Why I Write

- There's not much money it in
- There's the chance that nobody will read it

So why do it?

A true writer and lover of the written word does not focus on getting recognition or the spotlight. The spotlight actually works in a contrary sense, in that it dissuades us since one cannot write from the heart if the head is swollen from ego so much that it detaches from the body, separating the two.

I long to write
Day and night

As with any creative talent, one must work at it constantly, never stopping. Never waiting for the ideal situation or certain inspiration to hit. There is no guarantee that will ever take place. It is a matter of loving it so much, you crave time to do it. Whether you are an artist, designer, cartoonist, writer, photographer...

All of these creative crafts basically start from nothing, and it is our unique minds that seek to create something that brings goodness to the world. Using God's creation to create our own unique and beautiful painting, book, project, etc... is our way of sub-creating (to borrow a phrase from J.R.R. Tolkien), and we were made for that.

So, for me, I wake everyday longing to write. I sit down in the evening to write because I've been longing all day. It is a constant craving that I have, and only one way to relieve it, for a little while, at least.

I do not mind that many times a writer does not get much credit, or that my blog hasn't become an internet phenomenon, mainly because it allows me the freedom to write anything I want. I do not answer to anyone and I do not rely on it as an income source.

I also think if the spotlight gets too bright, pride can easily slip in, unnoticed, and alter the being that was so pure. I think about some of my favourite writers like Emily Dickinson, Anne Brontë, and John Keats. These amazingly talented writers (and so many others) never received recognition during their lifetime, and many times they were looked down upon in regards to their writing. Yet they never stopped writing. Emily wrote more than 1,700 poems in her lifetime, and less than 20 were ever published in the newspaper.

Keats' long poem, Endymion, received bad reviews when it was first published in 1818 and sold very few copies. But there are lines in this poem that are some of the most beautiful lines in poetry, such as the first lines:

A thing of beauty is a joy forever:
Its loveliness increases, it will never
Pass into nothingness

It just shows that opinions will always rise up against you from somewhere. Something will try to stop you from creating good, but don't ever stop. Don't give up because of an opinion or disinterestedness from a party you wanted approval from.
You were made to do what you love. Keep going.