Human beings are psychological creatures. This may seem self-evident, yet the writer who does not write, or who writes but does not write deeply, rarely turns to herself to ask, "What's my nature, and what in my nature is the problem?"
I am definitively a psychological creature.
I write, sometimes deeply (Maisel defines deep writing as writing that is passionate and well written), and sometimes not.
And yet, I have had to turn to myself and ask Who am I? That is a very close question to What's my nature?
An activity I have engaged in that my therapist (yes, I have a therapist) suggested to me is called Cast of Characters. What you do is you take all of your identities, all those hats you wear, and assign them roles based on how prominent the identity is.
My main character is the Critic. I am very self-critical. I'm never satisfied.
I think this identity can also answer the question What is my nature? It is in my nature to criticize everything I do, think, or say. This critique extends to my writing. Not that I am self-critical of my writing, because, in all honesty, I'm not. But my self-criticism comes with a certain sense of self-knowing that is beneficial when writing.
I know myself and I strive to get to know myself when I write. Like therapy, like meditation, like writing, self-knowledge is inherent.
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