I was recently asked to elaborate on my writing style, so I’ll do so here. Unless it is specifically noted otherwise, everything that I write is true. It’s all based on my life, my experiences and my feelings. As a writer for the Odyssey, I have to contribute one article per week. To fulfill this responsibility, I often just sit down and write about how I feel in that moment. I usually have a certain direction that I want to go with the article. Sometimes, I really want to build off of some of my favorite song lyrics, so I’ll focus my writing around that. For example, Panic! At The Disco’s “House of Memories” is one of my favorite songs. The first line of the chorus, “Baby we built this house on memories” makes me picture a house literally filled with memories. To me, That’s a powerful image, so I have referenced it a few times in my writing.

Some of my poems can come across as a “stream of consciousness” style. I do that on purpose. Emotions and feelings are such raw things that, by writing in that style, I believe that I’m at least making an attempt to capture the form of emotions (at least, the way they work in my mind). In this style, I actually just write, I don’t really have an ending to the poem in mind; instead, I just write and see where it goes. The combination of this style and paying tribute to some of my favorite song lyrics is my favorite way to write. There are so many songs, and especially so many lyrics, that often accurately capture how I feel. There’s nothing quite like walking (to class, to dinner, or anywhere, really) with my headphones in and hearing these songs. These lyrics “get” me, and vice versa. For this reason, I like to “tip my cap” to the artists through my writing. It’s my way of thanking them for creating music that I feel such a personal connection to. Will they ever read my writing? Probably not, but I like knowing that I am showing them my appreciation through what I love to do.

That being said, sometimes, I do like to write a more organized poem. I like knowing how I want it to start and how I want it to end. Sometimes, I try to tie the ending back to the beginning. These poems tend to feel more complete, as the endings give me a little closure as a writer. Again, my favorite songs influence me in this regard. “Car Radio,” by Twenty-One Pilots, begins and ends with the same verse. Whenever I listen to it, I like that connection between the beginning of the song and the end of the song. I try to emulate that in my writing. When I do so successfully, I feel like I’ve said what I wanted to say and I feel particularly satisfied when I hit “submit” for that week’s article.

I’m starting to learn more about my voice as a writer. I write about my feelings, and by doing that, I often don’t sugarcoat things. I’m not subtle. Though my writing, I tell you, the reader, how I feel. Sure, I’ll toss in some of the classic devices; similes, metaphors, and so on. But most of the time, I simply take how I feel and I roll with it. I put it into words and I type it. Is it dark? Too dark, maybe? Absolutely, and that’s the point. I write about my feelings, pure and unrestricted. As a writer and, more importantly, as a person, it is my primary goal to be honest however possible. That is especially true when I am explicitly writing about my feelings. I won’t hold back and minimize the depth of my emotions. That will push some people away, and that’s fine by me. For most of my life, I’ve been able to both understand and express my feelings. That seems to be a rare ability (that’s what my time in middle school and high school taught me, at least). Doing anything other than communicating my genuine feelings would seem fake, definitely to myself and probably to the reader, too.

I write anywhere and everywhere, and also anytime. Modern technology can be a great resource; with my laptop, I can write whenever I want. More often than not, I sit down after dinner on Friday night and I concentrate on writing that week’s article in one sitting. I’ll pause, and contemplate the next word, sentence or the direction of the poem. But I usually hammer it out. However, this isn’t always the case. When I feel particularly inspired, I pull out my laptop, either to note the inspiration for later usage or to expand on it immediately. As an example, I was sitting in one of my classes a few weeks ago. My mind wandered, and I felt a wave of inspiration. My mind conjured practically a whole verse and I scrambled to write it down before I lost it. Sometimes, it’s simply an idea, or a direction that I want to go with a poem, and I have to shape that raw concept into an article. During my time writing for the Odyssey, I (luckily) have not felt writer’s block, for the most part. Sometimes, I’ll struggle with the direction that I want a poem to go, or I’ll struggle making the 500-word minimum. In those cases, I write when I feel inspired. I’ll write throughout the week and wait for inspiration to strike. It always does, eventually, even if it’s at 11:30 P.M. on Friday, when articles are due at midnight. But I always find a way.

I’ve learned that writing doesn’t have to be nearly as difficult as it’s made out to be. All you have to do is take an idea, a thought, a feeling and roll with it. Modern technology lets us write wherever and whenever we want/can. I strongly recommend capitalizing on that opportunity. Writing honestly about my feelings is therapeutic and I enjoy the freedom to express myself.

Lastly, thank you to everyone that does read my work. I appreciate it and I look forward to continuing my contributions here at the Odyssey.