Writing
Let's get things straight here: I am a firm believer in not taking oneself too seriously. If you think my work is coarse or undeveloped or flippant or fluffy, it's probably because it is! But one thing that I think other young writers need to know is that it is okay to write like a young writer. That doesn't mean badly--bad writing (or editing!)--is sometimes just bad. But you don't need to pretend to be a 40-year-old balding man hunched over in a Massachusetts bungalow if you're really a fifteen-year-old blonde girl writing from San Antonio. Writing as a young person is one of the biggest challenges writers need to face, in my opinion. Your peers will be hyper-critical of what you write, you're struggling to find your own voice, and your angst-filter is iffy at best.
And guess what? I have all of those problems too. But my hope is that by putting my work out there, other writers can see the kind of things their peers are working on--and if that makes someone else feel more confident about what she's doing, then I'm happy about it.
If poetry is what you're into, check out my:
Previously-Published Poetry or my
Unpublished Work pages and see some of what I've been up to.
I've also got a few personal essays in here. Some of these started as something an english teacher said; others have evolved from blog posts of mine or my own personal issues surrounding the writing process.
So that's me. But what about those days when you're feeling stuck and looking for something to restart your engine? I've got that too!
- StumbleUpon: The niftiest black hole ever created. Seriously, this thing can be a major timesink. It can also be a great source of inspiration if you're stuck. If you update your interests to include "Writing" and "Photography," you can stumble these categories and find an endless supply of inspiration, both poetical and photographical.
- Got writer's block? Here is an awesome list of Blockbusters to help writers get back on touch. They've been published in a seriously nifty writer's guide. They were also written by my Mama. But don't let my bias keep you from using them--because they're really good.
- If all else fails and you are still in a bad writing funk (or just a funk in general) there is always this post about sheep wearing sweaters. It may very well be the single best piece of writing on the internet. (And the photos are pretty good too.) I would be lying if I said I don't go to this page when I'm in a bad mood so that I can giggle.
