Why write: Reason #71

This is the perfect reminder after a steep week of writing: Why even write? Why bother? Stephen King has the best answer. When asked if he wrote for the money, his answer was ultimately no. He says:

For the buzz.

It's easy to lose perspective when my nose is two inches away from text, tinkering with words and meanings and the flow of speech until my brain is numb. 

But on the best days, I can pull back and hear my words like a reader, instead of a writer. I can fall into the current of the story and get swept along, surprised by it, exhilarated.

So yes. On my best days, I'm with the King. I'm doing it for the buzz.

I have written because it fulfilled me. Maybe it paid off the mortgage on the house and got the kids through college, but those things were on the side--I did it for the buzz. I did it for the pure joy of the thing. And if you can do it for joy, you can do it forever. -- Stephen King, On Writing

So let's keep going.