To celebrate the National Day on Writing (October 20, 2011), The New York Times Learning Network, the National Writing Project, Edutopia, and Figment, have teamed up to bring you a festival of words and ideas and to ask the question Why Do You Write?

It's a straightforward question with a million complicated answers, and we want to hear them all, in whatever form best communicates why YOU write. Your piece can be a personal essay, a poem, a short story, a play—it's up to you.

We'll be accepting submissions in this festival from September 28 through October 29. Since this is a celebration, there are no prizes, but a curated anthology of selected submissions will be available to order as a snazzy e-book later this winter. Check back for more info.

A few idea generators to get you going:

1. Describe the first time you felt like a writer.
2. Imagine a world where you couldn't write. What would that feel like? How would that limit you?
3. When has a piece of your writing made you feel really proud? Frustrated? Surprised you?
4. What's your writing space? What surrounds you? What tools and supplies do you need?

Other National Day on Writing Events:

To celebrate the National Day on Writing, The New York Times Learning Network, the NWP, Edutopia, and Figment are also sponsoring a host of other events and programs.

1. October 13 - 20Throughout the week leading up to the National Day on Writing, the participating organizations will post Q&As about the writing process with New York Times reporters; novelists, including Anna Quindlen, Barry Lyga, and Ashley Hope Perez; writing teachers; and Figment writers.
2. October 20Writing is trending. On October 20, Tweet why you write and include the hashtag #whyiwrite so that everyone can see the many reasons people write.
   
   
3. October 20On October 20 at 7 PM EST, the National Writing Project will air a live radio show to celebrate the National Day on Writing, including interviews with Learning Network editor Katherine Schulten; New York Times reporter Fernanda Santos; novelist and NWP teacher Ashley Hope Perez; Figment co-founder and New Yorker staff writer Dana Goodyear; and Figment teen writers.