7 Important Reasons Why YOU Should Write

There are as many reasons to write as there are writers. Each of us has our own reasons why we sit in front of a keyboard or scribble our thoughts on a pad. Even so, there are some key reasons why you should regularly write. Whether its articles, essays, poems, compositions, papers, books, e-books, ad copy, literature or any other of the myriad of writing forms, it’s a vocation that serves almost everyone in good stead. Here are seven good reasons why YOU should join the great legacy of writers.


To Express Your Ideas

Every one of us gets ideas. We get ideas for new products or services, new ways of doing things, ideas for changing the old or introducing the new. We write down our ideas first to preserve and protect them, then to share them with others. Development of ideas can also come from writing them down and thinking about or brainstorming about them. Writing could be used to help in organizing our thoughts to extend or complete mental processing of ideas.


To Share Our Experiences

We may write to share any number of the experiences that fill and enrich our lives. Our experiences run the gamut of human emotion from uplifting to the dregs of despair. One way to share our experiences and the emotions associated with those experiences is to write about them. A good writer can make us feel emotions through the words on a printed page or screen.


Personal Challenge

Writing is often a way of overcoming personal challenge. As words flow onto the page, we strive for goals we may have set. It may be a record we’re trying to keep. We may want to thoroughly document some outstanding facet of our existence – good or bad. We may simply want to make writing more a part of the way we express ourselves on an everyday basis. Getting the words down then, is the challenge for some of us. The challenge of keeping the words flowing can be a formidable one if we don’t allow our hearts and minds to open up to the free discourse of our thoughts and emotions.


Recognition

One could write for recognition as a person who is highly knowledgeable in a field or endeavor. We want to be recognized as an expert or perhaps a near expert on a topic. This can be accomplished through writing books and articles that share a portion of what we know. An expert isn’t someone who knows everything about a subject, but rather, an expert is a person who knows more than the average person about a topic. This may be through formal study, experience or a combination thereof.


Compensation

Thousands write for the money and other compensations. From journalists, professional authors, poets and screen writers to copy writers and academic materials authors there is money to be made for those who can move up to buy, instruct us, sway our emotions or entertain us through their words. Newspapers, books, magazines, flyers, ads, stories and a host of other forms all vie for a portion of our lives each day. Movies, plays, TV and radio programs, and other audio visual forms were originally written down in some format.


To Share Knowledge

Scientific, medical and educational writing is, for the most part, a way of releasing new knowledge or the results of study, thought and investigation to large groups of others. Journals, reports and technical discourse in virtually every field are available for the enrichment of knowledge of those whose lives involve them in higher education or scientific study. Indeed, a staunch requirement of the vast majority of universities and institutes of higher education is the regular publication of new knowledge in the field of the professor.


To Document Progress and Changes

An untold quantity of events occurs each day worldwide. Many may impact us individually. Some may impact those we know. Other events seemingly do not touch our lives at all. Or at least so we think. According to the “Chaos Theory” and the “Butterfly Effect”, a seemingly innocuous event on the other side of the world may have major impact on an event in the near or distant future thousands of miles away. “The flutter of a butterfly’s wings may cause a storm in another part of the world.” Current events are documented at an astounding rate. Ultimately, it’s possible for you to know intricate details of occurrences ostensibly, any where on earth at almost any time.

For every writer, there are different reasons to write. No matter the writing motivations are for you, you should strive to continue to contribute to the vast well spring of knowledge and experiences that writers provide. So sit in front of a keyboard or scribble your thoughts on a pad, but whatever form you use, just continue to write. Continue to be a part of the great legacy of writers like Shakespeare, Hemingway, Poe, Frost, Cummings, Carnegie and Peale, among thousands of others. They filled us with emotion, documented our times, molded our language and helped to shape our future.
How about you?


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is a bi-lingual copywriter, expert author and photographer specializing in business, travel, food and education-related writing in South America. His work has appeared in Transitions Abroad, South American Explorer, Escape From America, Mexico News and Brazil magazines. He now lives in Colombia and teaches at a university in Cali. Want lots more free tips, help and information on language learning, public speaking, writing and mental skills development? E-mail Prof. Larry M. Lynch at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com for professional consulting, EFL Teacher Training or ELT multi-media presentations at your conference or facility.