Motivation #2 @Lyceumo asked whether we write for ourselves or for an audience. I agree with @KT77 , in that both are motivations. I write because I enjoy the creation of texts and I do pain over them. I consider them equal to my music: I enjoy the feeling of pride after listening back to the finished product that I have laboured over, but I want others to hear it as well. Oddly, I actually don't need to hear what they think; it is enough to just know that people have heard it. I am not saying that I don't like praise, but these creations are my babies and of course I want them admired as I stand by like a proud parent, but criticism hurts even more than direct criticism of me. The same goes for my writing. Music, art, literature, performance, they're all equal. All must be as close to perfection as the artist can accomplish, whatever that artist's vision of perfection is. My advice to others? Don't click 'post' or 'send' until you are proud. If others enjoy your creation even a fraction, then that is the cherry on the icing on the cake. All else is enough to sustain you. If you are not proud, then all the praise in the world will leave you empty.

Jazzwank The experience felt by all jazz musicians, just like their audiences don't.

Revisionist Humour I had a dream last night that I was eating my pillow and, when I woke up, my giant marshmallow had gone!

Short Stuff I worry about writing short stuff. I worry that, by not writing many short Opusses, I am alienating some users who do not want to read longer texts. Should I strike more of a balance? It'd be easy enough to write just one-liners but these need to be balanced with longer texts as, as far as I am aware, letters make a word, words make a phrase, phrases make a sentence, sentences make a paragraph, paragraphs make a text, and texts make an author. Short posts can prove your wit (as long as the wit is your own) and get attention but the longer stuff is important as well. Unless you can churn out one-liners at an impressive rate (all bow down to the genius of Tim Vine). But I can't and so I worry, as plagiarism is not my cup of tea. So... I shall conduct an experiment and see where it gets me.

Monkeys' Uncles and Aunties What are we to become? Tens of thousands of years of evolution and this is all we have to show for it. Sure, there are pretty impressive achievements such as the iPhone I'm typing this on whilst having a shit, but what about the species itself? How well have we evolved? Who exists as the pinnacle of our species? If we are to consider success to be the defining feature of the aspirational vision of humanity, then who is that? World leaders? Pretty repugnant in all cases I think, although Cameron does have nice rosy cheeks (must be all those years toasting crumpets in Eton). Who do we aspire to be? Where is the human race headed? Who should be donating sperm and eggs to create the master-race and who should be neutered to get them out of the gene pool? How do we decide? Voting is clearly not the answer or we wouldn't have the crap government we are stuck with. Popularity shouldn't be the answer, or the world would be populated by Peter Andrés, Kerry Katonas and Biebers. *shudders*