There’s something obsessive about being a writer — something that only another writer can understand. It’s that need to chase after just the right word; to revise and fix and improve; to craft a world out of no more than imagination and intention.

Most people really can’t understand this compulsion — they may have obsessions of their own, but writing isn’t one of them. That’s one reason we writers band together and find each other and create little tribes of like-minded souls — writing can be lonely work.

And yet, it’s also joyful! Let’s consider the many pleasures that flow from being obstinately obsessive in pursuing the writer’s life:

You can create a world that pleases and entertains you: What a gift! You can build worlds where none existed before. Then you can people them with characters who enthrall you — who dance to your tune for a while and then whirl away and dance to their own.

You can go to a place somewhere beyond time: We all know the feeling of being “In the zone” — of being so caught up and immersed in what we’re writing that we lose all track of time. Rare as these magical moments are, we all know their golden glow — and work in the hope of enjoying more of them.

You can enjoy the satisfaction of being challenged by something you care about: However thorny a plot point you are wrestling with or wayward a character you are courting, there It can be deeply nourishing and soul-satisfying to work toward an exciting, inventive solution. When you find it, there’s fulfillment and forward motion.

You can get where you want to go: If you’re going to write, then you need to write and write and keep on writing. Obsession helps. So why not just revel in it all and be obstinately obsessive? What other road to creative mastery is there? So let’s all happily obsess — and write on!