Why Do You Write?

This month, I've been taking a fabulous online workshop from WriterUniv.com called Fearless Writer.  It's all about tapping into what makes us unique and channeling that into our writing.  It's actually been pretty intense, starting with the very first lesson.

We were asked to answer a deceptively simple question.  Why Do You Write?  Sure, you can rattle off a quick answer: because I love it, because I want to, because it makes me happy.  But the key to answering this was to dig deeper than that.  Why do you love it?  Why do you want to?  Why does it make you happy?

I had to sit for a few minutes and really think about this.  Why, indeed, do I write?  I do love it...but sometimes I really don't want to do it, and sometimes it really doesn't make me happy.  So, why then?

For me, it's about hearing my own voice.  Separating out my thoughts from the cacophony of the world around me, and expressing them in my own unique voice.  I do it escape the world and go into a fabulous world of my own creation.  I do it to go on a journey that is impossible to take in real life.  I do it because I've had a lot of crap happen to me in my life, and writing about it helps me to make sense of it.

We all write for our own very personal reasons, and I bet that for most of us the reasons go pretty deep.  Most of us don't write to be famous or rich (and if you are, you're barking up the wrong tree).  Most of us don't do it because we're bored and have nothing else to do.  We do it because something deep inside us compels us to write.  Whatever that something is, it's unique to you.  It's what makes your stories unlike anyone else's.

So tell me, Why Do You Write?  What's your own unique reason?

Nicole Maggi writes YA - paranormal, historical, and beyond - and strives to have something available in bookstores soon.  She's represented by the fabulous Irene Goodman of The Irene Goodman Literary Agency, and lives in Los Angeles with her husband Chris, their daughter Emilia (after the Shakespeare character), and two cats Sawyer & Hurley (after the LOST characters).  Yeah, she's a geek.  Check out her website & follow her on Twitter!