It seems to me the writer begins with a love of words just as a painter begins with his colors. The writer must enjoy the sound and near music of these written symbols on a page, playing with them as an improvisational jazz musician might dance among his notes and phrases, tinkering with the tonal quality, the hue, and myriad other things, arranging them and enjoying feel and taste of it. It is here the writer hones his craft, patiently moving among his words until he is full-satisfied they carry the sense and meaning he has intended. And as with the painter who spends a lifetime achieving the occasional masterpiece, the writer needs to remain content with here and there a good written piece coming from his labors, the other pieces but working sketches of a kind. It is real work and hard, and requires the dedicated hand. Daily if possible. And if not daily, frequently anyway, if that is all the time one has. But it is important to always hold before ourselves the simple reality that we are becoming writers, that we are still and always will be learning more of our craft. And this will take a lifetime.
But how to learn the craft? I have read a few books and articles on how to write. They have included strategies for how to produce specific kinds of written work. How to finish your novel, how to prepare a research paper, or how to write a poem or short story. And I suppose these are useful in their place. To be sure, I have picked up a few ideas there. But personally, I prefer the more organic approach.
As a writer of literary novels, short stories, poems, and a few essays, I have found the best resource in developing my own craft is to read good literature. The classics are very helpful, works that have endured time, cultural shifts, changing styles, and a vast and varied audience of readers. Also, modern day masters of the craft whose style I have come to admire in some way. It is not that we ought to copy these writers, but rather it is as to sit at their feet and learn from them by what they have done. How they construct the story or build a character or weave the threads of thought that carries the reader through the narrative, or how the poem completes an experience through image, movement, and color rather than a dull pile of suffocating details. To listen and observe these masters is the best and most satisfying method of learning the craft. It is then in our own writing we apply those things observed, putting them to the test through our own unique voice furthering our style and technique, honing our craft.
But why write at all? I think this is an important question. The answers vary. Some strive to achieve a level of notoriety as an author, the admiration of countless readers, and garner a few royalties along the way. This is fine. But I caution, it is rare. Most writers do not achieve this in any substantial way regardless of how delightful it may appear. And I suppose we all harbor a quiet hope this will happen with our work, that others will see the beauty of our words and so on. But let us be realistic for we are in this for the long haul. It is our life. We are in with the long view if we are actually writers and not simply someone trying to make a name for themselves. As writers we simply must write. It is in our bones and that is all there is to it. We write because it is our life to write.
So, I ask again, Why write? Knowing why helps us weather the inevitable stream of rejection notices or the criticisms of those who may have read a piece but did not have a taste for our style. Not everyone will be taken with our work and that is fine. It is all good. Knowing why we write, though, helps us through any feelings that we have failed at the task, for if we are still in the race, we have not lost but are making our way, steadily moving forward, listening, learning, and always improving our craft. Think of it as a lifestyle. It is who we are.
Personally, I write to touch others, to give them an experience they have never known or have long forgotten, to tease and uplift to new surroundings, to inspire, encourage, and to provide a moment of restoration to the weary or broken, or a moment of surprise and a new world to those gone tired of the world they know. For these reasons I am devoted to the craft. I do not aspire to a great name as an author. I aspire to touch the occasional reader in such a way that they are changed, are given a little something encouraging in their own passage through the world. Perhaps it is the way I paint a certain character or how someone in a story responds to another. Or maybe a poem that gives someone new eyes to see what they have never known before. This is my passion, what I long for as an outcome to my labors. I know this is simple, but I want it that way. I think there is a purity and wholeness in this motivation that keeps my own efforts less about me and more about my reader. In the end, it is simply an invitation into my world.
This is the writing life for me. And if you are a writer, I hope this helps a little.
Henry Lewis
7 February 2025
