Whether we've met personally or you've just happened to stumble upon one of my Odyssey articles, I don't think it's hard to grasp that I love to write. Dance and cheerleading used to be my stress relievers in high school, but in college, writing is it for me. The ability to impact others with the written word has always fascinated me. English may not have been my favorite or best subject growing up, but it's the only one that I put 110 percent of effort into. Sorry, Calculus.
Writing is one of those skills that never goes out of style. Today, more companies are looking for employees who have an understanding of grammar and can write a formal email. It still drives me crazy that certain professionals I have corresponded with do not use proper grammar and punctuation. It may be a necessary skill in everyday life, but it's one that, like many others, takes constant practice.
When I first began writing for The Odyssey, people were incredibly supportive and praised me on the articles I wrote. As my experiences in life expanded, my impactful articles did not. Yes, I could have written articles about my struggle with anxiety, my grandma being diagnosed with Alzheimer's or even my desire to transfer schools. These topics are important no doubt, but sitting down to write about them was too difficult. I found myself, for one of the first times in my life, becoming speechless. The writer's block then began and consumed me for several months. Something that was once such a stress relief became a hardship.
I knew I had to get over this obstacle. Writing had become such an important piece of my identity and not being able to move my pen on paper was slowly driving me into insanity. I knew I was overthinking it, but I didn't know how to stop my brain from over-analyzing every word.
Sitting in the library one late evening was where I decided once and for all to get over my battle with this horrendous writer's block curse. I remembered this exercise my high school English teacher made us do to get ready to write our college essays and it was simple: Don't think, write. Set a timer for 15 minutes and write whatever comes to your mind, and the pen is not allowed to leave the paper. Now, I was not cured after a short 15-minute writing exercise, but it did allow me to feel the joy in writing again. There's just something about getting all of those thoughts filling your brain down on paper.
To those of you who have shared my articles in the past, thank you. Those shares and kind words give me encouragement to continue writing. Although this is my last Odyssey article, I hope to those of you who have always admired writing decide to dive deep into the art, I think you'll be amazed at the results. My only advice: Don't think about it, just do it. Whether it's one sentence or two words, writing always impacts others, and everyone should give it a try.
