Some thoughts on writing

in #writing6 years ago

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What to write

I have been struggling with topics ever since I started here on steemit. Not sure why, since I have always enjoyed writing. I even started a manuscript for a fantasy adventure when I was a kid. I wrote in notebooks all the time. I practiced writing short stories, random thoughts, and poems. I've also written many song lyrics unpublished of course. So one would think that this would be where I could flourish. But alas, I can't haven't written much on steemit.

So I guess I will just write, I was supposed to make this a post about the game I am developing and the new upcoming release. But what the heck we all need a little outlet every once in a while. A good free write is remedy for the over thinking mind.

The struggles of the overthinking mind...

Have you ever felt so many emotions at once that you just couldn't speak. So many thoughts going through your head that there was no discerning what they were. And yet you could still follow each train of thought. But unable to decide which one to stick with. Yeah that is me when I think about posting something to steemit. It's almost worse than writers-block, I dunno maybe it is writers block. So many subjects and ideas but what to choose. I could write about games or do a Love2D tutorial or maybe just write about life and experiences. I could definitely write about cryptocurrencies and/or about blockchain as a unifying force in the world. But I definitely would hate to put something out there that adds to the fluff.

Don't get me wrong I totally understand the urge and pressure to continually post whether or not it is good content. After all that is what the curation is all about, deciding what is valuable and what isn't. But still I choose to be a bit conservative and selective in my writing process. I must admit that I do not consider myself a good writer or even close to being a professional at it. I do take my time and proofread my work though. I want to make sure that it at least makes sense and that I catch any big glaring typos.

But yet I am compelled to write. The truth is, I think; a lot! I think so much that it almost gets in the way of actually doing stuff. I like to try to make sense of the complexities in the world. There is a word that I learned a long time ago from a book 'Stranger in a strange land' the word is to grok. The word is popular amongst computer scientists and programmers because it is at the heart of what we do and must be able to do. We must be able to grok a problem in order to instruct a computer to solve it. And so I think about things until I grok them. Or put in another way I will think about something to the point where I understand it so well that it almost is like it's a part of me. I believe writing and reading can help us grok each other.

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Our similarities allow us to communicate...

I remember in one of my Calculus classes in college the professor was explaining how a mathematician had used a thought experiment as the basis one of the equations we were learning. I was intrigued by this process. It occurred to me that that was what I spend most of my time doing; thought experiments. It was enlightening to know that something that I was already doing regularly could be used to create a formal and useful ideas. It has been increasingly apparent to me that the way I view things is sometimes not as unique to me, as I allow myself to believe. While many people will call it by different names or do it in a slightly different way we more or less work in a similar fashion. Which is how we are able to empathize and communicate. I mean to put it simply we all have two hands, and two feet. We each have two eyes, two ears, etc. And our brains are structured the same. If you take a look at the world around you you will notice that there are a lot of similarities that define humans in a big way from, say a rock. We also have this ability to communicate with each other.

Writing has a way of expressing our stream of consciousness like no other medium. When you read someone's writing you can get a sense of how they think. That gives you an understanding of their nature both of what they have been through and what similarities you both have. It can tell you how different you are as well and give you a new perspective about people. It helps us to communicate on another level. For instance, when you are just talking to someone you only get a sense of their reaction to things. You cannot tell what they are thinking, how they are really reacting to what you are saying. But with writing you can listen to that internal monologue. You can get a sense of what is important to them, what they find interesting or what they may know that you do not.

When we read we may find that everyone has similar needs, wants, and desires. But we are each also unique, we see things differently and we can share our perspectives. It is in sharing our perspectives that we can collectively come to a consensus about how to allow each of us to get the things we each desire. It's not necessarily what you are capable of that determines your place in society but rather how you deal with where you find yourself. Whether that be by our own doing or by the pressures of others. If we only were able to do more to communicate with each other about how we want each of us to be fulfilled, then I believe we could all have a better life.

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Communication is hard. Many of us feel these issues, especially with the added pressures of monetization. Even though we feel the pressure to post whether or not the content is good, the more important aspect is to be authentic, truthful and add more signal than noise. As you said, our 'similarities allow us to communicate', so we can hardly build on similarities of we don't communicate openly and honestly.

An analogy I once heard is that each individual is an island and language builds the bridges between islands. Honestly, I didn't think writing was a less filtered form of language, but I had never considered that we are more comfortable when writing. Ultimately, open communication occurs if we can get 'out of our own head' and that usually involves a level of comfort.

Good read.

Very well said! A lot of times I fail to get-out-of-my-own-head and realize that people have a really tough time with communication. I think it might point to a need for either more education or better awareness which might help create a better sense of empathy. When I talk to people I try to get a sense of their life, their situation and I can quickly empathize with their point-of-view but only if I am not trying to push my own agenda thus not being open and honest and then failing to communicate.

I think you hit the nail on the head with 'authentic [and] truthful' I think having societal pressure to do that is a step in a very positive direction. It will help cut through the facades that people build in order to do business and survive in todays world.

Thanks for reading!

Thanks!

I appreciate your comment on empathy and feel you're right about more education and personal awareness. In the past, I've had problems building a personal link with others and wish I would have been taught more about awareness growing up. Often, I find myself a better writer/human when I allow myself to flow and feel the emotions from others' perspective.

Similar to not pushing one's own agenda, presenting solutions isn't always the best way to relate to others. Being present, listening and empathizing is a great approach, but not having learned these concepts earlier makes it harder. Yoda said it best, "You must unlearn what you have learned."

Thanks for the great disussion and article.

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