I am a failure...yes, I know that is harsh but it is true. I failed at NaBloPoMo. Let's face it, to start I am tired and busy. Also, I am not a great writer and at times not even a good writer. I have a hard time writing about my days in a detailed way let alone an interesting way.
I have only done a year and a half of college. I am a college drop out, I blame it on Costco and stats. My first year of college I lived at home and drove 45 minutes into school every day. I did well in my classes but I could not write papers. I was taught the 'hamburger' essay in like grade 7 if not earlier. This style of easy is an intro and conclusion -the buns and then three paragraphs in the middle - the meat, lettuce and tomato. For the life of me, I can not get past this style and find if very difficult to write more than 5 paragraphs. This as you may know does not fly in college, even if the paragraph is long and I had done lots of research.
I took up blogging because I love blogs and I enjoy how even if no one reads what you write in a small way you are a published author. To me that is cool. I am also trying to hone my writing skills and learn the art of describing because I do have aspirations to go back to school one day.
I sometimes wonder what an experienced writer or anyone who has a good grasp of grammar must think of my writing. I don't think about it for long because then someone starts screaming or pulling hair or I fall asleep. Right now my main goal in bettering my skills is to remember to spell check and proof read.
Oh Melynda, you're too hard on yourself! And I wouldn't say you're a failure...at all. You're so good at so many things!
ReplyDeleteSo, maybe your NaBloPoMo didn't work this time around, but whatever, you can try it again another time. Like some other time when you don't have a brand new baby and an almost two year old and a three and a half year old. You're busy doing important things and I think you've got your priorities so straight it's wonderful...your girls are #1 in your life, that's the important thing...
I love reading your blog and I think you're too hard on your writing skills...you're a good writer. When you wrote for GFC, I hardly had any editing to do...and that's a great thing!
Post secondary writing is a pain...it took me two years to figure out that each professor had a style they looked for in papers and another year to figure out how to give them what they wanted...I hated writing that way - for someone else...and that's why I love blogging...I can write for myself and not worry about what other people think about my writing or really even about what I write about...
Look at all those ellipses! That's hardly good grammar....
To be a better writer you just have to practice...it's like most things. But keep up the blogging and you'll probably notice your writing changes. Go back and read some of your first posts and you'll see it. Do the same thing for a few blogs you like to read regularly...you'll see that there is a definite change in most of them from the beginning to right now (the exception would be if it's a more commercial blog that has editors or a style guide)...
Keep writing Melynda! I'll keep reading...
And keep that dream of going back to school. My mom went back when I was twelve and graduated when I was thirteen and I was (and still am) so proud of her. You can totally do it (when you're ready!)
Well, I have always been a very good writer and editor, I used to spend large amounts of spare time doing both as hobbies! My degree was supposed to be in English (before I discover that and $1.50 gets you on the bus) and I still have a love of it.
ReplyDeleteBlogging is a different animal than analytical writing or even longer compositions like short stories. My blog has atrocious formatting and sentence structure, but that's just the way it comes out of my brain - unedited and stream-of-consciousness. Yours looks just the same as mine, and nobody would guess I am skilled at essays and you struggle with them. In the world of blogging, experience is the great equalizer. We're both talking through our lives and struggles, there's nothing elegant or inelegant about that.
But, for the record, I NEVER bother trying to do something like NaBloPoMo, it's too much to commit to. It's the same reason I don't set time-based weight goals. The expectation of having to be at a certain point by a certain time psyches me out and sets me up for failure :)
I love reading your blogs ... and I agree with the other posts.. you are way too hard on yourself.. probably because you are running on empty with lack of sleep and 3 under 4 in your house.
ReplyDeleteYou are an amazing mom, and I think a pretty good writer!
Your blogs are consistently entertaining and heartfelt, passionate and honest, Melynda - keep on writing, you're a natural.
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