Sometimes writing is hard. Sometimes it’s easy. For example, this past weekend I had two different ‘papers’ I had to write. Similar in length, but different subjects. One was about the Allentown fair, easy. The other was a reflection on Shakespeare’s The Tempest, that one was a bit harder. Most people would think that the reflection on Shakespeare would obviously be the harder paper but for me that’s not always the case. I find that academic papers are often easier to write than a creative piece. Having a set structure makes writing easy. Intro, body, evidence, reasoning, conclusion. Follow the steps and if you understand what you’re writing about it should be a piece of cake. However, this one was hard, and most definitely not my best work. Whereas the piece on the Allentown fair flowed out of me. It took me all of 30 minutes and is probably one of my favorite pieces of writing to date.
I think that I’m a mediocre writer. There are more things that I can improve on then those I’m good at. I’d really like to get better at creative writing. Working on that piece about the Allentown fair was so much fun and I’d like to be able to enjoy writing in that way more often. I know that writing will not always be as easy as it was for that paper, but I don’t think it should be such a big struggle. I also believe that being a better writer will allow me to be a better reader, which in turn will help me understand the texts that I read better, making me a better writer. In short, I struggle with writing often, but the struggle is not something I dread because I know it is the best way to better myself at something I truly enjoy doing.
I especially look forward to improving my writing skills because I hope to one day write a book. I’m not expecting to write my generation’s “To Kill a Mocking Bird” but maybe something that could get published. (But don’t tell anyone about this because it’s a secret) And, if not to write a book then to at least improve enough that I can help others get published.
