Why Do We Write?

You know this question. Why do we do things? Why do we climb mountains? Travel? Have children? Eat poorly? Why? Why? Why? Each one has a different answer, so each question has the right to be asked. So let’s ask, why do we write?

Writing began simply as a means of communication. Talking is obviously the superior form of communicating, but what if that isn’t possible? Writing was an early substitute.

Writing gave the “speaker” the ability to be heard over great distances, and to be heard verbatim by two or twenty or two thousand people or even more, without having to repeat ones self. How cool is that? Read more

Don’t Say The Old Lady Screamed!

Paint the picture ...
Paint the picture …
Mark Twain said,”Don’t say the old lady screamed, bring her on and let her scream.”

It was near midnight so I went out and moved my car into the driveway.

I’m fond of telling people that when you’re writing, you always show and never tell what is happening. The statement above is telling, not showing. It tells every boring detail of a boring event in a brief and concise way.

And there is no picture in your mind, or not much of one. Someone put their car into the driveway, because it’s not supposed to be on the street after midnight. I’m yawning now. And I wrote it. Read more

Place My Heart On The Page

The mark of ...
The mark of …

You say you want to write? No, you say you need to write. You say it’s the thing that you are driven to do? You say you need it like water? Like breath?

I can understand that. I hear you. I feel the same. I’ve written for most of my life, though I spent a great deal of time writing and tossing out what I wrote.

You see, for the longest time I thought that what I wrote wasn’t worth sharing. It took me years to realize that the decision of whether or not my writing had value wasn’t my decision to make. Read more

Faith In Writing

Well, that's part of it ...
Well, that’s part of it …

I have a T-shirt that says “Music is my Life!” and another one that says “Music is my Religion!” and they get a lot of wear. Neither one of them is wrong, they don’t lie, they’re just not complete.

The truth is that creating is my life. Creating music and stories and poems. And creating is also my religion. I’d call myself a creationist, but that would be misleading too.

The largest part of my creating by far is my writing, because it covers so much territory. And the larger part of the writing is prose in the form of blog posts and online magazine articles, freelance articles (though I haven’t done one of those in a while), short stories, and the ongoing novel.

But there is poetry and lyrics always lurking in my mind, waiting to be discovered and recorded, usually quickly, before it disappears again below the surface of the murky, unfathomable depths of my mired mind. Read more

Write Right, Right?

I'm on the job ...

I am a part time officer for the “grammar and word” police. And I’m not apologizing. Sorry, not sorry.

The reason I’m just part time is the loophole through which you can escape my wrath. You see, I produce several different types of writing. And some of it just begs for bad grammar.

Some, however requires a standard of usage that provides the benefits that only correct grammar, punctuation, and word usage can provide. Read more

Sanctuary

We all need a place ...
We all need a place …

Where do you write? I write in my mind. But I can’t get completely in to my mind if I’m in certain places physical.

Home is the worst. Too easily distracted by tasks and jobs that are ongoing. Dishes, laundry, yard work, all these things seem to call to me. And they’re not calling pleasantly. Dammit.

That’s not to say that you, or I, can’t write at home. It just requires some planning. You need a place in the home that has no other purpose. Read more

Everybody Writes

You could totally write good!
You could totally write good!

When people ask me what I do, and I tell them I write, I get some pretty interesting responses. I’ve had people tell me they think it must be interesting to read as a writer. And I think, “But you’re a writer.”
I’ve had people say they’ve always wanted to be a writer and some day they intend to do just that. And I think, “But you’re already a writer.”

I’ve had people say they’ll never be a writer, they can’t write. And I think, “But you are already a writer.” Read more

The Poet In The Corner

Pondering poetic considerations ...
Pondering poetic considerations …

I am a lot of things it turns out. I’m a crusader for equality of all kinds, I’m a musician and song writer, a blogger, a journalist, a bit of an amateur graphic artist, and a photographer.
I take pride in all of these things, and while I don’t think of myself as wildly successful at any one of them (more like mildly successful at one or two of them) there is, it turns out, another thing that I am that helps with all my other endeavours. Read more