about my blog's name (and me)

Hello, it's been a while since I've posted anything here.

In partial explanation of this, I will post tonight.

Scroll up to the top of the page.  Those rather large letters spell out the incredibly creative (/sarc) title of my blog!

Why is my blog called "I Write Things"?  Other than the obvious fact that for the width and depth of my vocabulary, my creativity in coming up with titles for things is extremely limited.  When it is there at all, it comes in short, usually disappointing bursts.

The other reason is that, simply, I do indeed write things.  Writing has been a thing I do for quite a long time now.



English was my favorite subject throughout my primary and secondary education (other than history).  This may have been because, in my much younger years, my mom read to me pretty often.  Or it may have been because I was terrible at math.  Maybe both.

When my alma mater decided to put out a school newsletter, I wrote for it until eventually landing the position of editor-in-chief.  I also joined the annual inter-schools press conferences for a few years.  This part of my life was a lot of travel and stress and learning and fun.

I went through a fanfiction phase (don't pretend you didn't), where I met many other writers in the online community, from whom I learned just as much if not more about descriptive writing and character development.  I also wrote about real-life experiences with people who were important to me.  That kind of writing was, and still is, my truest and best.

Once I hit college, it didn't really matter what I had achieved in high school.  (It still doesn't.  Sorry, kids.)  I continued to write, out of necessity and just for myself.  I learned a lot about technical writing and academic writing and writing so that you can fulfill high page requirements.  My manual writing also evolved from medium-sized and neat to medium-sized and rushed, which didn't matter as long as you could tell the r's from n's and the n's from m's.

I took as many writing-related classes as I could, among which were Introduction to Creative Writing and Literary Forms and Traditions, both of which I had the privilege of taking under published authors.

I dabble in short fiction and poetry of all kinds.  The haiku will always have a special place in my heart.

As a communication major, one of my concentrations was journalism.  I have an intense love/hate relationship with the practice, and no matter what I do or where I go, it will always be an important part of who I am.

Perhaps the longest thing I have ever written is my undergraduate thesis, which still sits proudly on my top shelf.

Writing is my preferred form of expression because it's a useful thing that I can also love to do.  I write things because although I also like talking, my mouth can't always keep up with my brain.  And in writing, you can decide whether to go with your first impulse or sort things out before you lay them down.  I like writing because you can use it to document what is or to create what isn't.

Sometimes, it stings a bit that people don't respond with as much enthusiasm when you tell them you're a writer as they do when other people tell them that they are doctors or lawyers or engineers.  But being a writer is not about impressing people so much as it is about leaving an impression on them.  And it certainly doesn't have to be about yourself.

That is what I like most about writing.  It can serve other people, but ultimately, it must be what makes you happy.