Why Write?

This is a bit of a rambling post, so fair warning. When I was early in my writing career, back in my teenager days when I was writing bad Harry Potter fan fiction with my best friend at the time, I barely knew a thing about the craft of writing. (And no, I’m not knocking those who write fan fiction. There are some incredible fan fiction writers out there who even garner the attention of publishers. I was simply not-so-good when I was writing it.) But, I wrote because I loved to write and because it gave me joy. If you’re going to write, do it because you love the craft, because you love to learn and grow as a writer. I believe that as we grow, we become much more critical of our work as we realize the mistakes we’re making.

However, I had several years that I lost my love of writing. My college/late teen/early twenties era when I was quite sick due to my illness, and I even had to drop out of college after my junior year. I was so focused on recovery that I forgot about writing. Around my mid-twenties, I rediscovered my passion for the craft and really began to write my own original work. I wrote passionately and non-stop. I wrote about things I loved, topics that were dear to me. I managed to finish my first manuscript, but it sits in the archives now. That’s when I decided to read everything I could about the craft of writing. I learned quite a bit on structuring plot, creating characters, writing dialogue, and so much more. I wrote a second manuscript, which has grown to be what is now The Days Without You. After that was when I decided to go back to school for my degree.

I’ve learned a lot since those bad fan fiction days, but I look back on those days with fondness. Mind you, I’m about to turn 34 this month, so I’ve got some years under my belt. (I’m—partly—kidding. There are days I feel old when I make jokes about older movies and have to explain my jokes to those who are younger than I. Or, maybe I’m just bad at jokes.) I learned a lot while studying the craft of writing, earning my degree in English and Creative Writing with a concentration in fiction. I even discovered my favorite short story, thanks to one of my professor’s assignments, “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.

I suppose what I’m trying to say is that you should write if you love it, no matter what skill level you’re at. I believe anyone can learn to write, especially those who are truly passionate about it. Those who find pleasure in the unique structure of a sentence. Those who enjoy a book for its world building or a movie for its rigid plot structure and strong character motivations. I recently read a cute little piece of advice on Instagram that if you don’t find joy in writing for others, write for yourself.

Write because you love to write. Because you love the way words fit together. The way different punctuation can give different meanings to a sentence. Just write.