"Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia." ~E.L. Doctorow

Friday, February 25, 2011

For the Adventure of it


Today, I’m going to give you a little peek into how my mind works. ( I warn you now: You may want to cover your eyes. This could get scary…. I’m just sayin’.) While I drive, my mind tends to wander. That’s how I come across most of my story ideas actually.

But anyway, I digress. Today while driving, my mind wandered down a curious path.
I was thinking about what I loved best about writing. Why I do it? Or even more so why I got into it in the first place?

And the answer that I found was because of the adventure in all of it. And no I’m not talking about the road to publication (that is a whole other story entirely…pun intended :) ) What I’m talking about are the worlds I create - the lives of my characters and what they have to go through. And I get to live those adventures vicariously through them!

Most of the time, we settle into our lives after our teen years- sometimes 20’s, sometimes 30’s. But we pick up a standard routine and just live on in that pattern. It’s not a bad thing. Truthfully, I love my life with all my heart, but chances are pretty darn good that I’m never going to get to run the streets of London in an effort to escape corporate spies or government assassins. (This is the part where you say “Uh Duh!”) But do you know what I mean? It’s a chance to experience things that I never would under ordinary circumstances. That’s what I absolutely love about writing.

What about you?

9 comments:

Kelly Hashway said...

I completely agree. I love writing because it lets me do the things I couldn't do otherwise. It also lets me escape reality for a little while, and let's face it, that's nice.

Catherine Stine said...

I write because I have to, I'm obsessed and driven. And I want to entertain. Also because I need to release all of the strange and wonderful scenes that crowd my mind!
Yes, also for adventure, and to learn. I learn a lot when I do research for a project.

C.M. Villani said...

Amen to that! :)

C.M. Villani said...

I have to say there are certainly days like that for me Catherine. During my first manuscript I was more on the ravenous writer side but this time around I slowed down a bit to enjoy the ride. :D

Amanda Bonilla said...

I definitely write for the adventure and escapism. It's amazing to live someone else's life for a while! :)

Unknown said...

I love taking the things I have experienced and putting a whole new spin on them. Maybe taking an imaginary path I didn't take 20 years ago and running with that choice with a fictional character. So. Much. Fun.

Katrina said...

Yup, yup, and yup. That's why I write, too. I live vicariously through my characters, and I can brave those hidden dangers that frighten me yet inspire them.

Samantha Sotto said...

I totally agree! I write for the same reasons I read - to escape for a little while and have adventures with my imaginary friends :D

C.M. Villani said...

Amanda - I'm right there with you.( Talk about taking a walk in another person's shoes!) I honestly think that's the best part of it.

Janel - Now that is a great idea. The stories I write are generally so far away from my true life (paranormal romance and epic fantasy) that I never really thought about putting little snippets like that in them. But that would be a really intriguing way to explore a story!

Cat - Isn't it great?! Those hidden dangers are such much fun to create! But usually after I'm done with a certain intense scenes, I'll look back and be very thankful that real people are not trying to attempt it. I can be downright vicious! :D

Sam - Imaginary friends. :) I love that. The other day while I was surfing thru blogs I found someone posted a graphic that said "Writing: The socially accepted form of Schizophrenia." Isn’t that the truth. :D

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