Why I Write
I am at my day job and get to work on a client brief. As I find my way through the words and they start making some sense, I pause.
Then I reflect and ponder — “Why do I write?”
For every writer, this question has a deeply personal answer.
Some write because they have to, only a few write because they want to.
So, why do I write?
I write because I have a job in content marketing. It helps me pay the bills and make sense of having a career.
At work, I write words that help businesses become brands through words. I write because I help brands tell stories to customers. I write because I help people learn more about companies, products and services that they would want to use.
That’s why I write at work.
Beyond all the superficial layers of writing (for work and for others) — there are many reasons why words are my personal tools, weapons and vehicles for self-expression.
And I choose to write the reasons here.
Is that why I write?
I write because I like to share my thoughts, feelings and opinions through words.
I write not because I want to share, but because I have to share.
Expression is at the core of my living philosophy. Maybe, every writer feels that way.
What do I write?
I write articles. I write blog posts. I write product guides. I write ad copy. I write about journeys. I write about feelings. I write about experiences. I also write about happenings.
I write about travelogues. I write about productivity, creativity, self-improvement and art.
I write to make my voice heard in a sea of noise — maybe I am the noise, or maybe I am the signal. I won’t know unless I write.
Is that all to it?
No.
I write to express. I also write to impress. On some days, I also write to confess. I write because I have a voice in me that needs words to say something.
I write to talk, shout, preach. I write to hate and I also write to appreciate.
I write to think, feel, observe and understand. Both the world outside and the world inside me.
I write to turn abstract into actual — something that can be seen, thought, felt and observed. Something that has rhythm, meaning and a message to it.
Where my writing voice comes from?
How I write is how I experience life.
Most of my writing comes from how I think and make sense of the world around me.
The dad jokes. The mom scolds. The office chatters. The surreal wisdom. The profound knowledge. The impressive characters. The obscured stories.
Only words can help me transform these experiences into something tangible.
Words that can give life to these stories because someone out there needs these stories to read, just like I need these stories to write.
I need to write to discover myself, to make something out of myself, to not forget that I live for expression first before anything else.
Okay so why am I writing all this?
I am writing all this because I haven’t written for myself in a long time. It upsets me.
Not having written in a long time bothers me because writing is one of those few things I do for myself.
After all, I cannot let the voice in me go unheard — I know it’s tough to write a lot but for me, not writing is even tougher.
Experiences. Thoughts. Observations. Emotions. Knowledge.
So much to share. So much to write about.
All these are reasons why I write — and why I will continue to write.
Writing is my attempt to keep alive the hope for freedom. Freedom from judgement, evaluation and validation from others.
A freedom to do what what I want to do — write.
Brick by brick, a house is build.
I write to build my house of cards — a house where ideas thrive, a house where there are no expectations or obligations, a house where dreams survive and a house where stories find a voice.
For now I have both — a small house and a faint voice, and they both are enough for me to continue to write.
So, I write.
Thanks for reading Writers Guild — A Smedian publication
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