This
post is part of the series "Why I Write"
Thank you
to Robin Flanigan for selecting me to
participate in this blog hop.
Why do I write?
How do you answer this question? It's a conundrum. There are too many ways to answer this, and there are not enough. This is a question that requires a great deal of thought and soul-searching but also one that is easily answered because the reasons have been with you forever.
I write because I love to write.
I write because I need to write.
I'm certain that many bloggers who have participated in this series have said similar things. What can you do? It's true.
I love words. When I choose a book to read, I think about it in terms of whether I’ll munch on it like a Chips Ahoy cookie or savor it like a gourmet chocolate mousse. That determines when and where I’ll read it. Will I toss it in my beach bag, bring it with me to the dentist, or save it for when I have a large chunk of time and can curl up with a glass of wine or cup of tea? When I write, it’s the same way. I craft microfiction (in 140 characters or less), create flash fiction, twist fairy tales into humorous satire, and write lengthier pieces about parenting or my children’s disabilities for litmags and local newspapers. Whatever I’m writing at the time, I’m feeling the satisfaction of putting those words on paper. Whether I’m laughing about a silly dragon story or digging deeper and bleeding onto the page while I relive a family crisis, it’s all me. It's all writing. It’s all an amazing, indescribable feeling.
The statement "I need to write" may seem a bit dramatic but it stems from my inability to feel complete or content unless I am creating something with words. It's a restless, itchy sort of thing. I started journaling and jotting down short stories when I was about nine years old. I've been writing ever since. I wrote poems for my friends, book reviews of The Little Mermaid or Charlotte's Web, plays for my stuffed animals, and newsletters of my wildly exciting life as a 9-yr-old kid.
There is nothing else I’d rather do.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Although... There is one more reason I write. It's therapeutic. This is not something I just realized but more something I’ve rediscovered. Or maybe it’s been brought to my attention recently. I write because I need to vent. Sometimes I scribble in a journal, sometimes I type it out on my blog. (Lucky you.) Writing is a comfortable outlet. It's easy for me to rant on paper. And, when all is said and done, I have a story to keep or share.
I guess a short answer is I write because it is part of who I am.
Why do you write?
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I'm tagging these three lovely ladies. Please check out the blogs and books of these wonderful writers and watch for their posts on why they write:
Loni Townsend
Wife. Mother. Writer. Ninja. Squirrel.
By day, she writes code. By predawn darkness, she writes fantasies. All other times, she writes in her head. People call her peculiar with a twisted sense of fashion, but don't let those understatements fool you. Her behavior is perfectly normal for a squirrel disguised as a human. That's part of being an epic ninja—blending in.
She makes her home in Idaho with her sadistically clever—yet often thwarted—husband, two frighteningly brilliant children, and three sneaky little shibas.
Loni blogs at Squirrel Talk. Her novel, Thanmir War, is available for purchase in both paperback and e-book here.
Georgia Bell
Writer, reader, navel gazer. YA author. Mother of son. Drinker of wine and scotch. Eater of chocolate.
Georgia Bell was raised on a steady diet of science fiction and fantasy, courtesy of her father, a man who loved his family, fishing, scotch, and science (although not necessarily in that order). She is an avid reader of young adult fiction, and a lover of good wine, music, children, and cats (although not necessarily in that order). She is currently hard at work on Unknown, the second book in the All Good Things series.
Georgia blogs at Unbound: All Good Things. The first book in her series is available for purchase here.
Karen Faris
Writer of things large and small. Responsible government proponent and dessert advocate. Author of Grumbles the Novel Trilogy.
As an advocate for responsible government, Karen Faris has been complaining for as long as anyone can remember. Rather than go live on a planet for one, she decided to write fiction about the things she thinks matter.
Her current projects include a time travel novel and Seasonal Adjustment, a story told in novellas.
She has a tendency to get silly because life is too short and too serious too much of the time. Grumbles the Novel is her antidote to that.
Karen resides in Rochester, New York with her husband and son. She enjoys swimming, biking along the Erie Canal, and running almost as fast as she can walk.
On her website, Grumbles the Novel, Karen blogged occastionally until her characters took over the site. Her characters now control their own destiny and are serializing their story. Read along here.
The Grumbles trilogy is available for purchase in both paperback and e-book:
Grumbles: Take a Pill (Book 1)
Grumbles: Take Another Pill (Book 2)
Grumbles: How Many Pills Did You Take (Book 3)
