I'm actually really glad you asked, because I've been wanting to share this with someone who *really gets it*. ((as an aside, how does this community indicate emphasis? Italics? I've used stars for so long I forget how other people do it.)) When I was a kid, I always wanted to write something different. From a young age (no, seriously), I saw the same stories over and over, the same themes, the same tropes. Good always won, not because it was smarter, or stronger, or better at anything, or even because it was luckier, but because it was Good. Because of course it did. That bothered me in a way that stuck with me since I was a child. I write to challenge that "because of course it does". I write because when I don't, my heart is wrapped in what feels like barbed wire and my stomach feels nauseous and everything just...hurts. They call it a ribcage, I think, because there's things trapped inside that cage that are desperate to get out. I write because it opens a door and the things that beat and batter at me stop hurting me, just for a little bit. I write because I hear voices that aren't my own, telling me stories I've never experienced. Stories the world needs to hear. Stories that, somehow, the world never has. I write because if I don't, I'd go absolutely nutters.
You're right, you should stop using stars like that. People here only ever use italics to indicate emphasis. I am not sorry ;-)
You make it sound like you are actually schizophrenic. You are being metaphorical, right? You don't actually hear voices? You okay buddy?
As an addendum, I have this thing I do where, whenever I'm somewhere my audience is receptive to it, I tend to switch from 'talk like a real person' mode into 'talk like a poet' mode. It's sort of unintentional, but I've never really tried to stop it. The result is inevitably things like my ribcage metaphor.
These days it seems to be more about reading in my case. I am traditionally lazy and slow to make clear and concise decisions at the end of winter. Add to this a history of being depressed around this period and it gets ugly. This year hasn't been as rough as previous ones, may be the wheatgrass shots in the morning. However, still not writing more than the occasional post here and there. Many scribbled notes can be found all over my studio as I putz around occasionally in what is called free time these days. All my hopes for these scribbles to come together in spring, when the sun warms the back of one's neck and the ground begins to thaw and the earth smells like worms.
What compels you to write? It can be anything, but it's often when I'm actually out and about, having a walk and some thinking time. I take inspiration rarely, but when it hits, it hits like a train, and my head starts running wild. At that point, I need to return home and basically just pour it all into my laptop, raw and unedited while I have the fire. Sometimes it can be other people and objects. One thing I've learnt is that I must observe the world as I'm in it, because it can come from anywhere, anytime. Why do you write? I guess there are a lot of reasons. My head is a wild place at the best of times, and writing is a cathartic way to get it all out there in a safe way. I admit that when I finish a piece I've been working on, I get a real buzz too, stronger than anything I've ever gotten from anything else. I have been encouraged by others who've liked my work. I may never make money off it, but it's probably my greatest talent, and I feel pride in myself when I've got something real and my head is screaming with ideas. It's escapism in a way too. What makes you write what you write? It's hard to say. I always wanted to write sci-fi, and I started a sci-fi book when I was 13, but a lot has changed since then. My current theme of little dark short stories has persisted for years, but the whole thriller thing is new for me. I suppose I took some inspiration from my gaming tastes, and combining that with my unpredictable mind, something was born. I very much enjoy plot twists and like to live through my characters in a way, so suppose I write what I like to read. I've found I enjoy telling stories. What Made you decide you liked to write? I started writing when I was around 12 years old. I can't recall exactly what it was, but one day I just had this absolutely ridiculous idea and wrote a 10 page book on it. I remember sitting around in school working on the stories and enjoying the escapism. At that time, I was embarrassed by my work, so only my mum read it. I may have been embarrassed to show them to others, but I lived in my stories, and I felt the characters intently. I figure that even though I'm more than twice that age, not that much has changed. What Do You Write? I'm primarily writing a thriller at the moment. It's my first time really writing something like that. My usual practice has been to think of a metaphor and make it as grandiose and complex as possible, or delve into the deepest parts of my mind, and pull out a self-contained little story that's often quite morbid and depressing. I think perhaps the thriller developing the way it has, with even occasional little bits of humour, is a testament to my own growing as a person. I'm trying not to question it too much. It's the first idea I've had for an actual novel, and I'm running with it wherever it takes me.
1: Normally intense emotions and/or inspiration. The more intense, the more obligated I must write about what I'm feeling 2: I find it to be great therapy for my mental state. For as long as I can remember, when I felt trapped and had nowhere to turn to or had no one to talk to, I decided to write, and it's helped me cope ever since 3: Whatever I feel needs a story, I write it out. 4: A few things, to be honest - A band helped me find my own sense of voice - The darkness that once consumed me turned into art, for the better - Reading what I wrote brings me comfort, so whatever I feel, I read my stuff about that feeling - A few of my friends are big fans of my writings, and that helps me go further when it comes to writing 5: Mainly poetry, in a fantasy tone. Lots of heavy-duty topics have been written in my poetry: Depression, heartache, sexuality, war, loneliness. Very rarely my works are fictional, and very rarely my work is happy, fiction or nonfiction
I love prose and I found bound to it. Good prose organises and transmits the world of ideas, the abstract concepts and connections that fascinate me. (Sometimes I resent my thoughts and speech for not being better prose, and wish I could edit them.) So I write because this is how I can best express the things I think are worth communicating. The written word is the medium that makes sense to me and the tools that I know most intuitively. I don't think there's anything more fundamentally honest than taking your thoughts and articulating them with precision the way we do in writing, and honesty is very important to me. Honesty is inevitably challenging when it really matters, which is probably why writing can be very personal and painful for me, especially when it comes to fiction, which I think cryptically reveals truths about the author often more than it reveals truths about the world. All the same, writing is irresistible when there's something I want to say. I've been naturally compelled to write since I was old enough to know writing is.
