At Work.

Okay, let me set the field here. From this point until the end of this page, I will be talking directly to you, the reader. If you don't know me, my name is Dylan. As you may have guessed, I'm a writer for the social content platform known as Odyssey. It's an interesting site with thousands of student writers publishing weekly what they have to say about themselves, the places they live, our country, politics, comedy, music, relationships, etc. To me, the difference between writing on here instead of a social media outlet is that people come onto this site because they care enough about what they're saying to want to reach more people than they could on those platforms alone.

When I first started on this site, I wasn't sure what I was really doing. A friend had suggested it to me, so I thought I'd give it a go! My first publication was a brief article introducing myself to the readers of the Odyssey website, and I was very optimistic about my future here on the site. When that first article was published, and I found out it had 70 hits and counting I was overjoyed! Hundreds of new ideas for publications came to me all at once, and I had planned to put out article after article after article about all the things I wanted to say.

But...

(Now don't think this is a bad "but"; just go with it here). As I said, I was very optimistic about what I had to say as a creative writer, and I carried that optimism with my second publication: "The Meanings of Life According to Hollywood." For the most part I thought the article was unique and interesting and a good publication, but then I got distracted. I was so caught up in what I thought of my articles, but I didn't think about two things: 1) What other people really thought of my work, and 2) What I would think of my friends' articles.

The first thing was no real problem. I don't mind whatever opinions people have about my work, you're free to think what ever you want. But the second issue was something that really bugged me. I myself never read online articles unless it was for a class assignment or someone from Facebook shared something interesting, but I eventually started reading some articles from my friends at Odyssey. The Odyssey group here at ULM is small, but it's a decent number. I've met a couple of them in person, including the former Editor in Chief and they're all nice people (I bet you might be one of these people right now, actually...HI Abby! Hey Bree! Nikki! Tray! Cierra! Hey guys! Oh and hey Crystal! You're the reason I'm here, so thanks!) ANYWAY, I decided to give their articles a go. Some of the articles I found myself reading were good; some of them tied in with a theme or season or the time of year, and others... Others really hit me. Some of these articles were very personal and overwhelming and just tugged at my heartstrings. I enjoyed being a reader on the site for once.

But then it got me thinking...

I enjoyed being a reader on the site for the articles I really liked; it felt good to like something and let the writer know I appreciate what they did. But what about me? I've never really had something huge to say about my life or anything I've done, and when I thought about it, I referred back to the Odyssey platform. What do people come here for? Daughters write messages of love and appreciation to their mothers; activists write long, thoughtful explanations of Trump riots and politics, and other people state what they believe and receive support from an entire caring community. None of it made me feel threatened, but it did make me feel what I had to say just wasn't worth saying. It's not that people don't care, but I feel like they'd only read what I had to put out there just because they were related to me or that they would like what I had to say for about a minute but wouldn't put any significant value on it. "Eh." That's all it would be: "Eh." So-so. It's there. Onto the next one.

What's Next?

None of this means I'm quitting Odyssey. Just in case you saw this as me giving up, let me reassure you that I still want to put out weekly content on Odyssey. I understand that I have the creative freedom to write and post almost anything I want. But whatever I post, I want to do it to satisfy you guys. Sure, a short story is fun to write, but it can feel like a chore to read unless you're enjoying it with me. I've also learned it can be hard coming up with new content every weak without doing something cheesy or, dare I say, meaningless. That's why I implore you to make suggestions to me. I want your voice to be heard too, but you probably either don't care or don't have the time of day.

(You can look closer here for a sneak peek of things I'm working on)

I mean, I'm still at work here. I've had lots of ideas floating around in my head including a film, a short film, another short story, and others. I've also been focusing on my other hobbies like photography. I've found that I'm actually pretty good at taking artistic photos and now I can't stop. I'm also still learning how to play guitar.

I'm currently learning songs and chords, and I have a friend or two help out every now and again. But anyways, I still have things to put out; it just feels like it's getting harder and harder to come up with great content (at least great content I enjoy writing).

But who knows? Maybe I'll have another story to publish, or I'll come up with another listicle, or maybe things will turn around when the current Editor in Chief reads this and asks me what's wrong ... err ... something (RIGHT, ABBY?). I just know whatever I do, my Odyssey team has my back and they'll support me through ... whatever this even is. THANKS GUYS.

[Like really! I don't even know!

Writers block? Loss of Ideas? Distracted?

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I don't know.

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Hello? Is anyone there?

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Is the article over yet?

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It's like 20 after 12! This thing was due a half hour ago!

....... uhh

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nothing seems to be stopping.

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Oh crap! Where's the outro!?

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OH GOD I CANT STOP

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I gotta find that OUTRO!!!

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where are you!?

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...

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.

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GOTCHYAA!!

Well, let me know what you thought!

If you want to message me or give me suggestions for another article or just ask me some questions, check me out on any of my social media accounts!

Facebook - Dylan Jung

Twitter - @l_DylanJung_l

Instagram - dylanjung_

Thanks for checking out my article, and I'll talk to you all later!

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...wooh that was close. I almost obliterated the fourth wall ther-

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DAMMIT!!

*end*