Silver's Helpful Writing Tips

Who We Are & Why We Write: The Heart of an Author

(Note: This is an older post, so any mentions of my shoulder are past.)

I've been thinking a lot about writing as of late, and mainly because I cannot do it without some form of discomfort in my shoulder, which, for someone who loves writing, is extremely irritating. But writing is such a large part of who I am that I'm willing to go through the painstaking time to type this out with my right hand because I have to write.

Writing is a part of life.

This overwhelming drive to write in spite of everything got me thinking about authors in general, and the lengths we will go to write our stories. We are the ones with more notebooks than actual books, more pens than we could know what to do with, and endless notes strewn about in different nooks and crannies in our homes.

The question is why?

What drives us to stop and gaze at a wall of pens or stacks of notebooks when we have more than need already? Or compile endless piles of notes?

The Heart of an Author

There is a big difference between authors and people who write because they have an opinion they want to shove in someone's face or because they think people need to know about it. 

An author wants to share a story filled with complex situations and characters. Authors have an inescapable need to tell stories that inspire others, question our reality, and challenge our perceptions of the world around us. It's how we process things that we cannot explain (why do bad things happen to good people? Is there a God? Can healing come where there is brokenness?).

The heart of an author calls out and demands that these stories be told, no matter what; that's why you will see authors scribbling down notes on napkins, the backs of menus, in their phones, at 2 am when sleep evades them or sipping their frappe-mocha-latte at their favorite hole-in-the-wall coffee joint.

In a way, we're willing slaves to it.

Our worlds, both real and imagined, are often one in the same.

Who We Are

Authors are an interesting bunch. If you got a group of authors together, the conversation you would hear would probably go something like this:

Author 1: "Guys, I had the best idea for killing someone off !"

Author 2: "Awesome! I know you've been wrestling with that for a while now."

Author 3: "Maybe I'll be able to take a couple of pointers from you!"

Then would come the nerd-fest of explaining our characters, the situations, the heartbreaking traumas we would be putting them through, and how they would come out the other end (usually) better for it. 

But for someone walking into a conversation like this, it would be a little disconcerting.

Then we would probably talk about creating a language, world-building, our favorite works, and how we feel like no one understands us (which is partially correct). The truth is, we're everyday people who see things in a different way than most do, and we turn those things into stories. 

We're your neighbor, friend, husband, wife, partner, father, mothers, sister, brother; the firemen saving lives, the policeman protecting others, or the doctor treating patients. Because we can be anyone, anywhere, you better be careful who you talk to, or you might end up in a story ;)

Why We Write

There are many different reasons why authors write, and I speak for myself when I tell you that for me, it is a release. I have ideas bursting in my head all the time, and a day rarely goes by that I do not have some plot idea or another, so if I don't write, I get cranky (my family will attest to this).

Writing is not only a way to explore the world but also process it. 

I have processed many painful things that have happened in my life through writing, and I have explored many difficult questions and concepts that otherwise I don't think I would have been able to do. 

Authors have the need to write stories.

Authors find little things around them and turn them into stories of all shapes and sizes. We don't mean to do; it just happens. We don't know how it works, either, it just does. It usually starts with a thought like, "I wonder what would happen..." fill in the blank.

We can't escape it nor can we stop it. But then again, why would we want to?

So what is the takeaway? There isn't one.

"This is an outrage!" you might be saying. "All blog posts must have a takeaway!!!"

Since I don't have any big words of wisdom, let me instead leave you with a writing prompt to complete. Feel free to post it here!

Writing Prompt

You're walking down the road in the chilly autumn morning admiring the colors of the leaves as they drift in the gentle wind. You pause, breathing in the cold air when a familiar scent reaches your nose, bringing it with it a memory.

What is the scent? What about the memory?

Write out the rest of the scene in 200 words or less.