Do you find writing an effective outlet?

[Bruce C Ziebarth]

Until this summer, I was looking for a public outlet for my creative tendencies. I do some drawing but am too much of a perfectionist and end up tearing it up. I thoroughly enjoy writing. I began looking around the internet and found two websites for freelance writiers Helium.com and Associated Content.com. I began writing to both sites and find it calms me. It really helps to have an outlet for writing.

Feel free to check out my pieces, a couple are even on ADHD. My articles are listed at the bottom of the page.
My Associated Content Profile
My Helium.com Profile

Do you also find writing soothing?

[Dan Halstead]

Writing frustrates me. If I'm just trying to lay down my thoughts I can never find the center of anything. Every thought seems to connect to seven other thoughts and each of those ideas holds the potential for being the most important thing around which everything else should follow. I feel like I'm drowning in a big web of my own ideas.

I've been writing comedy sketches lately, and that's been more successful. I suppose that's because it's a little more stream-of-conscious. I'm not trying to express anything. I don't agonize over it. It just comes out all at once.

[Gary]

Hang in there, Dan.

Artists are artists because they need to express themselves and that means that there's an urge to create that wells up from inside somewhere. Among artists I'm including the usual painters and musicians as well as detectives (who NEED to know what happened and NEED to bring bad guys to justice), actors (who NEED to explore both the light and dark corners of themselves and others), computer programmers (who NEED to solve and new problem in a clever and elegant way) and scientists (who NEED to create order out of chaos and touch the Universe).

I often have just the problem you've described. I get an idea and then a thousand other ideas say "yes, but I'm related to this too." Quite a few of my posts have been written off-line and then copied into the text box because I have to prune away all the extra stuff I've written that makes no sense when I re-read it.

Frequently I start writing something and then realise that the actual thing I want to say is something else. I'm no longer afraid of just chucking what I've written so far and starting again.

Nobody I've ever met has written something perfect the first time. Even the finest authors will think about their work for days, weeks or months before starting. Then comes several versions of the outline followed by a whole ton of drafts. And that's before the editors see it!

Be gentle with yourself and don't be afraid to bounce ideas off someone else if you can't find the centre. I know a lot of authors and they all do it at one time or another.

[jo elleman]

Hi, I am an artist and have joined this group, yesterday, I think. (See photo of mosaic wig head). I have that deep need to create which you described, and have found that I also enjoy writing. Reading what Dan expressed about getting lost in the bombardment of random thoughts, I can get that way too, but I also think that that way of writing can be interesting to read. I find very direct to the point writing to be dry and boring. Stream of Concsiousness is much more enthralling. But, Gary, rough drafts don't work for me, because I go off on a tangent each time I rewrite. The teacher of a creative writing class I took several years ago told me that each of my drafst became a separate story. At least you guys can start separate paragraghs. I seldom do that because my thoughts connect to each other too well to separate them. My writing tends to become one rambling thought cleverly disguised as an essay.

[DANA]

Bruce, that is so true about needing to find an effective outlet for creative energy! I have always loved writing! As a mother of three kids, I always feel distracted and pulled into a million different directions. I quit writing as much, while my kids were in the baby stage, but now that they are much more independent, I am finding myself writing articles and blogs quite often.

I think that it is great that you are tapping into this creative outlet, Bruce! Thank you for sharing the two writing websites. I will have to check them out! Feel free to share your writing with us on ADDer World. I would love to read whatever you wrote!

[Bruce C Ziebarth]

Dana,
Well, I have turned to writing about ADHD. I am sure the topic will change. I have found changing topics helps keep my writing flowing. I have up to 10 pieces going at any time. I write on one for awhile, switch to the next then come back.

Here are descriptions and links to full text if you are interested that I wrote on ADHD. The one about the Top 10 ADHD Articles is my favorite because I review a couple of articles by perhaps the most ignorant person ever.

Top Ten ADHD Articles of 2008
I review ten Associated Content articles on ADHD, published in 2008. They will make you laugh. They will make you think. They will make you mad.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1296676/top_ten_adhd_artic...

