As I mentioned in my previous article, I just finished reading the book “On Writing Well” by William Zinsser. I want to clarify a bit why am I so excited about the subject of writing.
One reason is that I found that when I write about a subject, I improve my understanding of that subject. As a programmer I had many cases when get stuck into something. I google and read documentation and I still can’t find my way out. Then I decide to write on some user group or forum to ask for help. And when I start to describe my problem in writing, most of the case I end up finding the solution. And this also happens with non-programming problems.
So, one big reason for me would be that writing brings me clarity. And I think I understand why: when I try to reason about an issue that has too many things involved, juggling them into memory is hard, so I keep dropping then and starting over, and then I get tired and finally frustrated. When I write them though, having them all listed and pinpointed I have a much better control over them. I can prioritize, group, and rearrange them until I come up with something easier to understand.
If clarity would be the only thing I get out of writing, it is enough for me.