What drives you to writing?

[Phyrebrat]

I have a lot of Annie Wilkes’ in my life so I don’t really get much say in the matter. Talent’s a curse. And not in a good way.

IOW — I dunno. But I suspect it’s something to do with finding sense in the world; even creating something I can actually control.

 

[Matteo]

James does, in the Bentley.

Sorry, couldn't resist (I don't write).

 

[CyberChurro]

Terrible stories.

I know I can do better. Nah, my four-year-old second cousins can too...

 

[THX1138]

Yep, there are some so-so stories out there, and I have read a few. But publishers have their own rhyme and reason for what they publish, in their own world.

Would I like to have my trilogy (WIP) professionally published? Who here wouldn't or hasn't!? But the reality is it won't ever happen. But that is not going to stop me. By hook or by crook, I will get published. Professional or self, I well get published.

My stories are just as viable and worthy and I will edit them to a point, then forget the mainstream publishers. Integrity over conformity.

 

[ANV]

I love to tell stories ... making the reality a bit more hyped, not necessarily better just more interesting to tell, to share. It is my only hobby that survived with me for so long it is now part of the character.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

If there were no one gathered around the fire, I would still tell it to myself.

All my life that I can remember, I've told myself more stories than I have ever written down. When I was growing up, I can't say why I chose to write down some stories and not others, but perhaps the stories that meant the most to me were too personal to write out for others to see.

At some point, this changed. Actually I can tell you how old I was at the time: 29. Then I became obsessed with writing down a story that began as a dream and which spoke to me in a very personal way. The story, the characters, their situation, I felt them deeply. And as I explored their world in greater depth than anything I had done in earlier stories that I began and abandoned, I discovered a fascination with creating imaginary worlds as well as imaginary people and situations. I also discovered a love of words. (Until then, as a reader I was first of all interested in the story, and the quicker I could race through it the better. But through writing I began to appreciate the art of writing prose in a way I had never done before. I became drunk on the excellent prose styles of my favorite writers—and my favorite writers became those who offered me that kind of pleasure. I am not ashamed to say that I am a bit of a prose junky.)

The obsession with these things grew and grew for many, many years. Now that I am old and ill and my brain is rusty, it is harder to work up that kind of enthusiasm, but when it does come ... it is bliss.

 

[Sheik13_LoZ]

For me, I think it started as wanting to write down a story that I'd been imagining for a long while. Then, I started wanting to write the Queer characters I didn't see in books growing up.