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Why Publish Publicly?

Why write at all?

By Cait FawkesPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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I’ve done a few bits of casual blogging here and there in the past and have been wondering if it is something I should get back into, at least for the next few months as I’m going through a period of change in my life and feels as though it might be a nice accompaniment to help me achieve my goal for the year. It’s one you will have certainly heard before — it might even be one of your own resolutions for the year; to be more creative.

The problem with this is that that’s an extremely vague goal which could in many ways encompass anything and everything. I have some ideas of specific things I would like to learn and achieve but there are plenty of niggling doubts to accompany them, no deadline and no-one to hold me accountable.

This new time in my life is in many ways unchartered territory at constant threat from old unhelpful habits and destructive mind-frames.

There needs to be an outlet, a space where I can write about topics that interest or excite me, as well as a space to confide in in those more challenging moments. Perhaps the act of publicly publishing what I write could fulfill that need.

It would help with the deadline and accountability issues as, even if it’s just a lone stumble-along or nothing more than a hypothetical audience, there’s always that possibility that someone will see what I put out and therefore everything needs to be completed and added to regularly if it’s to grow into a portfolio of ideas and thoughts that I can be proud of going public with.

But what about the niggling doubts and destructive mind frames? In one respect, the public sphere does not help with this at all as editorial images of people’s "everyday lives" and professional online "creatives" can make it an intimidating space where you might feel like you don’t belong. I have certainly felt that way when I’ve published online in the past.

However the blog/vlog-spheres were not only created for businesses and professional development but also, and originally, as a space to socialise and share experiences, ideas and opinions. In a world where we spend less and less time chatting face-to-face while we sit, eat, walk, or work, the online space has become a genuinely social one, and when you spend a lot of time reading other people’s thoughts online it’s sometimes nice to join in the conversation and add your own two cents.

It’s a modern way of storytelling that allows people to enjoy the use of language as a means to express their feelings and experiences in lieu of lengthy letters to distant friends or long evenings spent with their local community and family, and perhaps most importantly of all it's a space in which to learn and grow. Writing thoughtfully about any topic can help us to form our own opinions and encourage us to research and discover. Sharing that writing creates the motivation to make our writing engaging and to tell a story, this in turn fuels our creativity and gives the fulfilment of making something from nothing, something that speaks of and for us; it's another way of expressing our own identities and making us feel that we are valuable individuals with something to offer the whole, and as such it is something to be celebrated.

...

Sometime later

As so often happens I have just rediscovered this post having neglected my writing for some time. In part because I had so many other pulls on my time, but also because I think I forgot my purpose. Re-reading this has inspired me to have another go at writing and has reminded me not to take it too seriously or put pressure on myself to make it something beyond the skill set I currently have; it is, in and of itself, a learning curve.

After all, there is some truth in the old adage:

You cannot succeed at something that you never start.

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About the Creator

Cait Fawkes

I love to write, create and communicate. Amateur writer, photographer and artist www.caitfawkes.com

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