Authors: Why do you write?

On January 5, 2017, I saw the movie, “Hidden Figures.” It’s a great movie. I encourage you to see it. People were applauding during the film and there was a standing ovation by many in the audience at the end.

What does seeing a movie have to do with the topic of this blog post?

Keep reading. I promise to close that loop by the end.

If you think back on your writing life, you can list a number of motivators for your efforts.

       ·      School assignments

       ·      Love letters and poems

       ·      Letters (maybe emails, but probably not tweets or text messages)

       ·      For fun/Because you like to write

You might have more in your list.

If you are a “writer” and some of your motivators include

       ·      Financial gain

       ·      I have a story I want to tell

       ·      I have a contract/deadline

Again, you might have more on your list.

I asked a group of high school creative writers, “Why do you write?” The question was unannounced and with no explanation other than I was going to write a blog post on that topic. Here are some of their responses.

• To express my creativity in a way that only I can.
• Make something new
• To create new fantastical realities. I’m discovering a moral that I can pull into actual reality and make the reality better.
• Reading what others have written helps me . . . Maybe I can help someone else.
• To put an aspect of myself in at least one character.
• Look at how writing reflects the author’s world. I want to do that.

Quite a spread in thought content, depth of thinking, and grasp of the power of the written word. I was encouraged by the desire to help others. 

"make the reality better," 

"Maybe I can help someone else," and 

"I want to... reflect [my] world." 

Having worked with this group of students for over 16 months, I know them well enough to know that they mean what they said. I've read their writing. They are working hard on accomplishing those things.
I'm proud to be associated with them.

My plan was to close the loop I opened in the introduction before ending this post.

As I’ve been writing this, I’ve had a nagging thought—not as bad as the ear-worm song “It’s a Small World”—but naggy enough to change the direction of this post.

Change direction isn’t quite accurate.

Ah, ha!

. . . naggy enough to alter the timing of sharing my conclusion and closing the loop.

My next writer’s blog will finish this line of thought. I hope that between now and then that you will think about how you would answer

Why do you write?

Until then, write on!

Next: Authors: Why do you write? My answer.

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