The blessing of being a writer
Recently, I’ve felt a strong pull towards creative writing. I mean without me even realizing it this last year has been me embracing the more creative side of myself.
These blogs, sharing posts on my brand’s Instagram account, and submitting personal poetry to be potentially published are just three small ways I’ve started to fuel this tiny passion of mine.
And as I’ve successfully (and regularly) shared my work, it’s motivated me to want to expand my craft and dip my toes into telling stories through other mediums, like screenplays.
Because as a newly self-titled creative writer and someone who has always enjoyed consuming media, whether it’s a new album from my favorite artist, a three-hour-long movie, or a thought-provoking Substack article, I’ve always been left in awe of the incredible stories people tell and the fictional realities they can create.
And thanks to the help of my visual media obsessed partner who is constantly discovering new things to watch, I’ve started to feel closer to my childhood self and the other forms of media that I once felt very connected to while growing up, like anime.
While watching and reading the things I enjoy over the last year I’ve been constantly reminded that the ability to evoke a feeling out of someone doesn’t only exist in a thoughtful poem. Any good story, no matter what medium it’s expressed through, is nothing without a good writer or team of good writers.
So why does writing an award-winning anime feel so out of reach for me? Aside from the fact that I was never taught how to write a screenplay because I specialized in Professional Writing, the only real thing stopping me is the belief that I’m incapable of doing it.
My unspoken fear that I may not be the creative person I claim to be. The uncontrollable thoughts that shift my normal reality and remind me that I might never achieve writing something that becomes more than just words on paper.
Reality can feel so skewed when you listen to all of the thoughts swirling through your head.
But, as the slivers of doubt creep into my mind, the other loud voice in my head reminds me of the truth. The angel on my shoulder gently eases my worries as it recounts my natural ability to write that’s existed within me since elementary school.
My rational voice continues to bring me back down to Earth as I slowly move away from that pestering self-doubt and begin to perceive myself for who I actually am. Not what I can or can’t become.
Whether I publish a best-selling novel or my screenplay for my anime gets adapted into a TV show will never be about who I’m not as a writer, but it will always be what I push myself to do and allow myself to become.
No one else gets to decide what kind of writer I am. Only I can try and put myself out there.
And the truth is, the only way I will ever become what I dream to be is if I try. So the next time you feel like caving to those intrusive thoughts, remind yourself of your dreams, and then push that silly thinking aside.
Look at yourself for the creative you are and remember the true blessing of being a writer outweighs any of the self-doubt you could feel.
It’s a blessing to be able to express your emotions through art and create a completely new world for viewers to enjoy while telling the story you have always yearned to share.
Or maybe it’s not an old idea at all, but a new story you just came up with.
Either way, your gift is unique, your voice is an individual, and there is no one who will write your idea better than you. You just have to create it!
Thank you for reading!!!! I hope this short essay can resonate with my fellow writers, but also any creative person who may be questioning their abilities. We are seriously more alike with one another than we think.
XOXOXO
