10/10/13

Ok. It has been a very long time. Between studying, writing, and trying to have a bit of a life, I haven't had a whole lot of time to devote to this poor blog. I do miss posting here, if only because it makes me feel good about myself.
In any case, I've missed VERY many posts, but it isn't all for loss. I've been spending the past few days writing, editing, and re-writing the first chapter of my book. So far, I think it's turned out pretty well.
Beyond that, I really don't have anything to say. I'm not getting a huge inspiration for anything here right now, which may be in part due to the slight headache and sleep deprivation. College. It's hard. Who knew?
(Although, I am extremely blessed with my courses. Since I'm only taking general studies at my school until I can move on to a school with a better writing program, I have some very basic, very easy classes. Of course, easy is a comparative word.)
It could be much harder, I'm sure, and I am extremely thankful for that.

I guess the only reason I posted right now was so that I wouldn't forget about this blog. I want to get back into the habit of a daily post, and that should be a bit easier now. So, next time I'll try to have something to actually say rather than "Oh, boo-hoo school is hard."
That's basically it.
Yup.

9/25/13

It's still been a bit hectic for me to feel comfortable posting regularly. Even now, I should probably be in bed, but I figured that I need to do this. Also I kind of miss posting. It's a nice break from all the stress and tests I've had over the past week or two now. Not to sound like I'm complaining; I've been working on that.

And that can be a perfect initial topic: complaining. Specifically, my complaining.
If you didn't guess from the last few sentences, I have issues with complaining. I tend to make things about me rather than listen to the problems of others (wow, that makes me sound like a terrible person). However awful it may make me sound, it's true and I regret that. I've been working on complaining less because frankly, it's annoying. Incredibly annoying. I hate it when other people complain, so why should I be allowed to complain? Am I better than the people whom I judge for complaining? Of course not - we're all equal. So if I'm going to be judgmental (which is another thing I'm working on eliminating from my mindset) then I have to at least not be a hypocrite about it all. How does that help anyone?
I feel like people in general tend to be self-centered and complain about themselves when given the chance (yes, yes, take the blame away from myself!). Why is it so hard to just forget our problems and be happy? Is it really so difficult for me to just let it all go and be happy that I'm alive, well, and extremely blessed?
Apparently the answer is yes. I wish it weren't so, but I have so much trouble forgetting my problems.

Time to implicate a purpose for this rambling about complaints!!
Here's the point: complaining doesn't help. Not when done too much. It's definitely healthy, and maybe even necessary to complain about things every once in awhile so you don't allow your problems to pile up higher and higher until it all explodes outwards. I've done that before in addition to letting my problems out too frequently, and this only ends with tears. What's worse is that often they're not my own tears, but the tears of those who I love and care about.
There needs to be a balance between complaining and knowing when to just give it up and be happy. I think that balance is to complain about things that are actually worth complaining about (maybe even in a sense where "complaining" isn't quite the right word); things such as losing your job, a difficult break-up, a death in the family. Your reactions to those may not always be qualified as complaining, but the idea is the same. It is for those kinds of things that you have to relieve some pressure.
However, it's pointless to complain about little things. So often I find myself complaining about bad drivers or other little things that really don't make a big impact on my life. Complaining about that kind of thing is stupid when you think about it. Is a person driving badly really the end of the world? Maybe. But in most cases it's just an inconvenience. It's annoying, but not complaint-worthy.

To sum it up, let out what hurts you because that has to be let out.
Don't complain about the little stuff.
The majority of my posts are cliches.

Anyways, my writing has been going down and down the farther I've written here, so I think it's time to stop. Hopefully I'll get another post up tomorrow, but don't hold your breath.
As always, feel free to comment whatever you please. This is the one case where I'm okay with small complaints being brought up.
Have a great day/night!

