alanajoli | Math and Creative Writing

Having read the post from Whedonesque written by Joss Whedon about how many people don't consider writing to be "work," fellow Browncoat Nitsan (aka Snackyette) wrote:

"I'm a mathematician, and what I do each day is in many ways similar to what a writer does. I go to my office and I sit, think, write some things down that other people haven't thought of yet (hopefully), think some more, read something to give me background or ideas, think some more, write some more, and then listen to someone else talk about what they're thinking about.

"Most people find it incomprehensible that I think about math and come up with new math for a living, kind of like making a living out of thinking about stories and coming up with new ones."

I've often compared musicians, theater folks, and visual artists to writers, but it had never before occurred to me to think of math as a creative profession. The idea enchanted me so much that I asked Nitsan if I could pass it along. It also makes me wonder what other professions I've taken for granted that are both work--and creative!