Three Reasons A Writer Writes

Maya Angelou's quote made me think that a writer writes because she/he has something to say. A writer writes to share their innermost thoughts with others--namely their readers. A writer writes because there is something within them that drives them to do so. Let's look at these three reasons, one by one.

Something to say: If you say that writers are opinionated people, you'd probably be right in the majority of cases. Writers do have opinions and they come through in the stories, articles, essays and poems they write. Young people want to change the world, and if they are writers, they hope to do that with the pieces they write. As we mature, we finally realize that we alone cannot change the world, but guess what? We can do out part and have a say in what we think is either right or wrong.

Share thoughts:  Writers have a desire to share their thoughts with others. Writers don't necessarily need everyone to agree with their thoughts, but they do want readers to know about what they are. They also want to share their knowledge and/or expertise in a particular subject. They want to offer their own life experiences to readers which can explain or motivate or let the reader gain an understanding.

Driven to write:  I think that most writers will agree with me that there is something deep inside that makes them want to write more than any other thing they might choose to do. I heard one writer say I can't not write! And I nodded my head in agreement at her statement. I knew the feeling well. What it is that creates this strong feeling, I don't know. But it's definitely inside some of us, the ones who become writers. That doesn't mean only fulltime professional writers. It can run the gamut from occasional poet to bestselling novelist.

If you have something to say, want to share your thoughts with others and are driven to write, you can label yourself a true writer. There may be other criteria to call yourself a writer but these three work just fine.