Writing has been my closest companion since childhood. When human friends were busy living their respective lives, writing gave me solace and sense of purpose. It comforted me when I was lonely and lost. Writing gave me perspectives. It enabled me to see beyond the obvious and nurture dreams that were extra ordinary. It helped me express emotions that I was unable to convey through speech.
Writing is therapeutic. I love all forms of writing. Even technical writeups at work, every day emails to coworkers and volumes of legal documentation excite me. I believe every piece of writing is a reflection of the writer’s soul and hence needs to be crafted with a lot of love and care, be it WhatsApp messages, a research paper or a note to loved ones. Poetry lets me convey deeper thoughts vividly, with minimal words and remains my first love. Poetry has the ability to transport me to distant lands, mesmerizing and far from the madding crowd.
With the advent of digital media, blogs have become my source of creative outlet and inspiration. I have been blogging since 2006. And I have seen my writing mature over the years. Today, I manage to write on three distinct blogs, one where I showcase my technical prowess, to fuel my professional growth, another where I collaborate with my blogger friend to share random musings and rigmaroles, and the third is this space where I capture my meandering thoughts and philosophies. This compartmentalization helps eliminate clutter and retain unique styles of writing without any overlap or influence. This is my version of Marie Kondo’s Konmari technique, in the world of writing.
I have been regularly writing on LinkedIn since last year, typically a post every week. Cultivating this atomic habit has greatly solidified my writing skills. Writing on social media has given me the perspective of treating writing not merely as a creative outlet, but as a disseminator of information and a catalyst for inspiring change in people and communities. I have understood what it means to write for the readers, than for myself. Being conscious of the readers’ choices, preferences and sensibilities and curating content that resonates with them, has been a challenging and interesting exercise.
Engaging with readers regularly on social media has given me immense visibility and responsibility. It has widened my worldview. It has empowered me to push my boundaries and explore literary spaces that I had never ventured into. Creating high value content online has given me credibility and opened up a world of opportunities. It has expanded my career portfolio and prodded me to tread unconventional paths. Writing online has also ignited my confidence to consider writing as a full time profession, despite having a stable, well remunerated career. It has taught me that all the riches in the world cannot compensate for the contentment that authoring an article gives. I look forward to transitioning from a blogger and content creator to an author, in the near future. Keep reading and cheer me on!
This story is inspired by the 100 day storytelling initiative by Your Story Bag. This is my story for day 8/100 of #2023TheStoriedWay
This is my writing space on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sksowmini/details/featured/
