Although at first that question may sound really silly and dumb, because one might say, well writers write because that’s what they do, I swear that’s not where the story of a writer begins and ends.
What I meant to do by asking that question was to help explore the reasons why writers really write. As someone who has just gotten a glimpse of the writing world, I really wanted to understand why writers fill pages after pages or even an online space with text.
Writers are an interesting breed. Their minds work in a very unique way. They are the observers of the world while it is at play. Their pens (or keyboards) are truly mightier than the sword as they are the ones who spread powerful ideas for the whole world to ponder upon.
Therefore, I thought it would be really insightful to understand what drives a writer, what are his motivations and what keeps him going despite the many struggles that he is sure to face on his way. Of course every writer is different than the other and therefore his motives too. So, let’s see what these can be.
1. To Make An Impact
Some writers have had it with the way things are with the world today. If you observe at a micro scale or a macro one, the world today is riddled with problems that are a result of human greed, jealousy, oppression and a general lack of disregard for one another and the planet as a whole.
These writers try to make an impact on the world by trying to make people aware of the problems and motivating them to take a stand and come up with solutions and be the reasons for change.
Even a small act of kindness by one person can change somebody’s day. Imagine by how much we can change people’s lives if we all came together to help in unison. We are social animals but somehow, we have forgotten the ‘social’ part and are only focused on the ‘animal’ part and that’s the problem.
Therefore, some writers take it on themselves to remind everyone who we are, what we need to do, who/what the actual problems are so all these can help make an impact on society that counts.
2. To Express Their Creativity
Writing is inherently a creative activity. Even if we are writing factual articles, the way each person expresses himself or the subject matter at hand is quite different than the other.
Many writers write to show their creativity because it’s who they are. They are dreamers, story tellers and creators who can paint a picture like no others and can almost make it feel like magic.
The books that you read that take your breathe away or the poems you read that make you shed a tear, are all works of art that were born inside the minds of these writers.
Human creativity is a wonderful thing. It is one of those abilities that made the modern human civilisation possible. Without imagination, there would be no airplanes, computers, space travel or any number of things that are possible today.
3. For The Love of It
There are many things that we do in our lives simply because we enjoy doing them. Hobbies like reading a book, listening to music or playing an instrument, skateboarding or any other number of activities are all done because we love to do them.
The same goes for so many writers who write because they just love it. There is no reason or preferences behind it and they simply do it for their love of writing and sharing ideas with the world, to put their thoughts out there.
Apart from getting the creative juices flowing, it is a great mental exercise too and it can help you manage your thoughts as well. If you love reading, you should also consider writing which is how I started it in the first place!
4. For The Money
Money is a necessary evil in our human lives. Sometimes I think animals are so lucky they don’t have this concept of money. Anyways, we need money to fulfil our basic needs and other desires and wants on top of that.
Although it is widely believe that ‘there is no money in writing’, this doesn’t stop writers from pursuing it. A lot of them do it in addition to their day jobs or any other projects that they do. For this, they write a book or start a blog or if they are really good, write articles for different popular blogs.
With the help of technology there are many websites appearing on the horizon where writers can make a decent amount of money all for sharing their thoughts and ideas and in the future, writing may actually end up being a lucrative job.
Image used, is taken from the public domain.
For me, writing is partly about a sense of community-- it's "social" in some sense. It's also about cleaning out space inside my head-- I find that ideas tend to rattle around in my brain as an eternal distraction, but when I can sit down and write out the concepts and ideas, they not only get clearer, they also get to leave "active memory" and make room for new ideas.
Great post-- enjoyed reading!
You are absolutely right! Writing is a great way to organise one's thoughts and to recycle ideas. Thanks for reading :)
'A day will come when the story inside you will want to breath on its own. That´s when you´ll start writing.' - Sarah Noffke
That´s my inspiration to write. I´ve always had this sensation that there is a story inside myself that wants to be told... independently from any economical or other material motivations.
Maybe somebody will read it, then I´d win twice :)
Thanks for opening that beautiful question, I imagine we all have our personal reasons why to write...
Resteemed
That was really beautiful :) We all have our own reasons to write and that is so beautiful.
Thanks for the wonderful comment and for reading :)
“Reading makes a full man, Conversation a ready man, and Writing an exact man.” - France is Bacon
That is perfectly said! :)
Thanks @sauravrungta for this lovely insights into the heart and head of us writers. I write, because there are ideas, themes, images forming in my head and want to get out, want to be told. Unfortunately many of the things I think are not ready for others to read or I don't have the time to write them all down. And other things I've been written are not accurate and well written enough for others to read. 'Money is a necessary evil in our human lives.' This might be true for the days we're living in. But that will definitely change in future, for it's the tool of oppression the banking elite are forcing us to use, to oppress our knowledge, our wisdom, our creativity and our development as human beings, and therefore our freedom. But together with UBUNTU we will overcome this state of social and political enslavement and thrive forward into a new world.
Writing is one of the single most profitable things a person can do. I genuinely hate writing, but I am also genuinely good at writing (despite my grammar). I don't write because I enjoy it, I write because I enjoy the community that builds around it and the fact that if you know what you are doing, that community is incredibly profitable.