Guest Blog: Tracee Lydia Garner

Why Do I Write?

Why do I write?

This is a good question and can say I knew only one answer to it years ago and as I’ve aged and grown, other reasons have presented themselves to me. The first reason was simply, back in college, struggling as I was with my academic coursework, I decided that I need an alternative and for it, I prayed. I asked God for a gift. Honing the gift He gave and uncovering that gift is really also passion and purpose, I’ve come to discover other reasons I must write. Let’s see if you agree and what’s cooler is, you may find some things that resonate with you and end up being YOUR WHY for doing whatever it is you do. 

It’s just plain fun. I have always loved the written and spoken word. Before poetry slams (today's “spoken word”, it was simply a teacher or the author his/herself reading aloud to whichever ears were piqued for listening. I have been reading for as long as I can remember. I used to sit under my teacher for circle time and when he read Judy Blume, I was riveted. I could imagine every word and my imagination was satiated with a great story and an awesome storyteller. I want people to be drawn into the drama just as much as I was way back then. 

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Secondly, I feel a sense of responsibility, duty, and honor and yes, I realize how heavy this sounds for someone who makes things up in their fiction but even in that, I count it all joy and moreover, I count it an important opportunity to portray, more times than not, the best that humans have to give. So a story  where a heroine that’s stranded on the side of a snowy, dark road and contemplating the woes of life and the choices that have led her to this very moment, can then be approached by a charismatic, (and of course), handsome stranger, that is out to ensure her safety and perhaps that of the child he didn’t know was in the backseat- soon develops into an opportunity to debunk a stereotype played out too often in today’s media and how lucky am I to not only go against stereotypical fanfare and wrap all of that into a way toward eventual happiness. We need positive imagery and images of all people.

Lastly, even though I’m writing to give something of myself and what’s on my heart to others, I will admit that writing can be for me, a completely, private way to ensure I remain sane. ☺ It is my OT and my PT and my spiritual exercise. By that I mean, I’ve never been one to talk on the phone much, I don’t have a great multitude of girlfriends (outside my head) and thus to ensure I remain emotionally and spiritually healthy and lay out some of my own desires through my characters, ultimately, God gave me the written word to express myself and it is with tremendous personal joy that I must do so.  And every reader I hope, benefits. How cool is that?

I write for love, sanity, and purpose. 
Why do you write? 

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