![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/images\/smileys.jpg\" "\\"Smiley")
Does writing make you happy?<\/p>\nDoes writing make you happy?<\/p>\n
Should<\/em> writing make you happy?<\/p>\n I’ve talked with other writers and the results are mixed.<\/p>\n One thing I hear even more than whether writing makes writers happy is how miserable it makes them.<\/p>\n I’ve encountered writers who talk about how they have to write<\/em>, even though it pains them. They talk about writing in a very dramatic fashion, seemingly putting more effort into discussing how miserable writing makes them than they put into actually writing.<\/p>\n I never understood this. While I have a compulsion to write and can’t imagine not<\/em> writing, I don’t have<\/em> to write. I’m simply compelled to write; most days, I even want<\/em> to write!<\/p>\n I sometimes wonder if writers who talk about how miserable writing makes them put too much pressure on the act to make them happy.<\/p>\n I wonder if those writers are happy in any aspect of their lives.<\/p>\n If you think about it, the physical act of writing isn’t very exciting. Most of us go into a room all by ourselves for hours and create something from nothing.<\/p>\n It’s fun, but it’s not easy. Some days, it is<\/em> miserable!<\/p>\n Writing can be frustrating. Few things are worse than knowing what you want to create and not being able to do it when you sit down. Some days you see a better cadence to the pacing and better words on the page than you put down. Some days you know you can do sooooooo<\/em> much better. (Which is why we revise.)<\/p>\n But is writing to blame for one’s misery?<\/p>\n I write every day. (In addition to the other writing I do, so far this month I’ve written a Juggling Writer entry a day.) I edit things, too.<\/p>\n I write fiction, non-fiction, and technical documentation. But I also get out and see friends. I workout more days than I don’t. I love hanging out with my wife. I juggle and have other hobbies.<\/p>\n Those things make me happy.<\/p>\n Writing doesn’t necessarily make me happy, though…<\/p>\n While writing doesn’t necessarily make me happy, it satisfies me.<\/p>\n Every time!<\/p>\n Writing leaves me feeling like I’ve accomplished something and moved another step toward doing the writing I really<\/em> want to do full time. It’s not the act of writing, but the thought of making it writing that makes me happy.<\/p>\n Right now as I freelance, I have more time to spend with people I love — I have more time to do the things I enjoy doing.<\/p>\n There are times I’m so incredibly happy while writing that I can’t even describe it. (Even though I’m a writer.) There are times the words flow and what goes from my brain, through my body, and makes it on a page makes me so happy and excited that I leap up from my chair, point at the monitor — at the words that surprised me — and laugh or cheer.<\/p>\n Seriously.<\/p>\n But most days, writing’s work…and hard work at that.<\/p>\n I like hard work when it has a payoff. It leaves me satisfied. In a sense, there’s happiness in that satisfaction, but when I look at a printed article, screenplay, or novel on my desk, there’s no bigger sense of accomplishment in my life!<\/p>\n Writing leaves me feeling satisfied.<\/p>\n Sometimes, it even makes me happy.<\/p>\n (I’m not sure it’s supposed to do any more than that.)<\/p>\n Does writing make you miserable, happy, satisfied, or something else?<\/p>\n Do you have<\/em> to write, or just want<\/em> to write?<\/p>\n I’ve never understood self-flagellation and really would love to hear from somebody who absolutely hates writing, but keeps at it.<\/p>\n If I hate something, I don’t do it — so I’d love to hear why somebody chooses to be miserable, and what good it does them to keep writing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Does writing make you happy? Should writing make you happy? I’ve talked with other writers and the results are mixed. If It Makes You Miserable One thing I hear even more than whether writing makes writers happy is how miserable it makes them. I’ve encountered writers who talk about how they have to write, even […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2166"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2166"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2166\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2166"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2166"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.christophergronlund.com\/blog\/tjw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2166"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}If It Makes You Miserable<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Is It Writing’s Fault That You’re Not Happy?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
What Else Do You Do?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
So What Does<\/em> Writing Do?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
What About You?<\/strong><\/h2>\n