Writing understandable, meaningful words is very hard.
…Remember that writing is not typing. Thinking, researching, contemplating, outlining, composing in your head and in sketches, maybe some typing, with revisions as you go, and then more revisions, deletions, emendations, additions, reflections, setting aside and returning afresh, because a good writer is always a good editor of his or her own work. From How To Be A Writer: 10 Tips From Rebecca Solnit
My History Of Writing
Growing up with an artist as a father (Michael A. Wilson), I constantly saw drawing and painting around our house. Until later in my life, writing wasn’t a huge part of my experience. I remember consuming massive amounts of writing when I read books from our local library, but actually creating written words wasn’t part of our family’s ethos. Later, when I began blogging in high school and later, I started to realize how hard it really is to string words together into a comprehensible thought. I’m actually forcing myself to put words to screen now as I write this.
Art, Sound and words
I want to improve how I communicate through the written word. I communicate through my spoken voice in my podcasts at LearningMore and visually communicate with my art. I love speaking and I really enjoy creating art- both are ideas that are presented from my brain to others, and they both require some sort of a buffer on the idea. Before I speak something, I construct the thought and consider the next thought after that. With art, I commonly have a general idea mapped out in my mind. As I began creating the piece, the idea I have in my head may morph and change when I meet obstacles or experience happy mistakes. “Ok, I can’t seem to draw the hand resting on the rock the way I want. I want to finish this, so perhaps I’ll display the hand as grasping a spear…”. I think I’m more willing to compromise the presentation of my visual idea that I have in my head (art) because I know my limitations. “Well, I had a majestic idea of a suspended bridge over a massive chasm with detailed chiaroscuro shading…but I can’t seem to get the tonal qualities right. I’ll simplify the drawing so the general idea gets across…”.
Isn’t Writing Just Communicating Thoughts?
However, writing is different because my written capabilities extend beyond my artistic skill. I should be able to communicate my thoughts effectively through writing…because writing is just taking my thought out of my head and writing it down, right?
Nope. My mind has all these inferences, context and experiences it can use to help form ideas. I’m preaching to the choir in my head. I’m telling myself the idea I thought up myself! When I write well, it is the result of considering my idea and reformulating it so that others understand it.
Typing is this little transaction in the middle of two vast thoughtful processes. link
Read more about Rebecca Solnit and check out the awesome LibHub podcast A Phone Call from Paul. Recent episode: Jan Morris talks to Paul Holdengraber about the religion of kindness, her love of Trieste, and plays one of her favorite records.