Why I Write

As much as I DREAM about being able to write for a living, that definitely isn't what motivates me. Why do I carve out the time to do the oh-so tedious tasks of plotting out physical attributes and personality traits? Research locations for my settings into the wee hours of the night? Take hours toiling over names for these faceless characters who live inside my head until the day that they choose to claw their way onto a fresh Word document? The answer is fairly simple - because it keeps me as close to sane as I'm capable of being by giving me a much needed outlet from....well....real life. I get high off the way a story unfolds as it progresses from one page to another, transforming itself into something completely different than what I originally intended for it to be. The beauty of witnessing what can transpire when you take that first step into the boundless world of writing is somewhat addictive.

When I write, I can be whoever I want to be. My characters (yes, all of them) are nothing more than segments of who I really am. None of them completely embody my personality as a whole, but there's always a little bit of me in there. Even the bad ones? Yup! Them too! Isn't it like that for everyone, though? I mean.....you have the chance to be that girl who wasn't afraid of what would happen if she went after that guy even though everything but her heart told her not to. You get to be that guy who makes his living breaking the hearts of women based solely on the fact that he's got the balls to do it. Writing gives us all the freedom to, mentally at least, cast aside our natural inclination to abide within the confines of social norms and step over to the dark side that we work so hard to suppress. Admit it :)

So, yeah.....that pretty much sums it up. I write because, when I do, I'm free. Free to do what I want, say what I want, love who I want, love as MANY as I want, as OFTEN as I want :), hate who I want, be who I want.......and nobody can tell me that I did it wrong. The reason? Because every line, be it triumphant or in err, is mine. For those who write, do it because you love it and never give it up based on someone else's opinion of you or your work.

Favorite writing quote by an unknown contributor: "writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards." Love it!