You Are What You Write: Self-Motivation For Writers
I love this quote by Virginia Woolf: "Every secret of a writer's
soul, every experience of his life, every quality of his mind is
written large in his works..."
I think Virginia Woolf intended for writers to understand that
their work reflects who they are, where they have been, and what
they will become.
Through an understanding of ourselves and becoming comfortable
in our own skins, the process of writing becomes more
spontaneous and uninhibited. When we comprehend our unique
writing gifts, we are aided in creating great stories. We become
more confident the more we accept and know ourselves.
When we tune into our needs and desires, we are more apt to free
ourselves to use material from our own lives and the lives of
those who enrich us. Our characters become richer and more
complex as we open ourselves up to all that we know about the
human condition.
So how does a writer begin? Start by looking at what motivates
you as a writer. What keeps you coming back for more?
Some writers are driven by passion, others by fear, and even
more are driven by both. What we wish for is also often what we
fear. This plays out at an unconscious level for people all the
time.
Screenwriters, for example, wish to sell their scripts, dream of
seeing their work on the big screen, but may fear the success
that comes with it. It is only natural to fear what we know
little about. We are creatures of habit. Change is never easy no
matter how attractive the outcome.
The danger that many writers face is becoming over-attached to
the outcome while being less in tune with why they chose to
write in the first place.
Here are some questions to ask yourself:
1.When did you first discover that you wanted to be a writer?
2.Where were you? 3.What experience led you to make the decision
to write?
If writers become aware that they are dreaming solely of fame
and fortune when reflecting on the question "why do I write,"
than it may be time to search deeper within themselves to learn
if writing is indeed what they are meant to do.
When we answer these questions and become more tuned into our
needs, we can begin to reflect on what sustains and feeds our
writer