As usual, I've been pretty lazy with posting in this blog. It is what it is though, I suppose, and I feel good that I've been posting in it at all this year, even if it's only a post or two a month. Since my last post, I've been busier than ever. I've come to the realization that with these things, such as blog posting and writing in general, you have to make the time for them. I have been making the time for writing, so I can make the time for this. Writing stories is something you especially have to make time for. It takes a lot of effort and a lot of meticulous editing in order to produce something worthwhile and satisfying to both you and the reader. When juggling my part-time job, the student newspaper, a decent sized number of credits and the work that comes with that, and my social life, you begin to put your passions on the shelf for later because there simply isn't enough time in the day.
For myself, writing is like that. Writing prose and fiction is not my passion, but I do enjoy writing and I at least hope I have a half-way decent talent for it. But back to making the time. I suppose if you really want to excel at something, if you really want to get something done, you'll make the time for it. Prioritizing is something I really don't have the hugest skill set for. I admit I have my weaknesses, and prioritizing is one of them. I think that setting up your priorities in the right way can really set you up for success. Then again, completing my bachelor's is my top priority over everything else, especially writing. I like to write, but writing is not the only part of my identity. I am so much more than just a writer--I'm a friend, a student, a reader...
By writer, I suppose I mean what so many people mean when they say "I'm a writer and I'm writing a novel! I'm a special snowflake!" I think that so many people have said that term and used it so frequently that it's taken on a different meaning. It's taken on a shallow meaning, one that limits what writer means. "Writer" is a word that should go beyond just prose and poetry. It means so much more. Do I consider myself a writer? Sure, of course I do. But when I place the term "writer" as a part of myself, I don't just mean it as something that makes me special. I don't mean it as or some tag that separates me from the rest of the crowd, or that people should somehow revere me because I possess a skill that they don't have, the skill of manipulating and molding words to the plot of their choosing. I think the most ironic part about this, the people that tack the "I'm a writer, I'm specialer than you" mindset--well, their writing always seems to need improvement. I'm not saying that this is always the case, but... I guess what I'm trying to say is that generally the people with a big ego and a quickness to identify themselves as a writer deny that they need improvement. If you want to identify yourself as a writer, you better admit now that you are always going to need improvement and your writing will never be "perfect" or even half-way there.
I consider myself a writer not in the fact that I write prose or I think I'm writing the next "great American novel," but in the fact that I write beyond that. I write every day--in Facebook posts, on postcards (if you have read my posts before, you know that Postcrossing is my big love), and I write in my academics. If you're not afraid to admit that we are all writers, then you're off to a good start. If you're not afraid to admit that we all need improvement, and we're never going to be perfect people or writers, and that you have to make the time in order for any dream you want (even writing, you have to make the time), then you're on the right track.
End rant. That started out as a typical blog post and actually ended up being... something. Maybe a substantial piece of writing? I'm not sure. I guess I can speak my mind when I'm overtired/have a lot on my mind. I didn't know where it was going to take me. I guess in that sense, writing is a journey too.
