I never really planned on being an article creator, especially for the Odyssey. I had no idea what the Odyssey even was, and only got familiar with it once I started reading articles. Normally, if I would write anything, I would keep it to myself or share with a small group of people. But I never thought I would write something for the world to see.
Basically, I am a loner. So I keep to myself all the time and do not really talk about a lot of issues, because of the fear of criticism. But the Odyssey has helped me to express myself on a variety of things, such as my likes and dislikes, and my latest pet peeves. It also helps me to think of new ideas to write about. This is due to the deadline on Sunday, forcing me to think of a topic to write about. The article ideas sent in weekly helps as well.
Even though people do not get paid for writing, the Odyssey makes me feel like I have a job. And I never planned on having job like this. Ever since I started writing for the Odyssey, I have enjoyed every time I write something. Another thing I could say is that I feel more outspoken and feel more confident as a person because I write. Being part of the Odyssey Community has helped me relate to other people and what concerns them. It seems pretty awesome to learn new things through some sort of “discussion”.
The best thing about being an Odyssey Creator is that you
can make articles out of old ones, or write a reply or another version of an
article. Even though it is not as original, at least all of us have our
different ways of writing, and not in one single way like that of news reports,
or journalism.
I used to write for the Odyssey because it was really fun to do so, but now it is more than that. I feel I have an obligation to always write an article, for not only my self-fulfillment, but for the people around me. In fact, we all have an obligation to write, in our own, individual ways.
Regardless of the struggles there are when it comes to writing an article, it is worth quite the while because we learn more about ourselves, others, and vice versa. So, I will keep writing on.