Why I write …

Asking questions of ourselves is doubtless a useful means of delving deeper into our inner consciousness. It helps us to understand better who we are and the world we live in. On that basis, and assuming it can only be a good thing, here’s my attempt to explain why I write …

I like words. They interest me and entertain me. They are available. 24/7. They do not require me to pay a deposit, a booking fee or service charge. Yes, they are free. Free to me.

I need no tool to make things out of words. Nothing like a paintbrush, hammer or chisel … just my thoughts and perhaps a piece of paper or better still a place in the cloud to where I can return.

I write in layers. From the bottom up. Starting with the title or concept and then, like a painter working on canvas or a musician perhaps in the studio, I add a layer or two or three or four … until I am content, but seldom happy, that the piece is complete. For now.

This way, a piece can always be added to or subtracted from. A little like Rodin when he dismembers his sculptures to form individual pieces such as his collection of hands or feet. A new collection from a roux of a concept.

Yes. I make words and concepts up. They intrigue me. I write because I can.

But I wish I could ignore punctuation like a lyricist does. Such audacity. Such bravery. How dare they break with convention so effortlessly with no regard for the rules.

One day, when I grow up, I want to be a lyricist and paint the world a kaleidoscopic incarnation of what’s in my fertile head.

Will you be there to greet it? Consider yourself invited x.

Nadio Granata

October/November 2021

Inspired by George Orwell