by Kris Zelunka

Created on: January 22, 2009

There is no simple answer to this question, because for everyone, the answer is likely to be different. For myself, the reason I write is because I can't not write. Believe me, I've tried. But then the urge builds and builds, and before I know it, I've immersedmyself in writing again, without conscious thought.

I remember my mum reading to me as young as two years old, and teaching me to begin to read at three. At five, I was devouring children's books, and by eight, I had advanced to young adult novels. I loved to read, and more importantly, loved to look at the way different writer's constructed their stories.

In grade three we were asked to write a story as homework. The next day, the rest of the students handed in a page, most of them containing only two or three paragraphs. I handed over eight double sided pages. The teacher sighed, but when I got my homework back, she praised my characters and the story. I filled up countless notebooks as a child with characters, short stories, plots and ideas.

And the beautiful thing is, you don't have to be a 'writer' to write. For some of us, we find it easier to put down on paper what we are feeling and thinking. I can articulate things in writing far better than what I can speaking to people. This is partly what drives me to write. The other main thing that drives me is my love of constructing something from nothing. A word leads to a sentence, which leads to a paragraph. Sometimes I don't know where the story is going. Other times, my paragraphs are meticulously planned and researched.

Which brings me to the other great thing about writing. There are so many different forms - poetry, short stories, novels, articles, memoirs. The list goes on. Anyone who enjoys writing is likely to find something they excel at, some area to target their words towards. And there are so many ways, especially in today's world, to get your words out into the public - newspapers, magazines, ezines, online journals, writing groups. If you're a writer who wants to be read, there are a world of opportunities available.

Writing is part of who I am. Due to work, family and other commitments, there are times when I go without writing, but I always come back to it - whether in journal form, writing an article, or copy writing for a client. Putting words down on paper (or computer) draw me in as nothing else can. Ideas explode onto the page, blank pages fill up. For me, there is nothing better, and this is why I write.

Learn more about this author, Kris Zelunka.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.