Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Wednesday's Word: Drive

Drive. I'm not referring to that leisure jaunt in an automobile on a Sunday afternoon, I'm talking about what motivates a person to do something. In this post I want to delve into what drives someone to write. Being an author is a lonely job. There are no office parties, chats around the water cooler or over the cubicle wall. A writer sits alone all day (when they are lucky and don't have family take all their writing time), at their computer, their only interaction with other people comes through online social media. And then there is the pay, or lack thereof, and the rejections, and the possible tossing of a year's worth of work in the cybertrash. So what could possibly motivate a sane person to devote their life to wanting to be an author?

To my author friends out there, what powers the DRIVE that keeps you going when everything around you tells you it's not worth it?

This is what drives me:

Society says
today's youth want to read
books filled with suicide, sex, smut, and greed.

But I don't agree
with the message this sends:
"If you like to read, you must bend to the trends."

That is why I write,
to make books that inspire
to live life on a plain a step higher.

And . . .
to give kids a choice
in the books that they read.
If I lift but one soul, I succeed.

2 comments:

  1. This is great Carolyn. And I think your drive is an excellent one, really it's the highest motivation.

    I'm not sure what drives me. I know I have passion for my work, a passion for bringing it to life and getting it into the hands of readers. I think my drive comes down to passion, actually. Passion for life, for hope, for love--all things I hope are exemplified in my stories. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Amen, Carolyn! Your motivation is the best motivation of all! And I'll throw you an office party, if you'd like. :)

    ReplyDelete