I'm not going to lie-- I'm exhausted. I'm 1,000 words behind for JuNoWriMo, but most of the exhaustion comes from just having too much fun this week. :) I've spent a lot of time in the canyon with my little family, and I also checked out a DVD on Jazz dance from the library for research. My MC in TUGL is a dancer, and I haven't danced since I was a kid. It's been fun to do my exercise to the DVD, but it sure is exhausting!
So today's post is going to be short. I've been thinking a lot lately about how much I love writing. Not that it isn't hard, and I don't have moments where I want to chuck my computer through the window. But I really do love writing.
My mom says she knew I was going to be a writer from the time I was a toddler. Instead of taking a pencil and paper and coloring, I would draw careful circles across the paper in nice straight lines-- my excuse for letters. I remember writing stories in notebooks, and how excited I was to get to use my dad's old computer (it ran on DOS! Oy, that makes me feel old.) to write my stories. Even the actual act of sitting down to write still excites me as I wonder what will happen in my story today that's different from what I've already got planned.
I'm not sure why I've loved writing since I was so little, but I think it has something to do with the joy of creation. I've always loved reading because I could escape into new and exciting worlds. What I love about writing is that I get to CREATE new and exciting worlds. I get to invent new people, fascinating challenges, and vivid settings, all inside the frame of an entertaining story. And it is SO DANG FUN.
So, my friends, why do you love writing? Do you love the actual writing part, or do you love having written? How did you discover your love for writing?
13 comments:
I'm lucky in that I enjoy the actual writing part. Rewrites can be tricky, sorting out consistency and pacing can make my head hurt, but there's nothing like the creativity of the first draft.
I like writing about different characters, about different worlds about different places. I like to see my words take shape into stories.
I love what you said about sitting down and wondering if the story will actually go where you think it will.
One of my favorite things about writing is when I'm in the middle of a scene and someone will say something unexpected, or a thought runs through his/her head that I didn't see coming - and then it changes things.
LOVE that.
Mostly I love being transported to an other world - like reading, only more thoroughly. LOVE.
That's cute how you would "write" instead of draw when you were little.
I love writing because I love creating and crafting stories. The idea of taking words, words that are free to anyone to use, and turning them into a story that people want to read is pretty exhilarating.
When I was younger I was always making up stories. At eight-years-old my dad gave me his mother's old typewriter, and it all took off from there. I hate to not write. But, you know, having written doesn't feel so bad ;)
I love writing the first draft. Getting to know the characters, giving 'em hell, making them struggle to earn their happy ending.... Wow, I sound like a masochist! You know what I mean though, right??? Please?
Yes, I love it. I love creating too. I love being in the head of another person for a while. I love cracking open a brand new note book to start something new. I love the satisfaction of reaching a goal. I don't love the typing part, but the rest makes it worth it. Good luck with Junowrimo!
Oh, I just wrote a post about this! Kind of. I think it's because I love reading so much. And there are books I'm dying to read -- you know, the books that have all your favorite elements and none of your pet peeves -- and, well, no one's gonna write it correctly but me! :P
I've always loved to create things. But I would try scrapbooking or crochet or teaching myself how to play the guitar and I'd eventually move on to something else. Then I started to write and I knew I'd never stop. A lot of the reasons I love it are similar to everyone else's. But it's also fulfilling in a way I can't describe. It's pure awesome.
I love the brainstorming part, and the writing part too when I'm on a roll. Having written feels nice, but then leads to the revising part, which is excruciating :)
I love the planning and I love having written. I can't say for sure if I love the act. I love the magic of imaging to be somwhere or someone else for a moment. It's really the same thing I get from reading, only I'm in charge. :)
I love meeting my characters. I love exploring their flaws and accentuating their srengths. I love the idea of a happy ending, even if it's not a perfect ending, and especially if it's not really the end. I love it all...except revisions. lol.
(Oh and I remember sitting at our mammoth DOS computer when I was little too. Don't feel bad!)
Don't worry, you aren't that old - I'm only 15 and I remember when my dad had a computer that ran on DOS!
The thing I love the most about writing is the amazing feeling of accomplishment when I get something done. The feeling when I discover something about my characters. Or my setting. Or my plot. I love learning about my story and the word of my story. I love being inside it. And when I get stuff done, I'm drawn deeper into that incredible, fictional world.
Hi
I like to know my characters. I love exploring its flaws and accentuate your strengths. I like the idea of a happy ending, though not a perfect finish, especially if it is really the end. I like everything. Oh, and remember that our giant computer DOS when I was little too. Do not feel bad!
Thanks
Michael
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