Why do I write?

This may seem like an odd question — but why do I write?

Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

Recently, I was having a beer with a friend — obviously, in these COVID-19 times we were not down the pub, we met on Zoom. And we started talking about The Retirement Newsletter and writing on Medium. My friend asked me why I write a newsletter and write on Medium?

Good question!

When I was at school, I didn’t like writing. In fact, and you may think this is obvious, English was my weakest subject.

At school, I didn’t enjoy the process of writing. I found it difficult and tiresome. Maths and science were so much easier with their set rules and logic. Given a choice between writing a two-page story or spending the afternoon doing some tricky algebra, I would take the algebra every time.

But, when I became a professional scientist, I needed to write. I needed to publish scientific papers. I had to write PhD and Masters theses. I developed a taste for writing.

And now, I enjoy the activity of writing. I like the process of collecting my thoughts and trying to get them down on paper. I even enjoy editing and reworking pieces I have written. And this has made me realise that I don’t know what I think until I’ve tried to put it into words on paper. Well, until I have put my thoughts and ideas into a…