It's been a long time since I had a blank page staring at me, waiting for an imprint. I do not know what caused this delay- I always had an idea or two to write about and also the time for it but the motivation was lacking. I was pre-occupied, among other things, by an idea that at first fuelled the creative spirit in me to bring about a huge change in my approach towards writing, only to leave me disillusioned in the end.
I have often been prodded by friends and family about what I wished to make with my flair for writing. Was I practising for a book, perhaps? Or did I desire to be featured in magazines and newsletters? Or, maybe, to just make that extra pocket money, sitting comfortably in front of a screen? My answer has always been woven around different connotations of 'I like writing'. Then I took a look around and wondered about the many possibilities pointed out to me. It won't be too bad getting my work published somewhere, wouldn't it? Neither would the extra pennies hurt, I reasoned. Have a skill, I'd be better off using it to my advantage.
This new found purpose lead to me an online content writing internship and a shot at getting a piece of work published. Which eventually lead to me distancing myself from my blog and all forms of writing I did exclusively for myself. I started to loathe writing: instead of being an outlet for to my emotions and views, it became another source of stress on my work-laden shoulders. As the frustration grew, I realized that I had reached the fearful place we've all been warned about when pursuing a passion: turn it into a form of work and you may find you cannot tolerate it any more. I'm not saying that this is a necessary outcome for any one walking down these roads, but, for me, the stress was quite binding. Also, I've started to feel that though there may be a lot of story-telling and prose-wielding inside me, the books will just have to wait till I am ready to have them, till I am ready to express through them.
And so, it ia back to looking for rainbows and acting on my whims. And, if my readers would still have me, back to being a simple-minded blogger.
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Medha Kapoor
I've been writing content since graduation, so that's almost 6 years in the business & I can't agree more! This form of writing is mostly redundant, not all that creative & often causes more stress than relieve any. The key is to strike a balance, you could have read in your free time to ensure that you are not totally cut off from the literary world.
ReplyDeleteI used to do some light reading always to take my mind off the stress & it also helped improve my writing. Don't give up totally yet, this is a lucrative industry & could use some good writers now :)
That's a good piece of advice Riyana. I can usually be found reading in whatever free time I can squeeze out during the day but with the job and the content writing, I could hardly find any. But, yeah, better reading maketh a better writer. Kudos to you for sticking in the industry so long. :)
DeleteWelcome back :) Again a nice piece of writing. It's indeed a true observation in any field. While doing something you like in your own way is completely different experience then doing under someone else.
ReplyDeleteThank you Saumitri :) I guess that's because we need a little bit of freedom and 'leg-space' when doing what we like to do...
DeleteAh! Yes! The moment 'I want to write' turns to 'I have to write', the joy of writing can start draining away
ReplyDeleteYes, exactly, it's as simple as that.
DeleteVery well written indeed!..quiet inspiring for a newbie like me..penning down your observations in life and striking the same chord in other's lives in itself is a stress-buster.
ReplyDeleteThat's right! I'm glad you could find something inspiring in all this hogwash. Thanks for visiting!
DeleteYou poured out it so well,nicely written!😊
ReplyDeleteThank you Supriya :)
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