WHY DO I WRITE?

Sometimes I ask myself that question. Many people, before they become writers, think they’ll write a book, become a New York Times best seller, and make a fortune. Most of them never write a book, and the ones that do wake up to reality before very long.

So, obviously, I don’t write for the money. If I did I’d have quit years ago. Maybe someday, my stories will earn enough to buy a new car or fancy clothes or to take a vacation to Hawaii. Until that day arrives, I’ll buy a couple of books with my royalties and read.

Some people dream of writing a novel that Hollywood will snap up and turn into a top box office movie. Interviews, spotlight, celebrities, and trips around the world, every viewer gushing over the characters, the story, and waiting for the sequel.

Ah, yes, to see one of my novels on the big screen, or the little screen for that matter, would be awesome. I could get into that scene for sure. Successful book. Successful movie. A dream come true. No one has mentioned making a movie for my work. (I think they’re passing up a marvelous opportunity.) So I’ll just enjoy watching the success of other writers and imagining what their world is like, seeing their characters come to life. I’m truly happy for each of their successes.

Authors often write to send a message to friends, family, and the world. Perhaps something happy or sad, frightening or fulfilling in his or her life demands to be told, so others might learn from his or her experience. We see many stories written about special children or a traumatic even in one’s life or a story about making choices, based on personal experiences.

I believe my personal experiences influence much of my writing. A magazine article I read about advances in medicine and science prompted the idea for Secrets I Have Kept. A twilight ghost tour of the historic district of Charleston, SC, resulted in Listen to the Ghost. Life on Hold was born from a newspaper article I read about a boy and girl that found the son they had given up for adoption eighteen years earlier. My picture book, Frankie’s Perfect Home, was born when a young armadillo made his/her home in our pasture.

 

 

So why do I write? I write to share my world, or my view of the world, with others. I write because I find people and animals, whether contemporary or make believe, fascinating. I write to satisfy a need inside me that I really can’t explain, but it’s there. I write, hoping to give readers, both young and older, an escape from every day life to another place, another time, if only for a while.

Why do you write?