Why I Write

Why Humans Write

May 12, 2023

Essay by Martha Nichols

The engineering mindset of AI researchers is so different from my own that the media coverage of AI to date has left me feeling alone, stuck in an alternate universe.

Why I Write, Media Debate, First Person | Read More

Talking About the Creative Life

Dec 22, 2022

Podcast Conversation with the TW Editors

Art reframes the way you look at the world, and we are very, very much in need of a new frame.

Why I Write, TW Podcast, Creative Lifer | Read More

It All Comes Back to Joan Didion

Dec 26, 2021

Memorial Essay by Martha Nichols

I miss her already, that’s the thing. I’ve been expecting to miss her for a long time.

Why I Write, Authors, Journalism | Read More

Dear Writers During Hard Times

Dec 21, 2020

Open Letter by Martha Nichols

I’m animated by the fierce intention to figure out what matters.

Why I Write, TW at Ten, Open Letters | Read More

A Menagerie of Writing Possibilities

Dec 21, 2020

Essay by Ronald J. Pelias

It knows the value in the discarded, knows the drama of the search.

Why I Write, Writer's Life | Read More

Ink Love

Dec 16, 2019

Essay by Mandy Shunnarah

Tattoos are the promises we make to ourselves.

Why I Write, Writer's Life, Transitions | Read More

Because the Story Began as a Body

Oct 01, 2018

Essay by Jennifer Popa

It’s as if I’m peeling back my own tissues, marbled with fat, to learn.

Why I Write, Writing and Faith, Grief | Read More

Needle and Thread

Jan 29, 2018

Essay by Madeehah Reza

As others try to warp my identity, it’s not always easy to feel that faith is a blessing.

Why I Write, Writing and Faith, Diversity | Read More

Something Like Sand

Jan 24, 2018

Essay by Mercedes Lucero

The loss and near-loss of three people in my life in a short span of time were too great to put into words.

Why I Write, Writing and Faith, Grief | Read More

Bearing Witness, Past and Present

Oct 18, 2017

Essay by Marc Nieson

Standing before the mute petroglyphs, I found myself conjuring stories about what lay behind each rendering.

Why I Write, Nature, Truth-telling | Read More

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