Compelled to Write

            “Come in David and have a seat.” The female psychiatrist said as she opened the door to her office.

            The young man walked in and flopped down into a chair, completely avoiding looking at the other woman in the room.

            “David, your sister has been telling me some things, but I want to hear from you.”

            “What has my big sis told you, that I’m crazy. Did she tell you I missed my mom’s funeral because I was busy writing? Maybe she mentioned that I spend hours alone in my room writing.”

            “There is no need to be defensive David, I’m here to help, and this is a safe place.”

            “I don’t want to be here. She dragged me here and is forcing me to meet you so I am, but I’m not going to help you lock me away.”

            “I will not lock you away, David. Your sister doesn’t want you locked up either she is just concerned.”

            “I’m fine. I like to write, so what is the problem?”

            “David, the problem is you seem obsessed with writing. You admitted just now to missing your mother’s funeral to write. Your sister has told me other occasions where you have missed important events just to write.”

            “You wouldn’t understand, you don’t know what it is like.”

            “Explain it to me, David, please.”

            “It is like an itch you can’t scratch. It starts small, but it grows and grows until it is all you can think about. Once you give in, everything else fades away and you feel so good. When you are writing it seems like no time is passing, you are in your own little world, just you and the words.”

            “What do you do with all these writings of yours, David?”

            “Some I post online. Writing sites, bulletin boards, blogs I have stuff on all kinds of sites.”

            “Why do you post your stuff online, David?”

            “It is part of it. Once I write something, I need to show people. It isn’t like I want to be famous or anything, I just need to post it.”

            “David, have you ever heard the term hypergraphia?”

            The young man shakes his head.

            “It is a condition which causes the person with it to write or draw, even paint excessively. There have been many famous people with this condition.”

            “So how do I get rid of it? How do I have a normal life?”

            “There is no cure David, there are medications that will help control it, but only a little.”

            David drops his head as he begins to cry. His sister moves over to hug him.

Reviews

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

Brilliant short story
I’m sure there are writers who write incessantly I for one wish I could !!
Great story

[Robert Haigh]

Well, I feel compelled to write, but thankfully I can also switch off if I really want to. Beginning a new poem, or a song, or a short story, can become all consuming for a time, but I think most of us can control the situation. I'm sure there are people like David out there though. Being human can be quite complicated!