Why do I write? I write to inform, inspire, imagine, and innovate, preferably in that order as a matter of sequence, not priority. In other words, writing to inform is probably the least important reason to write, but it must come first to provide a starting point for the other three "i"s.
These four "i"s of writing help me see. They give me clarity, which I hope to pass on to my readers.
To Inform
Information is the least important of the four "i"s of writing because it's topical and superficial. It lacks heart and soul. Even AI can provide information. It is the spark of the lighter, but that spark needs fuel from its reservoir to ignite into a flame.
Likewise, there needs to be something dwelling deep in the heart of writers to keep us going. Information lives in the physical world, but the truth is not limited to this physical world. Therefore, information can only provide the fodder for powerful literature. Information alone will never be enough to make writing good.
Focusing too much on information too often leads to dwelling on all the things that are wrong with the world. I've become weary of doing that. Talking about how messed up the world is usually doesn't help make it any better. For instance, look at the news. It has been covering all the bad things people do for centuries, and yet for some reason we're still interested in it all as if the evil we're learning about is something new. On top of that, the world is still as evil as it's ever been, if not moreso. Generally speaking, all the evil that can be done has already been done, people will continue to do evil, and providing people with more information about evil doesn't lead to any less of it.
Yes, I am saying to ignore the evil done in the world. There is great wisdom in the old saying, "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." Don't worry. No one who does evil will get away with it. God has that covered, so we don't have to cover it in the news.
You may say, but what about the serial killers, rapists, terrorists, and the like? Surely we need to know about the evil they did." I say informing people about the evil they do is a zero sum game, because for every person who does such evil while trying to keep it a secret, there is another who actually wants to be known for doing it. For the latter, we do them a favor by publicizing their evil deeds. Let the justice system deal with them, and that's enough.
Furthermore, informing others of the great evil those evildoers do often leads to unanticipated corruption of hearts and souls. It can make people suspicious of other people who exhibit the same traits, personality, ethnicity, religion, politics, or any other characteristic as the evildoer. It can make other people over-protective and fearful, preventing others from enjoying many good things in our world. It can even influence people to commit lesser evil deeds, knowing that they're at least not as bad as those mentioned in the news.
While learning about the evil someone has done may ignite indignation in us, over time we may become numb to the news of evil deeds, or feel helpless in the face of evil's perpetuity, or even slowly tolerate it a little more and more.
Is this all just another way of saying ignorance is bliss? No, because there is another side of knowledge that leads to the inspiration, imagination, and innovation I mentioned earlier. It conquers evil every time, it's vastly more interesting, and it's just better for humanity.
In the Garden of Eden, we walked with God who is good. The Fall of Man began when we ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. As a result, in our fallen state we feel the need to know about evil if only to protect ourselves from it. This is not the case. A special group of people in our justice system---police, military personnel, prosecutors, detectives, judges---have been chosen to administer justice to those who do evil. Their vocation is important because it is their duty to protect us from evil so the rest of us can dwell in the goodness of the world.
It's interesting how the talk of information led to the talk of evil. That is part of the danger of dwelling too much on information. In this fallen world, when we desire knowledge for the sake of knowledge it eventually leads us to learning about the evil we sinners do. Then we have fallen into the devil's trap, because very few people can learn about evil without being enticed by it in some way. Do not be enticed by evil's unholy alliance with mere knowledge. It is a dead end.
Goodness, on the other hand, is a vast frontier that is mostly unexplored. Informing people about the good being done in the world can inspire them, which can lead them to imagining a better world, or even better worlds. When people's imaginations are set free, this helps us see more opportunities, the endless possibilities right in front of us, which leads to innovations in every field.
To Imagine
Learning about the goodness in the world sparks the imagination. Imagination helps one see the worlds beyond our own, and helps us see that we are not bound to just this finite world or mortal life. Ultimately, Imagination provides an image for the world. That image may be a creative interpretation of the world, a vision for a better world, some combination of the two, or something else entirely. I don't know. I am only one writer, and I don't claim to know the scope and potency of the imagination of other writers. In fact, by definition I believe an imagination has to be boundless. It is the part of us that touches infinity and eternity. In that sense, imagination is akin to faith.
