by Gordon Hamilton

Created on: February 10, 2009

There is no doubt about it that writers are a very curious breed of people. They all earn their crust in essentially the same way, yet no two writers are ever the same. There have been many literary giants down through the ages who have been at best eccentric, and several who have been clinically insane. There have been those who could only fashion their craft while under the influence of alcohol or some other, more sinister narcotic. There have been writers who have known great, virtually overnight success and those whose talents were truly appreciated only after their own demise. So what classifies the individual as a writer: are they formed from the life they lead and education they receive, or is it something they are born to and destined to pursue in life?

A writer may be loosely defined as one whose business is forming the written word in to cognitive sentences, paragraphs and larger pieces of text for the entertainment and/or education of subsequent readers. This clearly therefore requires at least a basic level of education in the English language, or whichever language may be applicable in the individual writer's case. No writer came out of the womb, picked up a pen and wrote a historical classic. This education is something which requires study, time and development and we can thus say that this aspect of the writer's craft is artificially created and refined. It is not an ability or a talent with which the writer is born.

If we look deeper, however, and consider what a writer actually is and what characteristics define one as same, we may find some very different answers. Above we have considered the cold, hard, logical facts - such have very little place in the heart or soul of the average writer.

There are a great many types of writer, from the outright dreamer such as the love poet or fantasy novelist, to the technical author who has to deal in established scientific fact. Writers tend to be deep and lateral thinkers. They tend to think "what if" as opposed to "this is." Writers have open minds, ever receptive to new ideas and possibilities, always seeking greater knowledge and new experiences. The writer is essentially an artist whose tools are words as opposed to paint. They create their individual imagery on paper as opposed to canvas, painting in many cases a picture every bit as vivid, dependant upon their skill in their own craft.

It is my submission that it is the paragraph immediately preceding this one which truly defines a writer. It defines the soul of the writer and what truly makes one a writer. In this sense, we can only conclude that writers are born to be same and that although their craft has to be learned and developed, it is a path they are destined to follow from day one.

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