On Writing and Life Experiences
10:00 pm. Sunday night. I am lying on my back, my head propped up on a pillow. My knees are folded and my laptop rests on my lap. I need to write something before I sleep; also, whatever I write needs to be published.
Ten minutes go by. Nothing to write. Another ten minutes. Nothing. The empty page seems to be taunting me. I think up a few ideas but all of them either require deep introspection or some research. I have no strength for either right now. I just want to write something simple and beautiful that comes naturally so I can go to sleep as soon as possible.
I decide to write a journal entry. That should do the trick: all that is required is a simple recount of my day (or my weekend). Nothing in the world could be easier, I tell myself. I know I am right, but I just can’t shake off the feeling that I only want to publish something I believe is worth reading. My weekend was pretty ordinary. Nothing peculiar.
10:13 pm. Monday night. Sitting at my home workspace but I’ve already closed work for today. I am listening to an official sound track of the one movie I remember that actually brought me to tears. I’m also texting my friend. I know I probably shouldn’t multitask when I am engaged in such a creative task as writing, but this is a journal entry, and so so far from being a distraction, it actually gives me something to write about.
Yesterday I could only get 3 paragraphs out. Three paragraphs in 1 hour. That’s actually not bad. Most writers I know usually start with something called a first draft, and then they begin the first of many rounds of editing. That is the one advice about writing that I have never really taken. I prefer to perfect a paragraph before moving to the next. It’s probably why I’m so slow. Perfectionism. I publish one article per month and I consider myself prolific hahaha. Oh, the joys of being an amateur! I can do absolutely anything I want.
Talking about writing advice, another prominent advice I’ve often heard is that in order to be a better writer, one should broaden the scope of one’s life experiences in general. So yesterday when I couldn’t think of anything to write in almost thirty minutes of reflection, I began to feel that my life might be blander than I realized. I began to have fantasies of travel for the sole purpose of experiencing new places and cultures. Living in two cities that are different from the one you’ve spent the better part of your life in, even for just a year, is probably better than an entire year of school.
It’s 11:13 pm now and I’ve added another 3 paragraphs. This seems like a good place to stop. I need to sleep early so that I wake up with all the energy I need for the day’s work.
Thank you for reading!