Why We Do This

Recently, I experienced one of those impossible to describe moments that reminded me just why we do this writing thing.

          I was taking a shower when I got the glimmer of an idea for a short story. Not a full-fledged plot, not a beat-by-beat breakdown.

          Just an idea.

          Ten minutes later I was at my computer, pounding away at the keys as this story flowed out of me. In less than half an hour the first draft was complete. I scrolled to the top of the page, leaned back on the couch, and read through what I’d just written.

          It was far from Hemmingway, yet as I read through this simple story I found a smile stretching across my face. Raw as it was, this little story, which I later titled “Ending Things” was one of those rarest of writing gems: a piece that did exactly what I wanted it to.

          “Ending Things” (which you can find under the ‘short stories’ section of this website) is as stripped down a story as you’re likely to find: two characters sitting at a table talking. Yet I find myself attached to these characters in that strange and mysterious way that all writers know. The first time I read through “Ending Things” I was struck with a wonderfully eerie sensation: there now existed on my computer two characters who just a half-hour before did not exist.

          As I sat there with my laptop on my knees, I found myself thinking, “This is why we do this. This is why we write. We create characters, worlds, and stories that have never existed before.”

          Writing is hard. That’s an inescapable truth that all writers know. It can be daunting, frustrating, confusing, and at times unrewarding. But the desire to create isn’t something you can turn off or ignore. And if you truly love creating stories, spinning words in a unique way that delight, intrigue, and inspire, you’ll find a way to push through all of the hindrances and bring worlds and characters to life in that special way that only you can.

          After all, that’s why we do this.