It's a known fact that tons of people hate Odyssey articles. I read so many Facebook rants, almost weekly, about how annoying the website is and how the writers for the website are uncreative and basic. People believe that all the articles Odyssey publishes are insignificant and that they lack depth. I mean, how many articles can you read about how relatable" Grey's Anatomy" is to college or an open letter to a friend?
To all those people who think this about Odyssey, I agree with you. There are an ample amount of unoriginal articles. I read so many articles each week that are recycled from other websites — or worse, recycled from other Odyssey writers. There are some authors affiliated with Odyssey who write rather poorly, and the topics that they choose to write about are very generic and predictable.
However, not all writers for the website fit this stigma. There are writers for Odyssey that are intelligent, creative and have wonderful ideas they want to share with the world. I have read just as many great articles from Odyssey writers as I have terrible ones. You just might not have read their articles because the girls you went to high school with don't really share articles on their Facebook of that nature (they tend to stick to articles like "Why My Sorority Changed My Life" or "Finals, As Told By 'One Tree Hill'").
People ask me all the time, "Why do you write for Odyssey if you know what they publish is terrible? Why would you want to be associated with something like that?"
To those people, I say they have a valid point. However, what I have started to tell people when they ask me that question is this: I write for Odyssey because it's good for me. I don't write for Odyssey to be associated with the Odyssey name. I write for myself.
Of course, all my articles are attributed to Odyssey's website, but I am still the writer behind them; my name is displayed under the title as the author. I write for Odyssey because I enjoy writing, and Odyssey has given me a platform that helps me meet deadlines — it gets me to write an article every week to add to my writing portfolio, and it gets my name out into the journalism world.
I'm a college student trying to find a voice in this big, competitive world, and Odyssey has provided me a space to share my voice and have my voice be heard. I could care less about how many people share my articles or the people who don't agree with what I write. This is my voice, and it's my choice to write what I want. Odyssey is a platform that lets its writers write about whatever they desire, which is why there's both good writing and bad writing.
Yes, Odyssey publishes terrible content sometimes, but instead of complaining about it, you can do three things.
The first thing you can do is mind your own business and let people write. Yes, some articles can be awful, but behind those articles are writers who are trying their hand at writing.
The second is to find Odyssey articles you are actually interested in. There are so many writers for the website and not all of the articles are an open letter, a list about college or how relatable a television show is. Go find something that means something to you; chances are the Odyssey articles you see on Facebook shared by people you went to high school with aren't for you.
The third and final thing you can do is write yourself. I have a right to complain about other people's writing because I'm a writer myself. If you want to share your thoughts about something, write about it. You have a voice, and if you want yours to be heard, start writing, just like I did.
