Weekly Blog #1

“Writing is the hardest work in the world. I have been a bricklayer and a truck driver, and I tell you – as if you haven't been told a million times already – that writing is harder.  Lonelier. And nobler and more enriching.” ~ Harlan Ellison

 

A show of cyber-hands, anyone agree? For me, writing is often a very precarious and grueling activity.  Yet, nothing feels better and is more rewarding (except for maybe a Firecracker Popsicle on a hot, humid summer’s day or winning the World Series) than finishing a piece of writing and being genuinely proud of your work.  It’s as if your brain is congratulating its other regions and saying, “Kudos, Creativity, a job well done!” But, to feel ample contentment, as Ellison states, writing must come from a lonely place.  Complete silence.  Dead silence.  To the point that if you just strain your hearing, conversations from the underworld and alternate universes can be heard.  With that being said, minimal distractions are also a key ingredient; no feelings of “shiny object alert” accepted!  Sadly, I must be forced to write in order to write.  Somewhere in my schooling, writing became a chore and not a creative outlet.  Also, as is a common excuse, life got in the way and writing never made its way onto my “high priority” list.  So, it got pushed to the depths and crevices of my mental tool belt.  Therefore, my writing spurts come when teachers make me (and in the U.P. that’s not very often because apparently Yoopers value hunting and fishing over their communication skills).  So, I often resort to the same procedure each and every time I write.  To quote the lovely Maria from The Sound of Music, “Let’s start at the very beginning./ A very good place to start.” I always start a paper with my introduction.  However, depending on the topic, I sometimes have to start with my thesis and work my way backwards to the beginning to the introduction, instead of just starting from the beginning of the introduction and working my way to the thesis.  The same goes for my conclusion.  I occasionally need to start with the last sentence and work up the paragraph.   And, like a good cup of coffee, I let my writing percolate before I revise.  I often find that as the words age, they become more in sync with one another and feel more “enriching.”  So, that leaves us with this: a parting thought (and a word from our sponsors) that has come to me while writing this as I self-reflect on this journey called writing:

“99% of the game is half mental.” ~ Yogi Berra