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Yesterday was the first day of Beyond Blogging for Scrapbookers. I got so caught up in looking through people's blogs that I 1) didn't get to write my own entry, and 2) forgot to feed my kid lunch. Yeah... it was probably a good thing that she was going to be with her grandmother for the rest of the day.
Quite a few people wrote about how they started blogging and why. I wrote my own version of it about a year ago and I had to go back and re-read it. It's fascinating how different my thoughts are now from what they were back then. Yes, blogging is still a good way for me to "focus", but I wonder how much of that has kept me from writing these past few months. Could I have written more if I wasn't so busy censoring myself?
I started out blogging as a way to get in touch with some people working through Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way. Once I felt more comfortable sharing my writing, it became a way to let friends and distant family know what was going on in my family's life. One thing was certain, I wrote quite sporadically. Not only would I disappear for indeterminate lengths of time, but I would be full of optimism one minute and doom and gloom the next. My sister once told me she could tell when I was depressed from reading my entries. That brought me here.
I originally created this new(er) blog in hopes to stay away from any negativity on my part. I wasn't quite sure WHAT I would be writing about, but I knew I wanted to focus on the positive. I was even doing alright for a while until the end of November and the entire month of December. How could I stay positive after that? And so I stopped writing. Again. I mean, who wants to read about depression? But now I wonder. Is it possible to avoid writing about it when I DO suffer from depression? I STILL want to focus on the positive side of my life. Surely, I can find something to write about that won't bring everyone down. If nothing else, I could always post a photograph instead. So here I am now. Taking yet another class. Hoping that it will help me find my online voice. I know I want to write. I know I love to read creative and inspiring blogs. I DON'T want to be a downer. But could I really still find my voice if I omit a part of myself? How does one decide what to keep in and what to leave out? What would you do?
I guess it's a good thing I've signed up for this class. =)
I think, if it is important to you, and you are being real with your audience, you should put in what you want... and if it is about feeling depressed, there is a place for that, and maybe others who need it.
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry you have been through so much in the past several months. I don't even know what to say because there are no words to soften the blows.
Hugs.
i have no idea what i would do cuz i'm in the same boat as you. :D hence the reason for bfth! you got started. you're writing. and publishing. that's a first step. keep pushing through! i guess it's like giving birth. ? it's painful but you gotta stick to it? lol
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