9/21/13 - I'm Back

It's been a full week. I think I had at least 3 quizzes and 2 tests this week, along with the many, many writing assignments. Needless to say, I've been kept busy with studying and other homework and therefore I haven't had a lot of time to devote to this blog. While I really do enjoy doing this I have to prioritize, and if that means missing a week of posts so that I don't fail school, then I'm fine with it. The way I see it is that I've paid thousands of dollars for a college tuition; I might as well make the most out of it.

In other news, that short story I mentioned has to be put on hold. I really like the way it turned out and so I'm entering it in a contest! The deal with most contests is that it must be a "previously unpublished work" and I wasn't sure if putting the story on the blog would count as "publishing" it (The big orange button up there does say "Publish"). I may be just a little paranoid about that, but I don't want to nullify whatever chance I have at winning simply because I posted it prematurely.
Anyways, I've set the goal for myself to write a short story by next Friday, and that one is up for the same considerations - I may post it here, or I may enter it to a contest. Either way I'm hoping that people will be able to read it and maybe even enjoy it :)

I haven't really thought of anything to write about yet (I was hoping it'd come to me during the previous two paragraphs) so I'll just talk about what's on my mind. Right now, it's advertisements. It's been brought to my attention that I can stick ads on the blog that will allow me to make money simply by sponsoring those ads. This is something I've always felt strongly about for two reasons:
1) Ads on any web page are obnoxious and irritating, and I know that I personally hate seeing them. They tend to slow down my computer (which isn't anything high-end, of course) and they're just plain annoying.
2) If I'm going to make money off of my writing, I want it to be off of my writing. I want to make money because of my writing, not because of some ads on the side of the page. If my writing is good, then I'll hopefully be selling lots of books that people will enjoy. Putting ads on the blog will be me making money regardless of if it's good or not. I despise that.
Basically, if something annoys me or is there for purely the wrong reasons, it's not gonna end up here. I've never been a sellout (in my opinion at least) and I'm certainly not planning to start now. The Writing Addiction will always be 100% ad free. If that ever changes, I want someone to not only post a complaining comment, but also send me an angry email. If you really want to get crazy, name a nickel your "Hate Nickel" and send it to me in the mail so that I can cry when I see it.

Please only send me Hate Nickels if there are ads on the site or if I do something else offensive. Or if you just really, really don't like me. I suppose that works.

I guess that's all I have to say about all that! Thanks for reading if you did so, and if you didn't read it then thank you for at least bothering to open up the page ^-^ Comment if you feel the need or desire to do so; any feedback is always appreciated! Thanks!

9/12/13 - A Repetitive Post in which I say the Same Things Many Times in Different Ways

I am afraid of people. I wouldn't say I'm "terrified" by people, and I certainly don't freak out in groups of people, but to an extent I am scared of anyone who may speak against me. I hate being up in front of a class because they may mock me or disagree with my ideas; I may say something stupid and everyone will laugh at me. To date, this has not happened, but it could. I'm also just terrified (okay, yes, I'm terrified) of attention being placed on me in general, unless I'm in a small group of friends (in which case I have a need for attention...it confuses me). In a way, I hate writing on this blog because every time I hit the Publish button, I'm allowing anyone with internet access - and the misfortune of ending up on my blog - to see what I think and say, and they are able to criticize me, even if they don't leave such criticisms in the comments.

I'm simply afraid of people.

My point to this is that because this is terrifying to me, I think it will help me. I've been taking actions to become less afraid - writing this blog and trying to actually say the answer if I know it are among the things I'm trying to do. It's senseless to live in fear of other people, especially in the case of this blog, because I will likely not meet anyone who reads this. I know that, yet for some reason I remain terrified. It's definitely gotten better, but there are still times where I think to myself, "Is this really worth posting? Does anyone care?"

The simple answer I've come up with is: "Who cares if anyone cares?" This is my blog, and therefore I shouldn't be negatively influenced by anyone who insults me. Rather, I can take that criticism to grow thicker skin and to improve myself in the ways that I lack.

