The Writer's Unshakeable Duty

There are no vacations, holidays, or days off if you're a writer. A writer might travel to warm locales and sip fruity beverages, and they'll definitely spend some time with the family and not forget to celebrate birthdays, Christmases, and Wednesdays. But a writer never really removes themselves from writing, because they're always researching, bouncing around ideas, jumping out of bed with the impulse to jot something down, formulating new stories to explore, and always drawn to the keyboard before the day is done. If they're a freelancer then they are trying to support themselves with their own sites, books, articles, sales copy and whatever else lets the money rain down, so they can't afford to have a day pass without something accomplished. But that is only small part of why a writer can't shake this act. Writing is a parasite that crawls its way into one's soul and sinks in its tendrils for control. The major side effect is an obsession over ideas and projects that dominate every thought at any possible hour until one finally listens to the call and unearths the treasure of a story. Even when depression overwhelms or the writer tries to ignore their true instincts, writing is that dark cloud that hovers and forbids any contentment until returning to the passion. There is always family to love and delicious food to savour and hobbies to embrace and moments that will supersede anything on the computer screen or paper, but for the writer, creating things with words will always be ingrained in the life.

Note: I was going to call this "The Writer's Burden" but that was even too melodramatic for me.