All Women Should Write - An Excerpt by Izzy Wyche

My beautiful friend, Izzy Wyche shares her insight on women and their value as writers. She dives into her own life while inspiring others to put their pen to paper and write words that have never been said. She gracefully invites women who have ever hidden their voice to finally let it speak.

When my dear friend Ali asked me to write about why women should write, I was honored. For decades women's voices have been whispered, confined to the margins of great men's stories. But our writing has the capacity to reshape the world and society as we know it. This belief has driven everything leading up to the present moment. Founding "The Literary Society," an all-female club in Charleston; writing my memoir "Everything I Never Said"; and maintaining "The Poised Page," my personal blog. I imagine my thoughts turning into breath, my writing—messy and wild—spread across pages, and I realize that honesty and raw opinions are what make the world go round. Every woman must claim her voice as her own and share her narrative to broaden the perspectives of others.

My memoir, "Everything I Never Said," was born out of urgency.. The words we swallow at dinner tables for fear of being misunderstood. The ones we hold back because we're embarrassed or ashamed. These stories must exist somewhere, must be heard by someone.

The same urgency led me to create "The Literary Society"—an all-female organization dedicated to women's enlightenment and a space meant to foster our minds and the stories that inhabit them. I wanted it to be a place where women could gather and speak freely, where they don't need to fear rejection or be told that their ideas aren't enough. We come together to drive our intellect, education, ambitions, and creativity into something palpable.

Now, I know what you're thinking: Get to the point. Why must women write? Why must we fill our minds with words compiled by strangers?

Here's why: Writing is necessary, beautiful, and filled with the emotional depth that everyone craves, whether they admit it or not. We don't need permission to be heard. We don't need permission to fill our minds with words written by poets, thinkers, and philosophers. The more we know, the better we become—especially as we step into this new year with intention. It is my dream for women to realize the power embedded in their experiences, good or bad.

More than this, writing and reading is how we find each other. When I publish a piece on "The Poised Page," I'm reaching out to another woman who shares the same rage, the same love, maybe even the same life. Writing and reading foster connection across distance and difference. Our stories are powerful, and let me remind you: silence has never once served us. We read and write and share our stories because we must. In doing so, we change the trajectory of our lives—and more importantly, the lives of others.

Open your laptop. Turn your notebook to an open page. Grab your pen. Read. Write. So many are waiting to hear what you have to say.

  Xoxo, Izzy & Ali