Why I write?

It's a sad commentary that I felt the article "80% of People Quietly Despise Their Lives" described me so well. It's not that I hate myself or my life, but I can honestly say that I "dislike the things [I] must do in order to make the living that will allow [me] to continue disliking [my] life".

But this isn't a post to gripe about life or to solicit pity. It's to talk about what makes my life more worthwhile, namely writing. There was a thread on the Kindle Boards a couple of weeks ago that asked whether authors enjoyed writing (vs. editing, marketing, etc.). I thought it was ridiculous that any author would say they don't enjoy writing, but some actually did. Why write then? My writing takes time out of my day that I could spend watching TV, playing video games, reading, or going out. So why do I do it? Because I enjoy it! Not because I want to become rich and famous, and not because I have to do it.

Ironically, when the article talks of how to become part of the happy 20%, it mentions devoting your life to a purpose. One example it gives: "It might take you 20 years to write your novel, but put a sentence or two on a page every day." Since I started writing regularly again last year, I've found that the times that I write are some of the best parts of my day. I'm in a better mood when I write, and conversely, in a worse mood when I go days without writing. So even if I never become a best-selling author, I plan to keep writing for years to come, until it stops making me happy.