I write because the books I want to read haven't been written yet. So I wrote them. That and sheer boredom and the need to find something 'worthwhile'. A little legacy to leave.
What compells you to write? It's a creative outlet for the ideas / thoughts that I have in my head. Why do you write? I'd probably go mad if I don't write. There are too many ideas and thoughts running through my mind to not do something with them. What makes you write what you write? I'll get a random thought / idea in my head, and usually it sort of turns itself into a story. It can be something I see on tv, a person I see in the street, a word I hear. So anything, really. What made you decide you liked to write? It relaxes me, helps me clear my mind. What Do You Write? Anything, from drabbles to poetry to short stories to 100.000 word stories. Tried writing fantasy, occasionally write fanfiction, but I usually stick to writing stories about people. Just a moment of their life, real-life issues, love, family, relationships. I love to get into their thoughts, their emotions, what drives them to do things.
What compels you to write? It's usually a random muse, or a character/idea that drives it's way into my brain and won't leave me alone until I put pen to paper and give it life. Why do you write? Novels/short stories - I write because I like to world-build, and to challenge myself to come up with new ideas. Poetry - I write because most of the poetry out there is boring and only sells because it is marketed to the suffering. What makes you write what you write? I'm a big fantasy buff. Currently listening to a podcast that is three guys who have read TWOT about 10 times. They try and figure out all of Robert Jordan's hidden gems. Most people would find this boring, I find this to be a look at true world-building genius. In my opinion the first time you read through The Wheel of Time, you miss 50%+ of what is going on. As far as poetry... reading Shel Silverstein as a kid. What made you decide you liked to write? I began writing short stories in middle school, and in highschool I was in the poetry club. I would challenge people to give me ideas and emotions, and I would give them a poem. These sometimes meant a lot to people, and helped them get through struggles. Writing these, I had to keep the requesting individual in mind. Why did they choose this type of poem? What type of pace would interest them. In my final year of high-school I wrote a 28 page poem that transitioned forms and styles as it went on. I can't say I did a very good job, but it was fun to write. I wrote it on a small notepad. Before I transferred it to standard font on the computer, it had to of been 100+ notepad pages. What Do You Write? Poetry - Formal and a bit of Informal. Novels/short stories- Fantasy/Sci-Fi are my genres of choice.
I write because my pen is my drug and my words are my fix! I need to write down my ideas on the page so I can get my next fix! lol
When I was a child, and I was reading books for kids, I start thinking: "if other people can write a stories, I can do it as well". And I start write since I was 8 years I wrote a stories about UFO, typical fantasy with elves, dwarves, and magic, and I also tried to write romances. When I was growing up, I started think: "maybe writing can be my job?" Unfortunately, I still didn't earn any money for my writing but who know, maybe after few years I still write fantasy - this that type of story which I really love. And l like writing. I like create characters, worlds, I like tell stories. Writing is my passion.
To make the voices stop? I'm bored a lot and scenes just play out in my head. I have entire worlds full of characters I wish were real people in my noggin, and the only way to exorcise them is to write them out. That and to try to fulfill a dream my mother had of being a published author.
What compells me to write? I enjoy reading a good book personally and would like to create a one of a kind book that would garner a lot of people to read it and want to read it. Why do I write? I enjoy writing even though I often struggle with what to write about it allows me to get out of my head what I'm thinking about. What makes you write what you write? Everyday life often gives me ideas towards what I could write. What made you decide you like to write? I was required to often write multi page papers in high school and now at 23 I just need to find time to do it as I still enjoy to do it! What do you write? Sports,Mystery, Biography, Auto-Biography, Sports Commentary would also be a favorite of mine if I could write about it as a job and I enjoy doing newsletter which isn't a book but still writing.
1. What compels you to write? The fact that my family and friends love to read my short stories and even ask me to write together. that my passion for writing rubs of on them. 2.Why do you write? For my sanity. I've been told I have a over-active imagination. I can make stories about anything from anything in the spot. dialogue and plots. I keep playing them in my mind no matter where I may be and write them down. 3.What makes you write what you write? Well, I sometimes have very creative dreams, or just day dreaming, if i see someone that is very attractive i find it easier to build a story behind that person. I get inspired by life choices and problems from people I know to start a short story that then turns into a novel. with a few minor changes. 4.What Made you decide you liked to write? I was about eighteen years old when i first wrote my first story. It sucked. (lol) my plot was a mess, my characters were all over the place and i couldn't distinguish one character from the next. But like almost everything. it got better with time. What Do You Write? I write what comes to my mind. it doesn't matter if I'm in the bank or at the grocery store. if I get an idea I put it down. Whether is on my notes in my phone or just making up a plot in my mind and hurry home to lay it down on paper.