The other point I'm trying to make is that as a writer, I will encounter people who don't like my writing. People will criticize and insult my books, and I will hear about it. But I can't let myself be affected by it, at least not negatively (as I mentioned before). The point of receiving criticism is to become better. I willingly accept criticism (even though it still scares me) so that I can grow as a writer and become the best I can be.

(If you haven't figured it out yet, this applies to you too!)

This applies to anyone in any activity, be it a job or just something to do for fun (yeah, I said basically the same thing twice in a row. Emphasis). A sports player can take criticism to know what he did wrong in one game, and apply that later on so that he doesn't make the same mistake. A salesman can learn what works for what kinds of people and use that knowledge to make more sales. A student can do poorly on a test or exam and be admonished by a teacher to learn that he may need better study habits. This can be applied to literally anyone. And I mean literally in the literal sense. Not in the nonchalant, overused way people say it now.

Take criticism, but don't be hurt by it. Accept it as an observation that someone else made, and even if it was said in a negative way, take it as constructive. Learn from your mistakes, even if you haven't directly been given criticism; in other words, give yourself constructive criticism (never destructive. Insulting yourself is even worse than someone else insulting you). Do what you like for the reasons you like, but if someone tells you you're doing it wrong, then take what they told you and apply it.

It's all cliche, I know. If you haven't learned by now, just about everything I post has been a huge cliche.

The thing about cliches is that they can be true and applicable. So apply it. Apply whatever cliche impressions I may have made on you (as long as they're positive...I really want to be clear that I don't like bad things!)

Anyone can be great in his or her own way.

With that final, overwhelmingly cheesy, sentimental thought, I bid you a good night.

9/11/13 - 9/10/13

Yes, that's right. Today's superfluous title is yesterday's date.
I missed yesterday for good reasons. I think so at least. I was studying for quizzes until about 12:30 last night and at that point, I figured it wouldn't be smart to stay up much later. Needless to say, I was asleep within minutes. In addition to that I'm treating this blog as more of a privilege than an obligation, simply because I enjoy writing, even if it's senseless nothingness that probably won't be read by anyone anyways (how many times have I said something similar? A free smile and internet hug to anyone who tells me this).

So today is 9/11. It's important to remember dates like this, the kinds of days where we see what humanity is truly like. I don't mean to be pessimistic, but I think it's true. Humans are, by nature, brutal creatures. We kill, destroy, lie, cheat, steal, and sin in all other manner of ways. Of course, there is goodness in humanity too. We have made great strides in saving the world rather than destroying it, and there are many wonderful people in the world among all the awful ones. I think it's necessary to look closer at the good than the bad so that we don't fall into a state of depression because of the world. If we are depressed because of how terrible some parts of the world are, then how can we work to improve it? Rather, we should applaud the good in the world rather than cursing the bad.

Now, I'm not trying to understate the impact of such an event as the terrorist attack 12 years ago. It was tragic, and while I was too young to really remember it, the attacks were devastating, and many innocent people were killed. While we shouldn't go around cursing the badness in the world, I do understand mourning on a day like today, and I think that mourning in this case is an important part of it. We can mourn for the losses, but not fall into anger or depression, regardless of how the attack impacted us personally.

And of course, there are always the people who ignore these sorts of things. That may help the individual, but if they go on as if nothing happened, there is a loss for all humanity, in a way. At least a loss for the society in which that person lives. There certainly isn't a gain in that, in any case.

The other possibility is that we can choose to be affected too greatly by any action, be it good or bad. Being affected too much by the bad will undoubtedly force us into depression or rage at the cruelties of the world or some other form of negative emotion. Conversely, being affected too greatly by a positive influence on the world may end up being a negative for us. It can lead to a false perception of the world and cause us to believe that the world is better than it is in actuality.

Look for the good, don't fall into the bad, acknowledge the suffering of the world, and don't be affected too much.