Dan Uselton's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing-addiction"
Confessions of a Writing Addict: Why I Can’t Quit the Page
Let’s be honest: I didn’t set out to become a writing addict. It started with a spark—an idea that wouldn’t leave me alone, a voice whispering, “What if?” Suddenly, I was staying up late to chase down a line of dialogue, skipping lunch to scribble in the margins, and finding characters in the shadows of every room.
Writing isn’t just a hobby. For some of us, it’s a compulsion—a need, almost physical, like thirst or hunger. One sentence leads to another, a chapter begets a book, and before you know it, you’re mainlining plot twists at 2 a.m., chasing the high of a story finally coming together. There’s something thrilling about being lost in your own world, about bending time and space with nothing but words.
But it’s not always glamorous. Sometimes, the addiction means getting weird looks in public because you’re mumbling lines of dialogue. Or jotting ideas on napkins. Or forgetting to answer texts because your brain’s trapped in a scene that won’t let go. You find yourself promising “just five more minutes,” then surfacing hours later, blinking at the clock and the world outside your window.
And yet, I wouldn’t trade it. Writing is the only addiction I know that leaves you richer when you’re done. Each story is a new place to wander, every rewrite a puzzle to solve. The rush of a plot twist landing just right, or a character surprising even you, is better than any sugar high or TV binge.
Some people run marathons. Some chase storms. Writers chase words. Maybe it’s a little reckless. Maybe it’s a little lonely sometimes. But for those of us hooked on storytelling, there’s no cure we’re looking for.
So if you see me, glassy-eyed, talking to myself in the coffee shop corner, just know—I’m not crazy. I’m writing. And yes, I’ll have another cup, please.
Writing isn’t just a hobby. For some of us, it’s a compulsion—a need, almost physical, like thirst or hunger. One sentence leads to another, a chapter begets a book, and before you know it, you’re mainlining plot twists at 2 a.m., chasing the high of a story finally coming together. There’s something thrilling about being lost in your own world, about bending time and space with nothing but words.
But it’s not always glamorous. Sometimes, the addiction means getting weird looks in public because you’re mumbling lines of dialogue. Or jotting ideas on napkins. Or forgetting to answer texts because your brain’s trapped in a scene that won’t let go. You find yourself promising “just five more minutes,” then surfacing hours later, blinking at the clock and the world outside your window.
And yet, I wouldn’t trade it. Writing is the only addiction I know that leaves you richer when you’re done. Each story is a new place to wander, every rewrite a puzzle to solve. The rush of a plot twist landing just right, or a character surprising even you, is better than any sugar high or TV binge.
Some people run marathons. Some chase storms. Writers chase words. Maybe it’s a little reckless. Maybe it’s a little lonely sometimes. But for those of us hooked on storytelling, there’s no cure we’re looking for.
So if you see me, glassy-eyed, talking to myself in the coffee shop corner, just know—I’m not crazy. I’m writing. And yes, I’ll have another cup, please.