However, as mere writers we cannot manifest our imagination beyond much more than words. This inability can teach us humility and interdependence on other professionals who can implement this image, or vision, into reality. There can be a respectful interdependence between writers and other professionals if we all understand the ways we help each other.
To Inspire
Inspiration helps one see a deeper purpose in life. It's true, some people are content with a simple life, but eventually even the simple life leads to deeper contemplation. Eventually, we all start asking the big questions. Why are we here? What is the meaning of life? What makes me happy? What is truth? What is justice? What is love? And on and on we go.
In our society of excessive specializations, we may seek out a different specialist for answers to each of these questions, but I have found that these specialists often can't see the forest for the trees. They get lost in their specialty and lose sight of the big picture. Or they claim a false humility and are content to just stay in their lane and not venture into other fields. As professionals, they professionally refrain from commenting on matters outside their profession. A writer must be the interfield highway that connects the wide array of subjects in today's world of professionals. We must see the common thread to provide people with a map that lays out how to get around today's complex society. As writers, we have to seamlessly jump from one subject to another as we draw the big picture. More importantly though, the big picture we draw has to inspire. Otherwise, what a sad interpretation of existence it would be that we portray. The picture we draw has to convey some purpose, or give people a deeper sense of the purpose they already have and cherish. The big picture a writer draws has to inspire people to go on, especially when life gets hardest.
To Innovate
While imagination and inspiration are great, they wouldn't lead to much if not for innovation. Writing asserts its value in our utilitarian society by inspiring people to innovate. Good writing provides pieces for the puzzle we call existence. A good writer can write about anything. He can make connections between subjects people didn't see. He can challenge the norms of the times, offer better solutions, and inspire people to make positive changes.
When people start to see the big picture a writer is drawing, they can start implementing his inspiring image in the real world in their own ways, depending on their own expertise. This is why professionals in every field often say it was a writer who inspired their work. This is why so many novels have inspired movies that aim to provide deeper immersion into the world the novelist created. When a writer shares good ideas, it is natural for other people to want to implement them in more substantial ways.
Writing Brings Ideas to Life
I don't trust my own thoughts unless they possess the fire of truth. That fire illuminates other worlds beyond our own and we call it imagination. It ignites a certain part of the brain like a spark on hot coals, motivating us to take action, then we call it inspiration. And it fuels new ideas that we can implement in tangible ways, then we call it innovation.
Nonetheless, it's the same fire and those who seek the truth know it well. When we hear the voice of truth, we respond. It provokes us to do something. The something I do is write, because I don't know what else to do with the ideas in my head. At least by writing them down I can share them with more people and get them out of my head. Otherwise they build up and my head becomes heavy with them all.
So, the vocation that tugs at my soul more than any other is to be a writer. I'm a writer on a mission to rebuild Western Civilization, because it carries the torch of salvation since it is still the most Christian civilization ever. I choose this vocation not only for others, but also for myself because writing is a source of inspiration, imagination, and innovation for me. It is my way back to the path to heaven.
We can identify with Jesus in many different ways. For me, it is Jesus as the Word of God that I can relate to best. For ages, the idea of God hovered over humanity, constantly eluding our grasp. We could not grasp perfection in any of its forms, whether it was justice, truth, goodness, love, or any ideal. Though many great thinkers tried, we couldn't ascend to understand it, but perfection could descend to us. We couldn't touch it, until the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
Writers are tasked with continuing Christ's mission of giving form to the ideals, through the light of the Gospel. As long as people keep making it difficult to realize great ideas, there will be a need for writers to at least write down those ideas, for someone to someday pick them up and bring them to life.
MIdjourney prompt for featured image: A writer at a wooden desk in a dimly lit room, his words fill the pages in a book he's writing as beautiful images of heaven and earth hover over his head in clouds representing his thoughts.
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