What writing is not
I understand the rush. A lot of people want to talk about their accomplishments. Before I bore you with all the details of how and why I got there, I think it’s important to take a moment to think about what writing is for me—and better yet, to talk about what writing is not.
I think the most important thing to realize is that writing is about the art of creation: it’s not about success or fame. Ernest Hemingway talked about writing the truest sentence one can write. I also think a lot about the depth of egocentricity that makes us want to be accepted and respected for what we do. Some amount of ego is essential—I think without it you wouldn’t be able to create anything. But the danger lurks in trying to feed your ego through your written words.
Every time I found myself writing something to impress someone or to achieve a goal, the writing failed. I say failed to mean that the writing didn’t connect with me later on when I read it, and I certainly didn’t enjoy writing it. That was because I thought it was going to be the next big thing, or I was just scratching a different itch.
In writing, I truly try every time to scratch a personal itch: meaning that what I’m writing is simply and deeply profound for me at the time, and I feel every inch of myself wanting to write that story. The best stories I’ve written were the ones I desired deeply, and when I did, the stories wrote themselves.
I think the struggle for every writer is that they want to be seen, appreciated, and validated. But that defies the purpose. That denies the capacity writing has to make us better and to let us enjoy the act of creation.
Another thing—in the age of AI, everyone thinks it’s easier to create. I would argue it’s harder than ever. A writer cannot rely on a mechanical moron, on a machine. Everything one writes has to come from the heart.
What writing is not:
- Writing is not a means; it’s not a means to an end. It’s not a path toward an outcome—it is the path.
- Writing is not a path to fame or success. Writing by itself is an act of being present, of being in the moment.
- Writing is not a destination—it is the journey. Whenever you find yourself arriving, look back: you’re just getting started.
- Writing is the piece of you that is missing; it completes you. It’s an act of creation that grounds you.
- Writing is not hard—it’s easy. If you write from the heart, it will be easy. The story, or whatever you’re writing, will write itself.
- Writing is a reminder that we are all human, and no matter how much technology evolves, it will never replace language—the understanding of the human spirit.
- Writing is not about your legacy; writing is about being remembered for how you made people feel.
- Writing is not about volume, but about quality. If you can connect with one reader, you have connected with the whole world.
- Writing is a reminder that I should share my words, write more, and feel every word I write. Writing comes first—everything else comes after.