Confessions

I’ve been blogging for a few years now and I can tell you that it has been quite the adventure. I started off relatively inconsistent. There would be times that I would blog consecutively only to find that I was no longer interested. There were multiple attempts but nothing seemed to be clicking for me.

Why couldn’t I keep up with a blog? Why did I become so uninterested with my writing? Was I experiencing writer’s block? Was I not an interesting author? Questions I’m sure we’ve all asked a time or two.

Each failed attempt rendered a relatively depressed spirit within me. I loved to write. I loved fashioning stories around my imagination. I loved seeing the little notification bar light up after I had published a piece.

Truth is, I still do.

If we’re all being honest, these are only a few of the circumstances that motivated us to pursue a career in writing. Maybe it isn’t even a career? This blogging gig could be a simple way for you to get “life” off of your chest. Whatever it may be, we all have this one thing in common: We love to write.

If we didn’t, we wouldn’t do it. Common sense as it sounds, it’s true. There are a million ways to express ourselves nowadays. Social media gives anyone and everyone a facet to relay their deepest darkest drama to the world-wide web in an instant. Face-to-face relationships (what are those?) give us opportunities to see, feel, hear, taste our way through life. So, what is it that draws us authors to writing?

For myself, it’s the thrill of crafting an entire universe from my fingertips. It’s the feeling I get when someone reaffirms my opinion or comforts me in a dark time. It’s the ability to experience the power of creativity. Writing gives us power.

What happens when it gets tough?

Believe me when I say, if you’ve spent any length of time writing, you’ll know it can get tough. If you haven’t, take our word for it: It gets hard.

Deadlines approach. Creative wells run dry. Writer’s block…blocks. Your stats just aren’t where they used to be. The list goes on and on and on and on….and on.

You may think to yourself, “Oh, those can’t be too bad. You can push past them, right?” Right! I would have to say, though, that it’s harder if you don’t have your priorities straight. Mhm. You must have priorities in writing.

Can we be honest with ourselves for a moment? Some of us will go on to reach stardom. Some of us may realize a goal that puts us on the New York Times Bestseller list. I’ve seen some of your talent, it can happen! I’m not advocating that we shouldn’t aspire to be number one whatsoever. What I am advocating is that if your only goal is to reach millions, you will quit before you even reach a hundred. Let me say that again…

If your only goal is to reach millions, you will quit before you even reach a hundred.

Many who have attained a much larger fan base than this blog will echo my sentiment when I say this. You don’t grow a blog, fan base, or following overnight. It’s impossible. Yes, we see those famous stories of so-and-so finding fame in an instant but honestly? That’s a fake reality cooked up by a crooked world run by media who specialize in hyperbole.

And really, how many of those who found instant fame kept it?

Few.

Of those few, how many said that it was worth it?

Even fewer.

With that said, what should be our goal? What should be our daily motivation?

I can’t speak for you but my desire is to see those who suffer from isolation know that they are not alone. I’ve seen the darkest places that this life can offer and I know how close death feels. I also know how real God is. I don’t want anyone to feel that they have to experience this life alone. Therefore, I write.

I also write because I love the friendships I’ve made here. Honestly, it’s similar to a little family. I’ve watched those come and go, been able to encourage those who needed it and cried with anyone else. We’ve laughed, learned, gotten frustrated, been happy, been sad. All the while, we’ve been there for each other.

What characterizes infectious writing is the felt passion oozing out of your words and a genuine care for those who happen to come across your piece.

Don’t misunderstand me when I write all of this. I have goals for this blog. In fact, one of them was to double the size of my following by the end of this year. I would love to reach hundreds of thousands of people everyday. Will that happen? If God allows it, sure. If he doesn’t, that’s o.k. too!

At the end of the day, it all comes down to this very simple question:

Why?

Why do I write? Why do I put the pen to paper? Why do I spend my day crafting stories, poems, pieces? Why? Why? Why?

Take some time to be honest with yourself. Evaluate your standards and your approach. Take time to learn the trade of writing. Fall in love with the language. Forget mass popularity and lose yourself in the possibility of creativity.

It’s a beautiful world inside of your head. It’s up to you as to whether or not you’ll open it up for all of the world to see; even if “all of the world” only means one person.

I suppose the most important lesson you can learn while writing is to ask the question “Why?” When you find your answer, cling to it and write your pretty little heart out. The world is waiting. Go take it.