Should everyone write?

As I start my writing journey, I am beginning to think whether everyone should write or not. Isn't writing a skill that we acquire over time? If yes, why can't everyone acquire that skill? After all, it requires interest, patience, perseverance, consistency and above all acceptance that we can fail as a writer. But just because someone can write well, can everyone convey a topic in a meaningful way evoking interest in the minds of the readers? I think that may not be possible. Otherwise, we should have thousands of writers. May be we have so many but not everyone reads everybody's writings. We choose our authors based on our interests, our emotion, someone's recommendations, and many more. 

It is an undisputable fact that all of us undergo different life experiences. Our learnings from those experiences decide and shape who we are. So when we really want to write, those learnings certainly come to our help. However, choice of words, sentence structure, content, size and what genre we are going to write about also decides whether or not our writing can create an impact. 

That brings in the next question on the purpose of writing. Is there a purpose in writing? Many say Yes and an equal number of people say No. I think there are people who write just for the love of writing. They enjoy the process of writing. They find writing as a medium through which they can express what they want to share. They are not worried about their audience. They write because they love to write. On the other hand there are writers who write for their living, to create a social impact, for academic purposes, and for various other reasons. In both the cases, whether they are writing for others or for themselves, there is a purpose. But is the purpose defined for a targeted audience or for self is something only a writer can decide. 

I have been reading quite a lot since my college days. Don't ask me when did I finish my college? :-) Reading so much has given me the power of language to express myself clearly in a powerful manner. I still remember how my college professor used to recommend reading a lot on a regular basis. That recommendation wasn't new. In fact we used to always hear from our parents, teachers and elders in the family asking us to read. But in my opinion, those were recommendations made to pass an exam. We studied more than read. Whereas, what my professor said was to read for a purpose. Read with a lot of interest. Reading makes us wise. In my case, it certainly has made me wiser than how I used to be during my college days.

So in that case, does reading precede writing. I think they go in parallel. You don't start to write because you are very good at reading or you read a lot. You write because you want to write. But can people start to write without reading? That's a big No. You must read regularly to shape yourself as a writer. That's what I have learnt from my little writing experience. We read, we write and we write and we read. They both go in parallel to each other. A famous writer does not stop to read. So should a novice be! Reading regularly is an essential requirement to write something.

How frequently should we read? We should read daily. That's my recommendation because when we read daily, it keeps us fresh and vibrant. I can hear you saying "I read newspaper everyday". By reading I do not mean reading newspaper. In fact, that's not reading at all. Reading requires choices. We need to choose what we want to read. Going to a nearby library, or to a book exhibition and buying books, or to a book shop to buy books and maintaining a home library are some of the ways in which we can increase our interest to read. There were days when I used to go to the Connemara Library in Egmore (Chennai) just to return the books. But when I enter that structure and the ambience had always stirred my interest to borrow books again. Visiting such places certainly have an impact. So, reading books is what I mean by reading. 

Let's get back to our question on the title of this blog. Should everyone in that case write? We all write everyday. We write messages, emails, create documents, and write for various other purposes. If we enjoy the process of writing, if we love to express our thoughts and emotions through writing, if we can visualize the past and the future, can imagine something that does not exist but yet are capable of creating one, be it a character or an object, I think anyone can write. 

I have written poems, essays and about my life's journey too. I have thoroughly enjoyed doing that as a writer. Enjoying that process is very important to become a writer. As I write this blog, I am beginning to understand the responsibility of being a writer because what we write can create an impact, positive or negative, constructive or obstructive, somewhere in someone else's life. If that responsibility is understood, I think anyone can become a writer. I have started this journey of writing now. I have a long way to go. Let's see where does this take me to. :-)