Why do we write?

I see so many posts about why we as writers write. This got me thinking. There are so many reasons I write, and many of them I share with my creative writing class, but the biggest reason is control.

When I write I am able to control situations I would otherwise I have no control. When I was younger, as in in college, I would write about dysfunctional relationships. But now, at 42, I write about my high school life. I write about the mean girls who tormented me and the boys who toyed with my emotions. I write on behalf of my students who are going through the same thing. I write to process my emotions.

As an adult, and a YA writer, much of my writing helps me process the 1000s of emotions I went through as a kid and now I’m trying to sort through them. I would imagine many writers are like me.

In the big picture, I’m regaining control of my life that happened 20+ years ago and want to give hope to my many students going through the same thing.

So why do I write? Because I want to lead a healthy adult life. Because I want to make sense of the bullshit that had gotten me here. And because as much as I’m an adult the teen behavior surrounds me everyday. Writing allows me to make sense of it and be the best adult I can.