I’m the kind of person who rarely updates my music catalog, but the day that Taylor Swift’s 1989 came out, I was at Target that morning buying a deluxe copy of her album. Yes, at 28 years old and no, I am not ashamed in the least.
I love Taylor Swift but years ago, I never imagined I would ever say that. I was the girl who was semi-snickering as Kanye stole her golden VMA moment. Overrated, I thought.
But just a few months later, I would feel quite bad about that because I ended up falling in love with her music after listening to her epic album, “Speak Now,” while living in France. Ever since then, Taylor has been my musical BFF and has provided the soundtrack to my life (including my recent stay at the hospital; it’s true).
Anyway, one of the things I loved most about getting the deluxe version of her album were the special exclusives she offered — including a few glimpses into her songwriting process. I found the peek into her creative process completely fascinating and it made me think about opening up about my own writing process on this blog.
Before that point, I had seen so many people participating in a popular “writing process meme” on their blogs and as a blog reader, I really liked getting to know more about how people tackled their work. But I still hesitated to share about myself in that way because oddly enough, I’m quite private even though I have what feels like this strange need to express myself to others.
So, all of this is a very long-winded way of saying… let’s talk about my writing process!
Q1. How does my writing process work?
Typically, I write when I am inspired. What usually happens is I will have a little something on my mind… and then it begins to grow bigger. I get curious about it or I have a need to work it out and I can’t do it in my head. I need to figure out what I think about something and I need to process it; I need to discover what’s trying to come up in my soul. There’s something formless that needs to be put in words. And so, that’s when I know it’s time to write and I sit down and tend to just go.
A lot of times, I can write a draft of what I am working on and it comes out pretty close to what I want it to be in the end. I try not to force things too much and if the words really don’t come, I may stop and come back to it later or just abandon it. But once I have a draft that reflects what I generally want to say, then I begin the process of reading and re-reading and making sure it sounds the way I want to sound. I go and tweak phrases, re-read parts of the whole post, and then read the whole thing again to make sure it makes sense. And then I read it again and probably some more times to format it and make sure it sounds like what I was trying to get at. And then, I publish!
I rarely work on things ahead of time — I don’t really plan my writing or go over it for a few days or anything. When I write something, it usually has been on the day that I’ve been thinking about it. But depending on what I am expressing, it can take a couple or a few hours. It just depends on what I’m talking about. I’d say that the posts that take me the longest are the ones involving photos and travel. It can take many more hours edit the photos, place them in an order that makes visual sense but also tells the story I want to tell.
Q2. How does my work/writing differ from others of its genre?
Well, I’m always struggling to define what “genre” or “niche” of blog I even write, so I suppose that’s already different from a lot of other people… Honestly, I don’t really know how to categorize what I do but part of me thinks: does that even matter? Anyway, I suppose I technically fall into the umbrella of “lifestyle” blogging if we’re being kind of trendy, but I guess what I do is more of what I’d call “personal” blogging.
Now, based on my own observations from the blogs I read, my writing tends to be different in that it is more introspective and focuses more on feelings and the inner-process than the actual details of what is happening or what has happened in my life.
I’m not actually disciplined enough to use my planner regularly to help with my writing process, but I thought that this photo provided visual interest. 
Q3. Why do I write what I do?
Good question! First and foremost: it’s what interests me, perplexes me, makes me curious… it’s what’s on my mind. It’s what I need to say, it’s what I need to put form to. I write what I write… because I can’t imagine not writing it. It oftentimes feels like something I need to do.
But don’t get it twisted — it’s also something I very much want to do. I enjoy it so much! It feels so good, it feels… so natural… it feels… like being alive. It’s… a part of me, it’s how I… find my place in the world, my orientation. It makes me feel more complete, if that makes any sense? It makes the world… graspable, touchable, tangible, steady… even just for a moment in time.
But anyway, I write about points of growth and things that perplex me about being an adult and about trying to become the best version of myself that I can be because that’s what fascinates me. I write what I do out of a need to express myself and my thoughts and share them with others. I write to feel less alone, to feel more understood, and also to hopefully help other people to feel that way as well.
Q4. What am I currently working on/writing?
This is actually an exciting time for me because I have a few things brewing besides the stuff that I just happen to write whenever I feel inspired on this blog.
1. My Master’s Project: Of course, it’s been on hold while I’ve been in the hospital recently, but that’s been a project under development for the past couple of months. Because I’m studying journalism, it’s writing-focused but it’s a little different than what I usually do. It’s still about those personal development things that I’m fascinated by, but I’m trying to be a little more planned out, a little more professional (that’s hard for me!!) and more intentional about my content. It’s difficult for me to determine the tone and direction I want to go in, to not second-guess everything, and to have a solid perspective. A big challenge for sure! (Read more updates about my master’s project here.)
2. More Travel Posts: I actually started this blog to remember my love for travel, so I want to incorporate more of that on here. I’ve recently started writing again about my experiences from when I lived abroad (like my Scandinavian Tour of Awesomeness) and that’s been a lot of fun. There are so many more stories and pictures to share and so I’m excited to revisit such a fun and beautiful period of my life!
3. More Community-Type Posts: I really want to be a more active participant in other people’s blogging projects and endeavors. About a year ago or so, I got it in my head that all of my content had to be “soooooo original” and I couldn’t do things like this meme or answer surveys and I thought I shouldn’t do link-ups or other prompts from other bloggers. I think I fell into a trap of trying to be like certain other bloggers that I admired who always facilitated or ran their own link-ups and projects. But I actually really don’t enjoy being the leader of things like that, as I found out with my GRAD-ITUDE 101 Project (even though it did help me to be more grateful). That said, I really do like participating in the things that other people create and I’m excited to finally break out of that limiting mindset and be a part of things like:
A Year of Curiosity from Shannon at Awash with Wonder
Crystal’s Book Club and things like the Semi-Charmed Book Challenges
Local Adventurers & Lovely Letters with Esther and Jacob
Day in the Life from Manda at Musical Poem
The Circle from Kiki at In Its Time
And I’m sure I’ll find many other amazing projects to participate in over time as well! I’m so excited! (And if you have a project that you’re running or participating in, drop me a link in the comments so I can check it out!)
4. My Hospital Experiences/Health Stuff: Being in the hospital for 11 days was a life-changing experience. And… now that I’m home and processing it, I really have a lot to say about it… stories to share, observations I made, and some tips for people if they are ever in a similar situation. Additionally, I have this newfound need to be more transparent about my own struggles with my health and living with an autoimmune disease (lupus). I really want to be open about the changes I’m making as a result of my huge health scare — for accountability and also to help other people navigating their own health issues. So, definitely expect to see more of that on this blog as well.
What about you? What is your writing process? What are you currently working on?
p.s. How to Build Your Blogging Confidence & Uncovering Your Niche
The post My Writing/Blogging Process appeared first on Erika from America.