Selectively Juggling

Why do you write? Why do I write? Why do we write? For each of us, there are many reasons why we write, attempt to weave stories and paint our thoughts into mere words. Undoubtedly, there would be the quintessential responses, such as a cathartic release of energy, a way of processing and expressing thought and emotion. A way of sharing, creating and simply being. Writing acts as a conduit or medium where the thoughts, ideas, impressions, emotions, images and stories can leap into life. Writing is an invaluable tool that allows me to explicitly and implicitly process thoughts, ideas, emotions and reactions and, in doing so, share them with others. This can also act as my personal impetus for change, allowing me to objectively process and view ideas and thoughts from a bit of a distance. Writing can help me filter my thoughts and observations.

More than that, it allows me to let go, releasing trapped energy, thoughts and feelings. I can channel that energy, reining in those deep ruminations, ultimately creating something poignant, funny, entertaining, or informative. Writing allows that creative space to think, reflect and develop, often dipping into my rich internal world, where imagination reigns supreme, where everything and anything is possible. And conversely, if I don’t write and don’t express my deepest thoughts, emotions and perceptions, that energy can become trapped, morphing into feelings of stress, frustration and stagnancy.

Writing is a form of therapy, a purely pragmatic tool to convey meaning, importance and value to the things we hold dear. In fact, I recommend it to many of my clients as a form of healing catharsis, a release. Writing is the tool I use to translate the myriad of images, pictures, metaphors and similes that roam the crowded corridors of my mind’s eye. Words, tone and punctuation, are the paint strokes and nuances of textured colour used to create whatever emotion, thoughts, and message needs to be expressed.

Do I write for others? I’m not sure. In my professional life, I write for a targeted audience, but it is very pointed, purposedly lacking any creativity and nuances of meaning. There is no room for flights of fancy or wordy extravaganza. I write to educate and inform. It is at the polar end of my writing spectrum; on one end, I write to express, process, and experience whatever emotion, feeling, thought, or musing I am addressing. It is untethered and unbounded, albeit for grammar and spelling. It is freeform and evolves intuitively, naturally, and organically. It is not forced.

It takes courage and self-belief to put something I have written, something I have created out there in the ether. As I expose myself to the possibility of rejection, harsh unhelpful criticisms and judgement. However, I need to take a chance, take a risk, to allow myself to develop as a writer and person. How will I know if I’m connecting with others if I don’t allow them to hear me? How will I know if what i am experiencing resonates with others, touches others? Inspires? How will I improve my writing if I don’t allow myself to be critiqued, exposed to the ideas and suggestions of others?