Why I Write

Why do you write? This is the question faced by many writers. A question that is so simple, yet so difficult to answer for some.

Why do I write? The main reason I write is because I was inspired by some really great writers. I picked up reading when I was 10, starting with the Goosebumps series from R.L. Stine. He was the writer that got me addicted to reading. Within 3 years, I read all the Goosebumps books he has ever written. At 11, I started reading Christopher Pike and J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter. It wasn’t so famous then, but the story was still enjoyable. At this point in time, my ambition was to be a writer and I tried writing a few pieces myself.

At the age of 13, when I was in Secondary (High) School, I started reading Applegate’s Animorphs series and Dixon’s Hardy Boys series. Later on, I read J.R.R Tolkien’s The Lord of The Rings and Terry Brooks’ Shannara Series. At 15, I learnt about this website through a magazine called Writers’ Digest and participated in a fantasy writing competition. That was my first official story, ‘The New Age’, which got me a Runner-up in the competition (I’m not sure how many participants there were though.)

Over the past years, I read books from many other authors including Terry Goodkind and also learnt that writing was not something that could be done just by sitting in front of the computer and typing it out. Proper research work and planning must be done in order to produce a good story. However, I was not brought down by this.

I write for my own enjoyment and to entertain others. I write because it is something I enjoy doing. Another reason is due to Tom Clancy’s quote: “The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense.” I find it a challenge to make the world I’m writing about make sense. I also like the feeling of being in control of the world, and being perhaps the “God” that decides the fate of my characters.

This is why I write, and this is what I like to do.

*Live to Write, Write to Live.