I’ve been meaning to sit down and write my first essay for a while now. I’m emerging from my social media-free cave to finally start adding my noise to the void.
I’m not entirely sure what I’ll write about here. To start I’ll probably summarize ideas and notes from books I’m reading because that feels safe. It’s also for the selfish reason that I learn better when I write about the ideas I’m putting into my head. So I might also write about classes I’m taking or projects I’m working on. Hopefully it spirals out to something interesting.
Another reason I’m writing (and sharing what I’m writing) is to try to feed my desire to create more. Looking through my journals, I see a recurring theme of feeling like I’m consuming too much and not creating enough. I’m filling myself with entertainment and information and anything that feels like it might be useful, but I’m not taking time to do anything with the things I’m putting into my mind.
I paint occasionally when I’m feeling inspired, but I’m still learning so I struggle to recreate the images in my head in a way worth sharing.
I journal more than I paint, but that writing tends to be disorganized and unpolished because it’s not written to be shared.
Which is why I’m writing here. I don’t expect to have an audience, but by putting my writing in a place where someone could potentially access it, I’m giving myself the incentive to think more deeply about what I’m trying to say. Rather than just leaving my thoughts half finished in a journal, I’ll feel compelled develop my ideas while nourishing my impulse to make things.
Dave Tortora 