Writers Like Writers

One thing I notice is that people in a given field tend to date other people in their field. Doctors date doctors. Musicians date musicians. Being a writer, I find myself attracted to writers.

I think a big reason people date in their field is the proximity. When you spend so much of your life in a field, most of the people you know are in that field. You get to know them better than most other people, so it is more likely to click with one of them. Of course, writers don't go into an office or have writing coworkers (unless you are a journalist or technical writer), so that doesn't really explain why I would be interested in writers.

Another reason people date within a field is understanding. Both my parents are professional classical musicians. Orchestral musicians have completely abnormal schedules. They work afternoons and evenings. Their season is not a full year, so they supplement either with teaching private lessons or playing gigs with other groups. The short version is: musicians work when everybody else isn't. Nobody else can understand a musician's life like another musician, and that is moreso the case with me.

One of the reasons I chose writing is that I love words. I love saying them, analyzing them, and finding the perfect word to say exactly what I mean. That love of words came before writing; I didn't choose to write and then later decide to like words. And that is something most writers have in common. When another person shares a love of words, it is a very powerful point of connection. And when somebody has such an ability with words to say something powerful, whether it be hilarious, depressing, or anything else, it is a great point of attraction. Since I love words, I love anybody that can make great use of words.

It's understandable for writers to like other writers. Of course, it's perfectly possible to like somebody in a completely different field. But if you do that, it will help to realize that different fields have different lives, including things like schedules and interests. An accountant talking about work may be dull as hell to you, but you telling an accountant about revision may be the same thing in reverse.