This afternoon I stumbled upon the blog of Liz Strauss and her post, “Why Write When You Can Twitter?” She listed five reasons why we should continue to write even in the face of a world (specifically a Twitter filled world) that tries to reduce communication to 140 words or less.
This got me thinking about why we write, or – since this is my blog – why I write.
Seriously. Writing is such an important part of my life I am planning on going off the deep end, jumping from the airplane, and entering the lions den of uncertainty willingly. In other words I’m giving up security for the chance to follow the dream, wherever it leads. So what is it that makes it so necessary, so worthwhile?
I guess for everyone it is different. When I sit down to write, whether it is for Hub Pages or eHow or my personal writing projects, it is like I move into a mental space that I can’t really explain. Maybe some of you know what I mean? Like this internal voice that really has no place in daily life emerges and takes hold. My inner Who reaches up and out and speaks loud and clear (and strangely has opinions on things that normally I might not notice). And when I write I learn. I learn more about things around me, perception, and myself.
Yet writing also satisfies the academic in me that needs to craft solid arguments, research unknown topics, and create order out of chaos. As Liz writes,
Writing gives readers a complete idea with facts and details to consider. A more complex conversation results. Fun and fast happens in 140 characters. Thoughtful takes more.
Writing gives us practice at accessing our deeper thoughts and insights. We get familiar with how we most efficiently work with and filter ideas. We can choose a variety of genre to express a viewpoint. Writing teaches us not to be frivolous about the ideas we put in text. We take time to edit so that the message we send is the one that is received by a reasonable reader.
I couldn’t agree more, or said it better. There is a left-brain and a right-brain component to writing, which, if you didn’t grow up in a house with a psychologist for a parent, means that it requires both analytical and creative skills.
Perhaps the question isn’t why do we write, but why do more people not write? Why do you write?
To see the rest of the Liz’s article, click here
