Why write?

Seriously, why, right? (Hehe… get it… why write, why right?) What motivates people to write? It seems to be the pursuit of a number of things: a pursuit of communication, a pursuit of art, a pursuit of drama, a pursuit of the tale.

For me, I think it’s been a desire to pursue effectively communicating through art and a desire to tell a story that I like. I feel like I have to be careful with what I mean by effectively communicating through art: I’m certainly not implying that I’m going to sneak something to the readers through the guise of art.

Rather, I feel like art naturally communicates — whether its the value of friendship and honor in the Lord of the Rings, the concept of sacrifice in the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, or the intertwining destinies of the Wheel of Time, these are themes that the reader percieves in the art the author has created.

That’s what I’m seeking to do: to tell great stories that reflect true themes, themes like friendship, honor, and the value of learning.

But, it’d all be impossible if I didn’t like the story. I feel like it’s worth telling. It makes a difference. During a few off months, I’m quick to admit that it was a lack of love for the story that caused me to not forge ahead. But having come back around, every night when I open the files that I’m writing in, I get a little excited about what I’m going to write. That’s a great feeling. I can truly say that it is its own reward. Who knew?