So, I’ve spent the last couple days trying to decide what I wanted to write this week for Odyssey. I had thoughts, feelings, and stories I wanted to share, but I just couldn’t seem to make the words and ideas flow and make sense without sounding like the ramblings of a sleep deprived mad man. I’ve been on tour in Florida, and it is an exhausting experience. Being a decent or good writer requires multiple ingredients in order to be accomplished. Writer’s need inspiration, some kind of strong feeling or experience that makes them say, “Hey, I might be able to impact someone by writing this.” Whether that writing starts a much needed discussion or makes a reader feel not as alone if they struggle with an issue or even changes how someone thinks about something. Being in great form is also a necessary component for being able to write well. I suppose it’s a necessary component to be able to do anything well. If you ever decide you want to write and you want to write something exceptionally well, it’s important to keep these things in mind.

Inspiration is tough to find sometimes. I know whenever I’m writing papers for classes, finding inspiration to write is challenging if I don’t have any kind of emotional investment in what I’m writing about. I feel like all of my writing becomes very forced and the quality suffers immensely because of that. Conversely, if something inspires me or rings strongly with my thoughts and feelings I have no trouble writing about it and the process of writing becomes much more enjoyable. My quality of writing also improves because I care more about doing well with something I’m emotionally invested in.

Being in great form is also really important if you want to be able to write well. I’ve been extremely tired the past couple days and it’s showing in my writing process as I prepare this article for you. I found it much harder to organize my thoughts, feelings, and inspiration so I couldn’t narrow anything down into a smooth, coherent article. I’m also just struggling with writing in general. I keep misspelling words and have to go back and retype them because of how impaired my focus has been when I try to write anything. I’m also taking much longer than normal to write this because I keep nodding off every now and then while I write. I’ve become extremely grateful for being able to sleep as long as I can during the semester because it makes everything that much easier when I can focus clearly because I’m not tired.

Being a writer is not an easy feat to accomplish. Being a good writer is an even more challenging feat. Being a good writer while also on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion? Probably near impossible, but I’ll leave that up to your opinion after having read this article to find out.