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Zoe Zecchin
Miss Miller, Mrs. Crichton
AP English Language
18 June 2013
Why I Write
At a young age, I was not necessarily drawn to the writers aspect for my future
career. Although it was not something that captured my interest from the start, once I began to
write, I enjoyed the feel of writing and the quietness it required. As I grew up, writing became
easier, allowing me to express my thoughts with just a simple twist of my wrist. Writing was
never about a certain form for me, but rather flowed with my particular thoughts in the moment.
I believe one reason why I was not attracted to writing was because I was not taught how
to read when other children were. Feeling inferior to other children in my class because of my
reading skills, my confidence in writing plummeted. I was intrigued by writing on my own time
though, and often wrote stories I had made up when I playing with my Polly Pockets. Granted,
most of my stories were rudimentary and did not contain much depth, they still fueled my desire
to write. I was encouraged by my parents to write but not excessively. I would often start diaries
that would become lost long before they were filled, but they did serve to motivate me to capture
my thoughts. Now I realize, those stories were the beginning of my writing career.
As I grew older and wrote essays in school, my desire to write increased and I had a
tendency to write more than was required. I gave unnecessary details and background
information. Going into my sophomore year of high school, I thought I was a terrific writer, but
was awakened from my fantasies to discover others were not only just as proficient as me at
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writing, but some were much better. This provoked me to focus my efforts on writing and
improving my skills beyond what I thought was possible.
Much like Orwell, I was engrossed with the sound of words and how they are used to
describe an object. The way one puts different words together to describe an object that he or she
sees compared to how someone else describes the same object, is compelling. There are many
ways to write depending on the authors intended purpose. George Orwell, a famous novelist
who found a love for writing at an early age, believes people write for four different reasons:
Sheer egoism Aesthetic enthusiasm Historical impulse Political Purpose (Orwell 3).
The author's purpose is what drives him or her to write.
I believe Orwells writing motive of sheer egoism might be the case for some people,
but it seems more likely those writers get left behind in the search for good authors (3). Orwell
perceives some writers as vain and only write to be remembered after death (3). I do not think
vanity should qualify as a motive for writing; instead, writers write for someone else, to please
and display a sense of knowledge to the reader. For example, when I write essays, I do it to
please my teachers, show the skills I have learned, and display my comprehension on a particular
subject. Other authors might write for a boss, someone whom he or she might admire, or a
childhood figure that causes him or her to want to prove what they have accomplished, similar to
one of Orwells motives. I suspect most writers have this intention whether it is apparent or not.
Orwells stated reason to write, aesthetic enthusiasm, is valid, in my opinion. Many
writers, I being a victim of this, take pleasure in the sounds of descriptive words (3). The desire
to express the beauty in everything. These authors also take pleasure in writing by itself, writing
for no one but themselves. Often keeping a diary or journal, they write to remind themselves of
memories or events in detail and keep it to themselves. Writers with fortes in this style of
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writing, do not get paid in copious amounts; however companies who recruit writers with this
talent use them to emphasize the beauty of the companys products.
I also agree with Orwells historical impulse and recognize many writers desire to
spread awareness and share their knowledge about a certain topic (3). Through factual evidence
and clear cut explanations, they allow future generations access to the information without
difficulty in a simple and straight forward way.
Some authors write because they feel their words of wisdom should be spread throughout
mankind and their knowledge should be shared, much like historical impulse, but instead, with
an obvious bias (3). This bias creates a political point of view. I accede with Orwells thoughts
towards political writing. It is difficult to find a writing that is free from bias. No matter the
topic, there can almost always be an opinion on it. The point can always be argued from a
different viewpoint. Due to the hardships of finding bias-free writings, one must accustom his or
her self to acknowledge the bias and base his or her own opinion on all the different variables
that are presented.
Most writers are affected by one of the motives Orwell described and in many instances,
the writing is a result of a complicated combination of the authors personal aesthetics, need to
persuade, hope to educate or desire for immortality. Although, according to Orwell, many writers
fail more often than they succeed, they each create a style of writing which is uniquely their own.
Some writers might have very similar forms, but no two are exactly alike. As for my own unique
form, I recognize that it, too, is a result of a combination of motives. I am aware of wanting to
please the reader, usually the teacher, with writing content, but because words give me pleasure,
I realize that aesthetically I am writing for myself. Still, as I contemplate why I write, I
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remember my Polly Pockets and wonder if the best reason for writing is not the pleasure of
creating a good story that simply stirs emotions and entertains.

The End.

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Reflection:
I used transitions to help create a chronological storyline as well as connection my thoughts from
paragraph to paragraph. I used personal examples as well as quotes from the original essay. My
essay shows a personal example of how I chose to become a writer, much like how Orwell chose
to become a writer. This gave the reader another example of how someone chose the path to
become a writer. I offer the reader a new perspective and new definitions from my position that
was originally explored by Orwell. My diction was not as good as I thought it was when I wrote
it. I made it informative as well as similar in style to Orwells original essay so that readers
would continue to read my essay. Yes because it clearly stays relevant to the topic as the essay
continues and I have a conclusion that brings the essay to a whole. My details were concrete and
selective. My imagery creates mostly a visual diction. For example, when I described my
childhood, I used images of me writing in diaries to create an image. I used logical connections
with smooth transitions to allow for my essay to remain on topic. I demonstrated control over
grammar by having a well-structured essay so that it mimicked the style of Orwell. I also varied
my sentence structures in a way that would showed I knew what I was doing. I used commas,
semi-colons, and periods to help clarify sentences and show my control. My essay shows
professionalism by the way it is structured and the way the sentences are placed in a very logical
and structured way. It also mimics a very well-known author who is thought of as professional. I
am proud that my essay is logical as well as slightly personal. My voice shinned through my
essay by my personal examples as well as my opinions on topics presented by Orwell in the
original essay. The impression I give to my audience is that anyone can be a writer.