You can’t really write for the sake of writing as a process, especially on a blog. A lot of the motivation to write arises out of the desire to… express, or to do service to some idea. It’s an act of communication, and the message is paramount. If there is no message compelling you to communicate it, then maybe you should consider that writing too little is not your main problem here—rather, not having enough or sufficiently strong interests.
There are times when one would be better advised not to write, such as when one is still a novice student of the subject, that hasn’t done the required amount of reading in order to deserve a readership of one’s own. However, only you know whether you are in this position with respect to what you mean to write about (other people would have to first see you open your mouth to say something silly before they’re in a position to judge).
On the contrary, I seem to have problems getting myself to shut up and not write anything online. After a bout or two of prolonged and especially of hostile debate, I get burned out and consider taking an online “vow of silence” for the time being. And what do I do then? Respect it for a day or two, and then I’m back to my old ways. I have to consciously find fault with what I want to say in order to restrain myself from writing about it—“oh, this article is half-baked and poorly researched”, “this comment is a reply to someone with whom discussion is not usually fruitful”, “the central point in this article may turn out to be wrong”, “it’s not strategic for me to publicly write about this topic, here and now” etc. All of this, without caring a lot about the process of writing; it’s just what I do in order to get a message out there.
What do you usually like to think about (that would be of interest to strangers)?
If there is no message compelling you to communicate it, then maybe you should consider that writing too little is not your main problem here—rather, not having enough or sufficiently strong interests.
Thanks for that—I think I’ve been conned by the people who claim that writing is more about sticking with it than inspiration. I’m interested in a lot of things, but nothing so much that I have anything worthwhile to say about it. I think my desire to write comes from a perceived guilt in only consuming information and media and not producing anything.
It is about sticking with it when a) you have a long and sequential thing to write, such as a book, b) you’re in people’s RSS feed or something and they expect to see stuff from you, and c) you haven’t yet hit diminishing returns in writing skill.
I strongly suggest experimenting with a dialogue rather than authorship format for expressing your ideas for the time being. Many people are better debaters than they are writers, and the nature of dialogue pushes you to explore an idea more fully (before you can expect the other to accept it), gives you ready-made discussion topics and food for thought, and provides feedback in every form, all the time. For me it’s been first forums, then offline journals and logs, then the occasional article here and there.
Don’t feel guilty for just consuming media! It’s generally good to have a proper balance of speakers and listeners. Too many people producing content often translates into too few people giving a proper reading to the content being produced. Nevertheless, it’s generally good to develop your writing skill, so don’t let your final interpretation of your desire to write consist of that. Pursue this activity through ways that help with your inspiration and place a smaller burden on you.
You can’t really write for the sake of writing as a process, especially on a blog. A lot of the motivation to write arises out of the desire to… express, or to do service to some idea. It’s an act of communication, and the message is paramount. If there is no message compelling you to communicate it, then maybe you should consider that writing too little is not your main problem here—rather, not having enough or sufficiently strong interests.
There are times when one would be better advised not to write, such as when one is still a novice student of the subject, that hasn’t done the required amount of reading in order to deserve a readership of one’s own. However, only you know whether you are in this position with respect to what you mean to write about (other people would have to first see you open your mouth to say something silly before they’re in a position to judge).
On the contrary, I seem to have problems getting myself to shut up and not write anything online. After a bout or two of prolonged and especially of hostile debate, I get burned out and consider taking an online “vow of silence” for the time being. And what do I do then? Respect it for a day or two, and then I’m back to my old ways. I have to consciously find fault with what I want to say in order to restrain myself from writing about it—“oh, this article is half-baked and poorly researched”, “this comment is a reply to someone with whom discussion is not usually fruitful”, “the central point in this article may turn out to be wrong”, “it’s not strategic for me to publicly write about this topic, here and now” etc. All of this, without caring a lot about the process of writing; it’s just what I do in order to get a message out there.
What do you usually like to think about (that would be of interest to strangers)?
Thanks for that—I think I’ve been conned by the people who claim that writing is more about sticking with it than inspiration. I’m interested in a lot of things, but nothing so much that I have anything worthwhile to say about it. I think my desire to write comes from a perceived guilt in only consuming information and media and not producing anything.
It is about sticking with it when a) you have a long and sequential thing to write, such as a book, b) you’re in people’s RSS feed or something and they expect to see stuff from you, and c) you haven’t yet hit diminishing returns in writing skill.
I strongly suggest experimenting with a dialogue rather than authorship format for expressing your ideas for the time being. Many people are better debaters than they are writers, and the nature of dialogue pushes you to explore an idea more fully (before you can expect the other to accept it), gives you ready-made discussion topics and food for thought, and provides feedback in every form, all the time. For me it’s been first forums, then offline journals and logs, then the occasional article here and there.
Don’t feel guilty for just consuming media! It’s generally good to have a proper balance of speakers and listeners. Too many people producing content often translates into too few people giving a proper reading to the content being produced. Nevertheless, it’s generally good to develop your writing skill, so don’t let your final interpretation of your desire to write consist of that. Pursue this activity through ways that help with your inspiration and place a smaller burden on you.