Writing – Just Another Essential Need To Survive

         Sometimes, actually often, the need to write is so intense, I feel a bit anxious. It is not an uneasy, negative feeling but rather, on the contrary, is essentially a positive drive that urges me to sit down at that computer and “pound” the keys. At times I write to express a point of view about an issue - political, social, or otherwise - or simply to create “story” from my imagination. On occasion, a memory of a person, time, experience, or place is the impetus that pulls me to the keyboard. And sometimes I start with just one word: blue, justice, tomatoes, love, beaches, babies, yellow, sex, daisies, death, Safeway, Walmart, Mary, Billy, or Joe. It doesn’t matter. One word from a random list (or thought) can get me going and frequently I am surprised by the outcome.

            Perhaps I am writing about writing today because I recently have completed my fifth book (fourth novel). It is with the publisher at this moment and I know, that within the next few weeks, loose ends will need to be knotted together so that a real book will be available for (hopefully) eager hands. In the meantime, the old mind is writing still, creating sentences and paragraphs as I walk my dogs, churning up a plot for my next long project, and toying with the notion of composing a poem or two, that, for me, is quite a difficult task. (I am in awe of exemplary poets.)

In terms of writing in general, though, I have to admit that ideas come easily for me because I always am observing: colors, shades, voices, faces, movements, sounds, attitudes, interactions, reactions, and more. (So, watch out!) Watching is a non-stop activity. I’m even looking in my dreams as bizarre as that may seem. Everywhere I turn, I see something worth recording, so my mind, I like to think, is a file cabinet filled with observations that will be available for perusal when I need them for my next piece of writing.

I would assume everyone understands that the basic needs for a human being to survive and thrive are oxygen, water, food, shelter, and sleep. To flourish further, however, I would think most of us appreciate mental stimulation that comes from thinking, creating, believing, exercising, problem-solving, and socializing. I feel much more alive when I am doing one of the important activities above but, for me, creativity tops the list. It is part of who I am. It fulfills me. And it makes me happy.

           

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