Expression or Exploration

When we get engrossed in writing, there are a lot of questions we never ask ourselves. One of the reasons I love teaching, or even just discussing my craft is that I am forced to ask some of the most basic questions. One of those questions being why we write.

Of course, the specific motivations that drive each of us is unique, but all writing can be placed into one of two categories: expression or exploration. Any piece of writing, from poetry to scientific journals, is either an expression or an exploration for the writer.

When we have something that we know and want to share with others, we write expressively. We are confident in our message and our intent. We are so sure of what we believe that we are compelled to write it down and share it with others.

When we have a question and are looking for answers, that is when we write exploratively. Essays are great exploratory writing. Write down a question. Write down all the information you know, then try to put the pieces together. But any piece of writing can explore. Suppose you really wanted to know how a radio works. You take a radio, open it up, and try to reverse engineer it. In writing down what you learn from your experiences, you will create a technical guide that was exploratory.

If you find yourself stuck, not knowing what to write or why you're doing it, ask yourself: is there anything I know that I want to share, anything I want to find out? If there is, then you have your beginning. And since starting is the hardest part, you're now on easy street. Do you want to say something? Do you want to learn something? Then get writing. If you don't, then find something else to do with your time.