OPTIONAL
A lot of us writers out there don't get paid to write. We don't have a deadline looming (except our personal ones) and this isn't our day job per se. Writing is OPTIONAL. Yet we continue to do it day in and day out. We shed tears and lose sleep, take time away from those in the real world to create those in a fictional one. The only thing we may ever get out of it is the satisfying sound of fingers clicking away at the computer or the scribbling of pen to paper. It may always be OPTIONAL to us.
And we will still do it.
For me, writing is OPTIONAL on paper. I don't get paid to do it. I don't have an agent or crazy deadlines. I don't have to get up in the mornings and write. But I do. There is no other choice. I can't imagine not writing. And if my hands were ever cut from my body, I would have to get a voice recorder and do it that way.
Though I would hate losing the hypnotizing sound of fingers tapping away on the keyboard.
I love more than anything to get inside others heads, so I am dying to know what you think about this. If writing is OPTIONAL in your life, why do you do it? And if writing isn't your thing, do you have a passion that you just can't give up?
Interesting post! I suppose writing is optional for me, but it never feels that way. It feels like something I must do every day. Like a job I love but don't get paid for lol. :D
ReplyDeleteWriting is a habit for me, and just like all habits I have the option to try to quit it or not. I say heck no to that option!
ReplyDeleteI think that's one of the hardest parts of writing. I'll tell my friends I stayed up until 3 am to finish something and they'll be like, why? They think it's optional when, for me, it's not.
ReplyDeleteI don't feel it's optional anymore. It's a part of my life. I wish it was optional! :)
ReplyDeleteHobbies are optional, yet we choose to do it. Volunteering as a relief worker in Africa is optional, too. It all comes down to your passions and what you really, really want to do. :)
ReplyDeleteJ.C. Martin
A to Z Blogger
I'm not going to lie, I kind of like that I don't have a deadline right now. Did I type that out loud? I would love to get and agent and a publishing, but I do love my freedom right now :)
ReplyDeleteI'm with Angie, not having a deadline is nice. It allows me to learn and grow. But I don't creating stories in my head is an option. I think no matter what I choose to do in the future, they will always be pinging around up there.
ReplyDeleteI try not to think of it as optional, becasue it means more than just a hobby to me, it means my future.
ReplyDeleteI've been writing since I was 4 years old, since I first learnt how to write. It's always been a bit like breathing. I've been with the majority of my characters since I was a preteen or in my teens, and I feel compelled to keep writing the stories of their lives.
ReplyDeleteWell, technically, brushing my teeth is optional, too. But the people around me are a lot happier when I do it.
ReplyDeleteBeing energetic about my creativity makes me, I hope, a more interesting person.
If you can get me to shut up about my current WIP long enough. lol
Obsessional. The word is obsessional.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Bill the Butcher on this one. (Never thought I'd say that! ;0))
ReplyDeleteI'm not a writer, and to be honest, most things in my life are optional. I don't know that I have any true "passions."
ReplyDeleteI agree with Emily, I don't like writing is optional anymore. Which is strange because I never expected to feel this way. Great post for O.
ReplyDeleteI choose to do it because people understand when I put things out there. Not so much in real life.
ReplyDeleteMy passion is baking and I don't know what I would do if I couldn't do that ever again.
welcome to me
yummy stuff
Nope, it doesn't feel optional. I do think of it as my job even though it hasn't earned me a penny to date. That might sound ridiculous to some, but I can't envisage ever not doing it, paid or not. There's too many stories to explore and get out of my head.
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess eating three meals a day is optional too. But I like to eat. Also I get hungry if I don't.
ReplyDeleteI've slowly discovered that if I go a long time w/o writing, I get kind of wrinkly inside. Like something in me is shriveling up. I'm not a fan of wrinkles so most days, you'll find me zoning out at the keyboard. :)
Yes...it is optional for me...unless you consider what a source of profound enjoyment I get from it....then maybe not so much! :)
ReplyDeleteOptional does imply a choice. I have to write. It is my creative outlet and without it I feel incomplete.
ReplyDeleteSigh. It's not optional for me anymore, since I ghostwrite for a living these days. I almost miss having a regular job because now I have little time to work on my own stuff! :D
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. Although technically it must be, writing doesn't feel at all optional to me. I can't imagine not doing it. Honestly, I don't think I'd be happy if I didn't write, so maybe it's not optional. :)
ReplyDeleteThis is probably the first time I've heard it called "optional" lol. I've forgotten that, which I'm glad about. To me, it's not optional. I have to do this.
ReplyDeleteWriting requires practise, common sense and a good starship, hehe.
ReplyDeleteI write to let out all the stories that build up inside me. Otherwise, I would go crazy.
ReplyDelete