After writing for this long, I stumbled onto something of an observation. My motivation to write reflects what’s happening in my life. If I’m feeling unmotivated, in a slump or stalemate with my writing, it probably means I’m not very inspired by life at the moment, or feeling indifference, or fatigue. But when I get out to seek some inspiration/novelty, feel excited about life again, or travel, then I start to have stuff to write again. 

Back home, life chugs along with a predictable rhythm. You get up, brush your teeth, eat some breakfast, commute to work, lunch, work some more, leave office, have dinner, sleep. Rinse and repeat, ad infinitum, ad nauseam. The days and weeks blend into one another, the months fade into years, and very often we catch ourselves saying, “Wow it’s already December?!” A whole year had sped by, and our recollection of things that happened in the year didn’t count to much. Indifference and fatigue breeds. I feel that deep down, us humans aren’t built to do the same thing over and over again everyday. We started off by hunting animals one day, gathering berries the next. The week before we got chased by a sabre-tooth tiger, the week after we brought down a mammoth. We lived by the seasons, ate, saw, smelled, touched and did different things during spring, summer, autumn and winter. But our industrial society is built and organised in the image of a factory, and our lives as machines, following set schedules and narrow roles. 

When I get into such a season, my creative self starts to wither and dry up. And my writing and my lack of motivation to write, signals that life out. 

On the contrary, the moment I travel, the writing changes. I have no lack of ideas nor drive. The words flow. I actually enjoy writing, than see it as a chore. Everyday, you see something new, experience something beautiful, and you just can’t wait to share it with the world! No one day is the same, and be it novelty or uncertainty, new things jolt the soul alive everyday. And the writing takes care of itself, easily. Is it realistic to expect everyday to be like traveling when back at home? Nope. But it’s not unrealistic to plan to inject inspiration every so often, instead of letting it slip.

So…. writing is a mirror. Or more accurately, the feeling/motivation to write mirrors the state of your life. It’s the blinking red alarm back at you. It tells you that your life feels pretty sucky right now, if you’re having trouble writing. It’s not just you doing the writing, but also the writing doing something back at you. 

It’s telling you to live.