindset: we write fascinated.
I think you’re on to something with this– but I think all writers are explorers in the sense you describe. We’re just exploring different worlds, or like I think of it, playing in different sandboxes.
And I love how you put it: ‘We write fascinated.’
It makes me want to give fan fiction a shot! 🙂
The reasons why you write are all great 🙂
I’m not sure why I write. I used to be obsessed with writing when I was young, but then I stopped doing it until about 20 years later, in August 2009, something in my brain went, “Oh, I have this cool idea and I should totally write it!” And I’ve been writing ever since.
So I suppose I write because I have stories to tell 🙂
It’s funny how we remember that first story! I finished mine about that same time, in September 2009. 🙂
I thought it was the only story I had in me …
(The Muse is giggling hysterically. 😉 )
Having a story to tell is the best reason of all to write!
Indeed a difficult question. Escape and exploring my imagination is at the top of my list… I have so many ideas and stories I want to delve into, and writing lets me do that. Great post.
Thanks Tania!
Exploration is a cool way to look at it. 🙂
I love this post! A lot of my own reasons for writing have been mentioned here already by you and others–and I especially love the reference to cave paintings. That’s it exactly. That, and because the voices in my head keep telling me to. Writers all have voices in their heads, right? They’re the voices of characters whose stories are clamoring to be told. I think most of us write because we have to.
The cool thing I’ve discovered is that the more I write the clearer those voices seem to become!
I find it fascinating to wonder about the origin of our drive to create– and it’s probably no accident that many of my stories have that as part of the theme. 🙂