28 December 2006

What Keeps You Writing?

I'd post this as a discussion question tomorrow, but we'll be out all day. My question is this: what keeps you writing? Is it the storytelling? The world-building? "Meeting" exciting characters? The research? Having your own voice?

In essence, why do you devote yourself to this labor of love (literally!) at the expense of other enterprises, and especially when the task of getting published and staying in print is such a difficult one?

I'd give you my answer but the keyboard I'm using is wireless and wonky. Suffice it to say that, as a mother of two young girls, I need my space. Even in our tiny apartment, I can find a miraculous little escape hatch at the end of the day -- when they're in bed and I fire up my laptop. I'm also a show-off with a nasty "look at me" complex. I adore research and would gladly spend my days reading random books about olden times, so that comes into play, and I am an incorrigible romantic, ambitious, and a borderline control freak. What else could I do but write??

Happy new year to you all!