Tagged: writing
What I learned from keeping a journal, part 2
source: protobacillus
We’re all going through our own shit. Whether we’re worried about finding a job, finding true love, or finding meaning in our everyday lives, everyone has their own internal struggle. Continue reading
notebook
My pen carves out valleys, creates monuments of thought. Continue reading
I’m a Writer, and I’m Proud.
There’s no shame in calling yourself a writer. There’s a difference between that and identifying as a writer, and I also don’t think there’s anything with the latter.
If you don’t call yourself one, how will you ever become one? You have to embody that mindset and personality and then develop a habit. Continue reading
Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work! Taught Me 16 New Things about Blogging
This is part of my Summer Reading 2.0 series.
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I have a special place in my heart for the books that Urban Outfitters sells. I can buy ~4 books for the price of 1 skirt.
While I was there, I picked up Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work!, a bright yellow book that could fit into my tiny cross-body purse.
This book is intended for writers, artists, and anyone who has some sort of creative passion but feels trapped in an amateurish state. It’s a concise work that states simple truths in ways unconsidered.
For me, it eliminated many doubts and boundaries that my mind had constructed about getting myself out there.
It made me realize that a journal is not just a journal, but rather a sketchpad for portraying, or a drawing board for brainstorming. Continue reading
Guest Posts Rock, and You Should Consider Submitting One
Guest posts are magical, and if you check out the ones that I have already posted on this blog under “Other Voices,” you might understand why.
Never Stationary is just my tiny slice of the huge internet pie; the gathering of people sharing their opinions is replicated constantly, and all over this terrain.
New blogs can emerge because someone wrote for another blog and decided that they wanted their own slice of pie.
A Day in the Life of a High School Blogger
Everyday I roll out of bed, refreshed, at 6 am.
Tiptoeing downstairs, I pour myself a cup of tea and sit out on the porch for two hours in a earth-toned shawl, writing in my moleskin notebook.
By the time I’m done, I’ve got a few pages filled with high-quality writing.
Then I clean up the kitchen, head to yoga, and…. Continue reading
English is My Favorite Subject
In 9th grade, English was all about hammering down the basics of essays. We learned how to construct a thesis and communicate an argument in five paragraphs.
In 10th grade, it was about perfecting the structures of the papers that we wrote. It was incorporating quotes appropriately and eliminating “to-be” verbs.
In 11th grade, we learned how to take the analysis that we had originally done for these papers and present effective examples to bolster our arguments.
In 12th grade, it was wrapping up everything that we’d learned thus far and learning how to communicate our points not only effectively, but efficiently. It meant going over the word limit and cutting fluff so that we could present fleshed-out arguments in as few of words as possible, while still preserving its essence.
In a school in which discussions govern the class structure, my evolving personality inside and out of the classroom showcased my progress as a student of English. My initial contributions were quiet, uncertain statements, but I’m ending high school with the ability to take a stance on positions that I can defend with confidence. Continue reading
How to write for yourself: an 11-step guide
In obvious contrast to a previous post, 8 steps to write a blog for others.
11. Write whatever you want, no matter how messed up or horrible you think it is. Don’t write as if you expect your “work” to later be published in a memoir. Why would you write for yourself if you didn’t write what you believe is true?
Here is where you hoard all of the thoughts you are embarrassed to express, every painful regret you can’t admit to others, and every irrational fear you’ve ever had. Write a letter addressed to any individual, of everything you just can’t say. This is an extreme free-write.
That your entries don’t make sense when strung together shouldn’t bother you, but rather be indicative of every day leaving a different impression on you than the last.
Continue reading
8 steps to write a blog for others
Do not be fooled! This is a tattoo.
8. Don’t tell stories. That’s what parties are for. Stories require personal interaction; a screen between you and your reader is hardly sufficient to create a meaningful interpersonal connection.
No one wants to read about your life. You didn’t click on this link because you want to hear about my day or know about my life, do you? (In the rare instance that you do, thank you – I love you!)
But the majority want information for themselves; they read when there’s something in it for them, they click when my words offer them some incentive. It’s less of a selfish intention and more of a tendency of human nature.
It’s just something to keep in mind if you want your writing to connect with others. Stories are fine, as long as they are anecdotes, structured to demonstrate a broader point that people can relate to. Continue reading
6 reasons why blogging sucks (and writing in general)
6. You never know if your substance is appropriate.
There are so many facts about my personal life that I’m tentative to reveal here. My last name? Where I live? What school I’m going to? Names of my friends? Romantic details? These are all sensitive topics; I’m previewing what kind of backlash I might get every time I write a This Kid I Know. Continue reading
Catherine Zhang 