Most folks would agree that writing isn’t an easy task. Yet it’s something we do in one capacity or another throughout our entire lives. It’s one of the first things we learn to do in school, and one we continue to do well after. Even if it’s not in your job description, chances are you write emails and texts, and sometimes an especially evil coworker like me tries to corral you into writing blog posts.
Even if it is in your job description, like it is in mine, it doesn’t make the task any less daunting. Those who consider themselves to be writers still tend to have a love/hate relationship with writing. I can say that because in the last ten minutes I’ve rewritten this introduction at least three times.
Which is exactly why I’m convinced it’s not actually the writing that’s difficult, but the editing. It was Hemingway who said, “Write drunk, edit sober.” Because if we try to do them simultaneously, we usually talk ourselves out of writing altogether. And writing has been proven time and again to be beneficial.
Why Writing Blog Posts is Good for You
Writing blog posts, or anything at all, is both a tested therapy technique and a key to unlock our creative doors. Studies have shown that people who write about the things that bother them show distinguishable improvements in their overall well-being. And Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, swears by morning pages.
In both cases, the premise is the same. The idea is that over time, we get bogged down and distracted by our own thoughts. Since they have nowhere to go, they circle around and around in our heads, taking up valuable real estate. Proponents argue that if we write, even if only for ourselves, about whatever we feel without thinking and without editing, that we can be freer mentally and emotionally.
With no one to edit, and no one to read, the task becomes easier. Because surely it’s the editing and not the writing that’s hard. By now, the writing is second nature. You could probably close your eyes and do it without thinking. Just like breathing. In the end, you don’t even have to reread it yourself.
When you’re finished, you will have dug yourself out from the weight of all – or at least some of – the things that hold you down. Like that one thing you still feel guilty about from ten years ago, or the thing you wish you had said to someone yesterday. You can still live those experiences in writing. And in vicariously living them you can make space in your brain for other things, like happiness and creativity.
Who cares if you suck? We all suck at something, and sucking at this thing will make you better at the things you don’t suck at. So what are you waiting for? Get to writing.
