BLOG #2
One of the most intimidating things for a writer is a blank page. The cursor flickers on and off in the top right hand corner. That blank white screen staring back at you.
What the hell am I going to write about?
My advice is don’t start there. Don’t just open your computer and hope that the words will pour out of you. My brain runs at a mile per minute, and my typing never seems to keep up.
The beginning of this very blog did not start by opening a blank word document.
I grabbed my car keys and left the house for a back-roads drive. I downloaded an app that transcribes speech into text. The app transfers my speech into notes, hands-free of course, because I am driving after all.
A few minutes into my drive I pass a lemonade stand, with a young girl waving a big lemonade sign at the end of her driveway. It made me think about running lemonade stands when I was younger. I would sit at my stand all day and make about 8 dollars in 8 hours. As an innocent young kid, 8 dollars was a lot of money.
Writing seemed easy when I was a kid. I used to write comic books in 2nd grade about the adventures of Pickleman, a superhero in a world where foods were people. I used to bring my stories into class and read them for show and tell. The perks of being an innocent kid, I had no agenda, no filter, just pure imagination.
As we tend to grow older, our writing starts to become lackluster. It’s uninspired, stale.
We start writing for the grade. We write to impress our teachers and our creativity suffers because of that. 15 years of indoctrinated writing that restricts us to specific assignments and structured formats designed to pass a standardized test. How exactly do we as writers get back to that creative innocence we had in 2nd grade?
It starts with you. You must find your voice.
Therefore, before you open your computer, go for a drive. Talk to yourself. Almost like you are recording a personal podcast, but it becomes a blog!
Have a conversation with yourself. What do you want to talk about? Don’t be cavalier, be authentic. You don’t want to lie to yourself. You aren’t trying to impress anyone. It’s just you and your thoughts. What kind of work did you get done that day? What did you learn? Tell a story about something that happened.
Think of this inner monologue like talking to an imaginary friend. When you were a kid you probably told your imaginary friend everything. Try to find a quiet place, because in public people will think you are insane for talking to yourself!
Try to find those moments of pure innocence. It will not only help your writing, but it will bring you peace of mind.
Everyday on my commutes to and from work, I open my speech to text app, and talk about anything that comes to mind. It is my time of the day to reflect, meditate, and brainstorm. It may feel awkward at first, but it will help you find your voice!
– Jake Beman