Sunday, March 6, 2011

The old story about the pen and paper

Why do I write? Once, I thought it was because I wasn't very good at drawing. To be honest, it's more because I'm incapable of telepathy. There are thoughts and dreams roaming in my mind and I can't share them in a way that won't alter them. I often even forget them. In its own simple way, writing helps me record and transmit my own thoughts, at least in part.

Why do I write? Because talking doesn't come easy to me. I am barely learning to talk to people about things that are important to me. It helps to quietly formulate a thought before setting it loose in the world. I get nervous because of people's reactions to what I say.

Why do I write? Because there is a drive that pushes me to put everything into words. It seems more intimate that way, more shocking. An event is an event and a feeling is a feeling, but when put into words, it can acquire nuances that it couldn't otherwise. We have such a wide variety of words at our disposal, each with their own connotations, that we can depict anything. And yet lose a lot of it in the process. That is why I put odd words together to give them new meanings. Words have a certain passion to them. I can mingle them together to form many kinds of vivid imagery, visual, auditive, gustatory, sensory, olfactory and beyond. The reader's imagination will make them come to life in their mind.

Why do I write? Because I feel this is one of the best ways in which I can contribute to this world. It is one of the few things that I feel I am truly good at. We all want to make a difference somehow, we want others to appreciate us. This is what I do, I write.

Why do I write? For the very same reason why I read and dream and sometimes listen to music. I want to experience new things and feelings, which are only accessible to us through imagination. It is also why I like fantasy and science-fiction so much. Dreaming is the spice of life. Drugs have nothing on dreams, trust me.

Why do I write? Because the paper is my best confident. Because I feel.

We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. [...] the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?
Dead Poets Society

2 comments:

  1. I want to apologise for having misinterpreted both the meaning and intention behind the selection of words you use to describe yourself in your profile, Lavi. I'm relieved to hear 'funny' was used in the context of being 'amusing', as opposed to odd/strange :)

    Thank you for sharing your intimate thoughts on why you write. I, for one, hope you'll never stop! You are a gifted writer and it's a privilege to be able to read your thoughts and musings on such a wide variety of subjects. I wish I had a mind that worked as yours does!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Lavi!

    I have added names to the less well-known animals in my latest post...hopes this helps :)

    ReplyDelete

Send me a message in a bottle