Back to Basics Writing

On days when I feel tired or when I’m feeling emotionally drained, the last thing I want to do is look at a screen. I don’t want to type on my computer or phone. I don’t want to scroll through social media and think about what I want to post. That was me nearly every day last week. And while I love being part of #the100dayproject community, I do NOT love how tied the project feels to social media and technology. I do not love that sharing my work online is the “primary” marker of progress.

When I was in college, I did not have an iPhone or iPad or Mac laptop. I was an English major in college, which meant lots and lots of papers, essays, and reading. The only tools that I had for writing were a pen, pencil, and spiral notebook. Because these were light and accessible tools, I wrote anywhere and anytime — on the bus, at the library, at the park bench between classes, at the cafe during lunchtime. I didn’t have the digital tools to be distracted, so when I wrote, it was just me, my thoughts, and the page.

I spent days, maybe a week, exploring a topic or thesis statement. I gave myself time to reflect and free write an idea, see where the trail would lead me. Nearly everything was by hand, my drafts and my edits. Once it felt ready to be polished and finalized, I could then do the ceremonial process of loading up my Dell desktop computer and settling into my office chair to type up the final version.

That was my writing process back then, and now that I’m in the thick of this writing challenge, I find myself gravitating back to that basic model of writing. I’m giving myself time to journal, free write, and jot down ideas and sentences during moments throughout my day. I’m allowing time and space to let the ideas simmer and meld together. Sometimes I find that journaling about the same topic for 3 days in a row gives me room to explore them in different ways, and I reach a breakthrough on the fourth day. It’s been so insightful for me to observe my writing process — to see what I do naturally in the ebb and flows of my day and week.

And even though I’m not posting my writing online everyday, or typing up my pieces on the computer for that matter, I’m doing the work that matters most to me. I’m still writing.

Day 20/100 of #paulinewritesfor100days