What drives you to write?

I read a post titled: What do we feel we have to contribute and what do we want from it? by Joel Samuel on a writing forum called Gather It really got me thinking about why I am driven to read and write in community forums.

While pondering what drives me I uncovered allot. I believe the significance of our existence is more that whether or not we are successful writers, if we make it big or if we are really popular.

Everyone we meet/ converse with can impact us in a large or small way and vise versa. Everywhere we go we leave footprints and memories, we shape the beliefs and attitudes of those around us. I can vividly remember several people who had a life changing positive impact on me simply by being there. They may have known they were shaping and teaching me, maybe they didn’t. The point is we are very influenced by those around us. Our parents, friends, lovers, teachers.. Everyone has some impact on us in one way or another. We seem small in the big picture but not insignificant!

The most important thing for me is to connect with others, share experiences, give advice, give something back and to make a difference. Maybe it is ego driven, maybe I feel I owe it, maybe I do it because I want to help- Who knows, this is just what I believe and this is why I write!