‘Ello, everyone! In case you missed it, last week I talked about why I read books, part one of two posts (this being the second part, of course!) Soooo in this post, I’m making a list of why I WRITE books. (YOLO, right??!) 😀 I mean, what makes a person decide to pound out 60,000 words for fun? If you’ve ever wondered, or even if you know why, I think you’ll like my list. Oh, and I’d love to hear your thoughts! Let me know if you have anything to add to the list.

#1: Dump your problems on someone else, for a change!
I’ve found that giving my problems to little people in my head actually helps me to see things in a new light. Even if you’ve never written before, and don’t plan on sharing any of your writings with anyone else, when you’re done, it feels… refreshing.

Writing down your feelings is good, too, but when I make up characters for a story that’s all going to fit together, I have to think about what each person is feeling, and how the story is going to end based on what decisions the characters choose, what they’re thinking. Because I base my stories on real life experiences, when I think about how others feel, it gives me a better sense of empathy.

#2: Express your views and opinions without missing a beat! Be the heroine of your story.
Do you ever stand in front of a mirror and talk to yourself, pretending to tell that person off (bully, nuisance, acquaintance), with a thousand comebacks that you never thought of in the moment? I do! I love writing because I get to be the heroine of my story! I get to save the day. I get to pound that bully to the ground. Sometimes my main character is the one in the wrong, but they always end up on top. Your story gets to go the way you want it to. No one else can tell you how to write it.

#3: Writing helps talking.
That sounds weird, right? Let me explain. In order to write, I have to gather my thoughts together in a way that everything will make sense and be orderly, so others can read it. When it comes to my creative, for-fun writing, I’m a total panster. (In other words, I get an idea, I write as I go along, BOOM.) But at some point or another, I have to decide what things are important to the story, and which things need to go. So what I means by “writing helps talking” – because I’ve spent all this time thinking through what exactly needs to be said in my story, when I’m having a conversation with someone, I tend to think through what I say quicker and more efficiently, and I can get my words out more eloquently. Of course, I still get tongue-tied, and either stick my foot in my mouth or don’t say something I  need to say, but that’s just Emily. 😉

#4: No one’s writing is the same.
We all have different voices, opinions, characters, story lines. Everything about your story is your own. Sure, they may be the same genre/story line/rather cliche characters, but it’s YOURS. Own it!

#5: Capture the feeling.
I have plenty of memories where I remember how I felt, but I don’t feel it anymore. When I read or write a book, the character’s emotions or feelings become my own. I can feel what the character is feeling. It’s incredible, really. Like I keep saying, even if you’ve never written a word before, you have the power to make someone feel something from your book. Not just learn a lesson (although those are plenty important, too!), but feel and grasp what the character (or the author), is feeling. It’s an amazing part of reading/writing a book, and it’s way under appreciated!

#6: Make up stuff!
We make up stuff in our heads all the time! Let me tell something. My cousins and I could star in a soap opera. When we were younger, we’d play “house” or “olden days” (we would pretend we were pioneers settling on new land). We would be “college girls” or “doctors.” We played a dozen “games” together, making stuff up! We have such a wild imagination! Those games we played would make for really dramatic novels, or really silly children’s books. (Somewhere in between.) 😉

When I write, all of those experiences and ideas blend together to make the coolest, most exciting, intense story. I always hated it when those games I played with my friends had to end. But when I write a story, it never has to end! (Well, it does at some point, but you know.) I can continue making up stories as I go along. I’m always jotting down ideas in my little notebook I carry with me. The fun never stops!

#7: It’s educational!
I know, I know – “education” sometimes sucks the fun out of everything. But it doesn’t have to with writing. (At least creative writing.) This is the thing that makes my parents and teachers happy. Even though I write for fun, I still want to my writing to be good. I’ll find myself searching for synonyms for words, or a word will pop into my head and I’ll have forgotten what it means, and I have to look it up. Reading expands the mind, but so does writing!

So that’s all I’ve got for this post! Can I just say that I didn’t even realize I had so many great (if I do say so, myself), reasons I had for writing?! And also, I’d like to add that these reasons can also be for blogging! (Especially #7, whether I mean it to be or not!)

Do you have anything to add? I’d love to hear from you all! Why do YOU write? (and remember #4 when you comment! I love talking to everyone!)

What’s the point in reading a book? Do you read for the adventure? For the “escape” of reality? Do you read it for the morals, and the lessons? I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Back in September, one of my friends and I went to see The Giver movie. For those of you who have read the books or seen the movie, you know there’s a HUGE lesson we can all learn from it. It’s really powerful.

Anyway, when the movie was over, of course I was near to the point of tears thinking about how amazing the story is! My mom and I (we read the book together), started talking about the moral of the book, and what we learned. Of course we talked about how cute Jonas was, and how intense some scenes were, but because the main reason I read books is the lesson out of the story, that’s what I was going to talk about. I asked my friend what she learned/thought about the moral of the story, and she shrugged and said, “Eh. I just read books for the story.” She wasn’t wrong, per say, because stories are great and exciting and they get your heart pounding… but I was a little bit stunned. Here we were, having seen The Giver (if you haven’t seen/read it, look up the trailer!), and my friend walked away honestly having not given any thought to what the story meant.