Effect of ADHD on College
Research paper written for Foundations of Online Learning, a college level course preparing adult learners for returning to school. I am an adult with ADHD. I wrote this paper to identify potential college challenges.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1189500/effect_of_adhd_on_...

[Frances Finley]

Writing is wonderful balm. I am still working on consistency, but I find my journal is my best friend. I have used various writing techniques over the years. When I am really scrambled, I fall back on Julia Cameron's 'Morning Pages' : three pages of longhand stream-of consciousness writing first thing in the morning. I also enjoy personal essays and poetry, although I don't write much of either these days.

What kinds of writing do you enjoy most? I'd be interested to hear what exercises and forms others like.

[Bruce C Ziebarth]

Frances,
Personally, I use stream of consciousness alot. I am an avid reader. I am interested in self improvement, ADHD, politics, and public safety. I immerse myself in these subjects. I listen to audiobooks, radio programs, and focus all my reading in these areas. This gives me a base of knowledge. When I write, I just write the article using my knowledge base. I do not worry about research, facts. etc. Once I am done I go back and add in links to the research. I have found that I use facts from my reading in my free writing. Often it is just a matter of adding in the quotation marks and references.

I also have found that when I free write I wander form the topic. This is an added benefit. I actually have started writing an article and ended up with three by the time I was done. Free writing allowed me to write the article I intended and a couple other articles that were related.

[Voodoo]

I love to write. I want to have my work published, but I want it to go further than online, I want to have a published book. I have written two complete novels...well complete except that they need to go from my journal to Word documents and that I need to get a book publisher who would be willing.

I have some short stories that I'd totally be willing to share with you, Bruce or anybody really. Maybe there should be a seperate group for writing, like short stories or poetry?

[Bruce C Ziebarth]

Voodoo,
I applaud you for wanting to get your work published. I share your dream. You have done the hardest part. You have written the book. Getting it published is easy. I will find the link again. There is a publishing house that allows you to self publish for around $500. The advantage for a publishing house was always marketing, however, the internet has made that all but mute. Amazon.com and several other online booksellers allow you to list your book.

You also can make an electronic format and list it on Amazon for their Kindle reader. I am in the midst of writing a book on cleaning up your credit score. I will publish this in electronic format for the Kindle Reader and list it on Amazon. This option allows you to cheaply publish your book and get it to market.

Don't knock the power of publishing online. I personally use Associated Content for publishing articles. I am making between $5 to $15 an article. This does not include the ongoing royalties every time my article is viewed.

[Go Figure]

This and discussions about exercise are great topics. I'm certain "Do you find writing an effective outlet?" will become a huge thread of shared writing stories and, most likely, become my all-time favorite.

I would say, Dan, that for someone searching for the center of an idea, you write beautiful, coherent paragraphs. I had no trouble following your thoughts. lol Writing comedy sketches for stand-up, a scene for a script, or something else? That's exciting.

Frances, thanks for the tip. I am going to try - does it really have to be in longhand? - writing three pages each morning for the next three days. Will that make me a writer, I wonder?

Voodoo, if you're willing to share, then I am certain all of us would enjoy reading your material. Your idea of starting a Writing Group is excellent. I'm interested. I assume you are too, Voodoo. Any more?

Oh, I like reading and writing scripts. More reading than writing, I'm sorry to say. Still...
GF

[Frances Finley]

There is something about physically writing instead of typing in a keyboard. This is stream of consciousness writing - don't worry about punctuation, legibility, or making any kind of sense whatsoever. The idea is to fill up 3 pages of your thoughts as soon as you awake (or as close as possible).

This exercise (from Julia Cameron's book "the Artist's Way") is not something you re-read - it gets and keeps your creative juices going. I find it clears the garbage (obsessive thoughts) out of my head, clearing my mind for better occupants.

I'd be up for a writers' group.

[Voodoo]

I truly believe I can write stories better by physically writing it first. Then typing. I got a little impatient and typed up one of my short stories in my blog. I'll start up the writing group anyway.