Reasons to Write

We all write for different reasons, and our motivations can have a profound effect on the final product. Here are some of the most common reasons to write:

1. To get your thoughts on paper, and possibly better understand them

2. To share your thoughts, feelings, and beliefs with others

3. Because you have a story to tell

4. Because your characters have a story to tell

5. Because you want to change the world

6. Because you want to help others understand something

7. Because you want to encourage others to write

 

Share your reasons to write or others I may have missed!

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What Inspires you to write?

I am inspired to write by my passions. nature, cooking, music, writing itself.

Inspiration hits in many different ways. Sometimes I end up writing about what I’m doing. I’ll write scenes straight from my life and incorporate them into my stories.

Most of the time though, inspiration spurs creativity. I’ll be making stir-fry and start thinking about the shrimp, and then I might think about when the shrimp were caught and how they reacted. And then I think of lobster, and what they make of aquariums in butcher shops. And so a scene in a seafood shop is born. Or maybe the story of the shrimp that got away. 

My brain goes in a lot of different directions. 

Music inspires me in much the same way. One line in a song will strike me and I;ll end up building a scenario, story, or song of my own around it. It rarely has anything to do with the topic of the original song.

That’s the great thing about words. They can be manipulated, changed, and taken to mean so many different things that very different outcomes can develop from the same phrase. 

So what inspires you?

Content Marketing

As a professional writer, I think a lot about how the internet has affected writing. Not so much language-wise, but process-wise. I saw a great article the other day with tips on how to write a blog post in an hour. It got me thinking, why are we always in such a hurry? Shouldn’t we be worried about writing something meaningful, or artful, or even just good?

I think a lot of this has to do with content marketing. Companies know that they can’t just sell their products. They need to provide value for users and they do that by creating content. But since the content isn’t their main objective, it’s not going to be as thought out as if it were. And so we get one million “how to plant tomatoes” articles, all of which discuss the theories and philisophical aspects of tomato planting, without any step-by-step, actionable advice.

The truth is, the internet is focused on quantity. People want new information, the latest news, the most recent updates. If you don’t update your site multiple times a week, you’re probably losing out on the chance of recurring traffic. And since you always need to have something new, it means you can’t spend vast amounts of time on any individual piece.

So how do you balance time and quality? Do you strive to get blog posts, articles, or stories done in a certain amount of time? Maybe have a word count goal? Share your strategies in the comments.

Who is a Writer?

Recently I was reading a personal finance blog, and in the about page, the blogger had posted “I write, but I’m not a writer.”

I found this interesting. I write because I love to write and because I love to read. I write so that I can be a writer.

But there are other reasons to write. You write to get a message across. You write because you have to. You write because it’s something to do.

It’s interesting to think of writers, not as people who write, but people who embody writing, who fully embrace the action they perform and incorporate it into their overall life.

Are those people the true writers?

Or is a writer anyone who writes?

What about the people with a passion for writing but have no real physical evidence (written/published works)? Are they writers? Aspiring writers? Wanna-bes?

These are all rhetorical questions, but share your thoughts below.

Welcome!

It’s my first post! I’m finally going to sit down and write about writing! And about other interests I have, but mostly about writing and my adventures in trying to live off of it.

So stay tuned!