All Odyssey creators come from different places across the country. Despite our geographical differences, we all go through the same ups and downs: successful stories, slow shares and the struggle of coming up with a topic each week. Even though writing for Odyssey isn't as easy as it may seem, all of us are connected by the same struggles of being an Odyssey creator.
1. When writer's block hits you hard.
You go to sit down and write your article for the week and....nothing. Not a single idea.
2. That rush when you break your pageview record.
2,357 people clicked on my article?!? WHAT?!
3. When MUSE decides to freeze while you're in the middle of an article.
Especially if you're rushing to complete your article and the program gives you the deathly red bars in the corner of your dashboard...
4. The horrible moment when your community makes plans at your favorite place but you can't make it.
And then they post selfies in the GroupMe, and you feel more FOMO than ever before.
5. When the GroupMe blows up in class.
Or when someone says something funny in the group and you laugh while your classmates are taking a test. Or when you leave your sound on and your editor messages you.
6. When your editor changes the deadline on you last-minute.
You've never typed faster in your entire life.
7. The stress you feel when your article is due in 20 minutes and you haven't finished.
Suddenly, creating a headline and tags seem like the hardest task in the world.
8. When you come up with a genius article idea, forget to write it down and end up forgetting it.
If you haven't shed tears after forgetting an article idea, do you even write for the Odyssey?
9. The mixed feelings right before you post your article on any social media.
What if people hate it? Will they like it? Is it going to get enough shares from this? Are people going to leave hate comments?!
Despite the stress and anxiety we all go through, all of us love Odyssey. Whether we're shy, pursuing a dream or exploring new things, all of Odyssey creators are here for the same underlying reason: to have our voices be heard. Even if our articles receive ridiculous hate comments or shares in the single digits, we will still write for Odyssey because our love for writing for this platform is so strong and unwavering.