In ninth grade, a friend asked me why I bothered to write in a journal. I didn’t have an answer for her. In fact, I was completely stumped and for days I tried to figure out this conundrum. I came up with two theories: It’s a way to unwind from bad days, and I have a terrible memory so journal writing is the best way for me to remember past events. I figured I’d apply the same question to the fiction writing that I do. Some of these reasons can also apply to my blogging on Progressive U.
1.) I daydream a lot and I want to share these internal stories with other people. Not every daydream makes sense as a fiction story, but many of my stories start out as “What if…” and then it goes on from there.
2.) I have multiple personalities. Or at least I like to pretend I do. I’ll think of something I would like to do, say, or achieve and sometimes this concept begins a story. Since it is not in my nature to beat someone up, lead a revolution, or start a band, I get a chance to vicariously experience these things through a fictional character.
3.) I like to create my own world.
4.) I’ll come up with an awesome come-back way after a situation has passed, and I can’t just let it go to waste. Or I think of a response to a situation that I wouldn’t do, but perhaps a character might…
5.) (Prog U) I need a way to share insightful opinions or theories without having to talk about it out loud. Sometimes, the friends that are around me to talk in person aren’t all that interesting in the morals of children’s cartoons or my proposal to save the worlds energy crisis.
6.) I’m just plain weird.
Why do you write?
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