So today, (naturally), I made a list! Here’s why I read books.

#1: Sometimes fantasy is so much better than reality.
Come on, don’t deny it. I tend to enjoy reading most on lazy PJ days at home when life is good, but not particularly exciting. Books make it ten times more exciting! I remember in my school library in elementary school there was a sign that said “Books take you places to meet new faces,” and I’ve never forgotten that sign because it’s so true! This is where my friend was right about “just” reading books for the story.

#2: Words are like a milkshake.
Non-bookworms might be thinking that you can escape reality in video games, or movies. And, yeah, those are nice, too (like I said, sometimes I just don’t feel like reading!), but for me, words are like a milkshake. I can’t really explain it… I guess some people have a love for words more than others. Anyway, what I mean by that is whenever I drink a milkshake, I try to take my time so it lasts (and I don’t get a brain freeze!), but I always end up slurping it up faster than I would have liked because it’s just so good! Books are like that, for me, too. Movies are great, but there’s something about the eloquence of words and the descriptions and the feel of the pages, that’s so different.

#3: If you have a little imagination, reading a book is like you’re in charge of the movie.
If you watch a movie/TV show/video game/etc., characters are cool and sets are beautiful, but with only a little imagination, books are like TV in your head! You get to decide the scenes. You get to imagine the characters. So in a way, it’s like YOU’RE the movie producer!

#4: Books encourage a stronger imagination!
I’m stealing this point from this post I read the other day. Like the quote goes, books take you places to meet new faces. Piggy-backing off of my first reason, a strong imagination equals a strong, smart mind. (And sometimes a witty and a little bit sarcastic mind, from experience…) =)

#5: Books, and words, have the power to change you.
If you regularly follow my blog, you know that in all of my reviews, I make a point to talk about what I got out of the book; what I learned from it. That’s because the main reason I read books is because peoples’ stories have power. To change for the better, or for the worse. When I read a book, I crave the adventure and the mystery just as much as anyone, but I also enjoy the lessons each book has. Because of this, I personally believe bookworms have stronger imaginations and minds. Books can change a person, but like the Bible says, only if they have eyes to see (or in this case, read!) and ears to hear.

So what about you? Why do you read books? What’s the POINT in them, anyway?? =) I’d love to hear from you!

Many of you have found my blog through Heather Vogel Frederick’s blog (which is awesome, because HVF fans UNITE!) And I love talking about the Mother/Daughter book Club because… well, let me put it this way: they feel like home. Like the last sentence in the last book (so far!) says, “There’s no place like home.” Especially when home is where the heart is. And my heart is where the mother/daughter book club is.

I started reading the books in the fourth grade with my mom (who else was I going to read them with?!), and loved it. At the time, the girls were older than me in the books. You know how you always seem to look up to older girls? Like that cool high school babysitter you had when you were little? That’s how Emma, Jess, Cassidy, and Megan were for me. I’ve grown up with them over the past three years. So today I made a list of things I’ve learned from the Mother/Daughter Book Club.

#1: Don’t judge a girl by her looks or the way she acts.
At first, every single one of the girls in the book club judged the others by the way they looked. Emma was “fat,” Jess was a stinky farm girl, Cassidy was a dumb jock, and Megan was the snobby girl from the Fab Four. The Mother/Daughter book club really hit this home, especially in the later books when the girls did the same to Becca, Anna(stinker)belle, and Sophie. =)

#2: It’s okay to be happy again and still miss lost loved ones.
One of the girls in the book, Cassidy, lost her dad, and was really angry when her mother moved her to Concord and then in the second book began dating again! I really liked how throughout the books, there were many scenes where Cassidy was missing her dad, but that didn’t mean she hated her mom’s new boyfriend, and she was content with her life the way it was.

#3: There’s always going to be embarrassing moments happen to us, but we just have to laugh at ourselves.
Even though the girls made mistakes and embarrassed themselves more than once, in the end of the books, they always shook it off and laughed at themselves. Best of all, they learned from their mistakes – and yeah, they still regretted what happened/they did, but they all used it as a learning experience.

#4: We grow out of those awkward phases.
In the first book, I don’t think any of the girls would have guessed how they’d all turn out by Wish You Were Eyre. All of the girls grew out of their awkward phases, and by the last book, they were more confident in themselves than every before.

#5: Family and friends are most important.
I loved all of the get-togethers and parties and the close-knit bond the mother/daughter book club created. I loved each adventure the girls went on, from a goat in the school play to a year’s trip to England. Everything that happened to them, the group became closer. It reminded me a lot of my own family and friends.

Have you read the mother/daughter book club?? Anything to add to my list?