random-writing-thoughts

The key to writing is to write.  Just write.  Everyday and anything.  A thought, a poem, a line, a lyric, a paragraph, a story.

Just write.  Everyday and anything.

Like everything else in life, we must hone our craft and how do you do that without practice?

Take out the thought of being "a writer" means your published and absorb the practice that being "a writer" means you write.  Plain and simple.  We identify ourselves, often and too much, by what we do.  So, when someone asks, "are you a writer?" we duck our heads and say, "no" because the next logical, almost accusing question will be, "what have you written?" and unless we've been published, we'd rather not take ourselves down this road.

I read about this very thing recently, in another writer's blog.  How a reaction and answer changes based on the question. By changing "are you a writer?" to "do you write?", she had a totally different conversation develop.  Interesting...

Blogging as a writer originally had a purpose: to get all these poetic thoughts out of my head...  Hence the title:  Jae Halam Writes.  However, I haven't gotten there yet.  Instead, I'm having much more fun, and staying much more comfortable, blogging about what I've read (and recognizing this, I added the "... and Reads..." to my blog title).  Which brings me another thought:  I wasn't comfortable sharing this with anyone.  Who am I to write about someone else's writing?  I've hidden this blog from those I know, only recently sharing - and when I did share, I didn't identify myself as the author.  Instead I just suggested it for my friend to read, maybe to get her started on her own literary blog.  BUT once I did that, once I shared, I became more comfortable sharing again.  And again.  And putting this blog out there...  so maybe, if I'd just write, and not worry about what others think-feel-assume-say, I'd step out of that comfort zone I've created as a hidden writer... I'm really just thinking out loud right now - getting these random-writing-thoughts running rampant around my head from thought to finger, from paper to pen...      

Today, while pondering all of this, something about being a writer ran thru my head, about writing and character development, about exposing yourself as a writer and incorporating, or disregarding, the reaction of others:  as a beginning writer we're told to write about what we know.  This is easy.  And safe.  But, I think, my fear of exposure comes from writing about what I don't really know.  About the being exposed as a fraud... believing I must immerse myself into the subject wholly so not to be called out for speaking out turn...  And this idea, this disclaimer, this thought came to me:  the older you get, the more exposure (using it in a different context here) you have - not just to your life but to the lives of others, and not just what you see but what they share of them that you didn't see - the more imagination you develop.  So, to get started, just write; to become a practiced writer, write what you know; to become an interesting writer, step out of your comfort zone and write what you don't know.