What We Talk About When We Talk About Writing

By Eileen Spiegler – Guest Blogger

For those who write, the act of putting words to paper – or to screen – can feel like both a calling and a chore. Often, the most satisfying part of the process is not the writing, but the having written – and, of course, the adulation you expect/pray you’ll receive for it.

It’s a solitary activity that usually requires isolation, with no guarantee anyone else will ever read all those contemplative words you’ve sweated over and fallen a little in love with. Jhumpa Lahiri, a Pulitzer Prize-winning short story writer and novelist, once said that if there was anything other than writing she had a talent for, she would do it.

“All writing is just a wild leap off a cliff because there’s nothing to support you,” Lahiri said. “You’re creating something out of nothing, really. No one’s telling you to do it. It comes from within, and it’s a very mysterious process, at least for me. I still don’t understand how I write a story or a book. I mean, I know it takes time, I know it takes effort, I know it takes lots and lots of drafts and hours, but I still really don’t understand the internal mechanism of how it happens.”

And then there’s the money. Unless you’ve achieved Lahiri’s level of fame, or are tirelessly churning out piece after piece and have a steady client base, it can be a darn hard way to pay the mortgage.

Don’t be discouraged, fellow writers.

I started out writing fiction, and then became a journalist, which I loved and which I admit was partly satisfying because I knew someone would always read what I wrote. With the decline of the newspaper industry and after a 20-year career, I was laid off. Once I’d picked myself up and recovered from the trauma, I took stock of all the skills I’d accumulated, all the contacts I’d made, and summoned all those resources to reinvent and sell myself.

Since then, I’ve written for nonprofits, law firms, academic, religious, and governmental organizations, an educational gaming website, advertising agencies, travel, business, and news publications. I’ve edited websites and book manuscripts.

Some of it was tedious, yes. But I find something unexpectedly inspiring in everything I write. Although I lost a career I loved, I’ve learned and experienced so much I otherwise wouldn’t have. The most important thing I’ve learned is how resilient and capable I am; how many ways I can make writing work for me. Maybe, for the first time, I understand why people call writing a gift.

Like Lahiri, the process still seems mysterious to me, how we make words come together to create something whole, like putting together a puzzle – a puzzle that shows both us and our readers something new, practical, interesting, even beautiful.

So why are we called to write – in loneliness and possibly obscurity?

I’ve found that regardless of what I write, from the lowliest press release to the loftiest story, few things are more soul-satisfying than discovering again and again how words can connect us to each other, how if we dig down, we can find something unique and powerful to communicate.

When you sit down to write today, remember: Dig. It’s there, in you.

(Eileen Spiegler is a former news editor and writer for one the country’s largest and most prestigious newspapers. She currently writes full time for a non-profit organization and also does freelance work. She can be contacted at spieglere@bellsouth.net. – S.Simon)