Writing is proof, to me, that I exist at any given time. Whether anyone reads it is not the point Whether literal in a blog, surreal in a poem, scripted in a documentary, sung on record, written upon a wall, broadcast on you tube or narrated in a play,  it is what it is.   And through the looking glass creativity and it’s guiding principles are  the greatest family I  could achieve in life without having  one.  It’s true that “I write therefore I am”.  And that’s true of  any writer worth their salt.  But the bonus is the feeling you get when you write, of connection.  Family like creativity is story of what is. Think schroeders cat. Mieow.

I said to someone – I was 26 in Manchester and it was pre internet – I said each time I’m in the newspaper it’s a record that I’m alive at a given point in time. But she thought each time I was in the newspaper my ego was sated. It’s a rational conclusion but she was wrong:  Believable but unforgettably wrong.  It made me realize how individual my reason for writing is  and how personal.  Yet I’ve never had a personal life in the classic sense.   My childhood is public record and was openly  discussed and documented in files by a shifting flock of strangers.As an adult since being on the front page of The Leigh Reporter in 1984  it’s been documented.  The family saying of   “what happens between these four walls is our business” is anathema to me.  The bond  (or curse)  of family secrets was not something I was privy to. The four walls were never there.  There was no business.  So I publish because of the unique opportunity to see my story through my eyes as it happens and as a place for recall.

I guess you’re not a serious writer if  you only write when  sad.  You are a serious writer when you write when you ‘re happy or sad.  Right now I am relatively happy.  I hope this has helped you see why I blog and  why I write.  I hope this has helped you see how it is unrelated to hype and whether my name is or isn’t mentioned.   It’s pleasurable it is. But I know my place and I know what matters. I’m a writer by profession,  a writer by spirit. If you’re my publisher you’d like me to be a writer of  my memoir. It’s all coming man. It’s all coming.  But as for my blog since 2006  its description remains true.  Lemn Sissay blogs openly for personal reasons.

Please read  part one then  part two  then after this one part four