In Which Vita is Motivated! (but still all over the place)

I am really good at writing essays.
I don't say this to brag or to be conceited; I say this because it is true.* Many people complain and groan and tear their hair out over every English assignment, but I don't mind. Essay writing comes extremely easily to me, and although I am not quite an essay writing machine, I have been known to sit down in front of my computer at 9:00pm and have a printed out two page long BCR** half an hour later that I receive high marks on.*** Maybe my brain is synced to those of the teachers and I subconciously know exactly what they're looking for; maybe it's the fact that as long as you answer the prompt and sufficiently back up your claim, you'll do fairly well. I have a feeling, though, that it has something to do with my lack of organization in my writing. Essays, while they are not fill-in-the-blank, strictly formatted things, do have a certain underlying structure that must be followed. Thesis, body paragraphs, conclusion; the length and style differs, but the components are still there.
This noted, I have come to the conclusion that I need to seriously work on my writing outside of English class: namely, creative writing and this blog. You may know that my main goal in life, at least career-wise, is to become a published author and/or a journalist (mehr, the second may not work out so well, though, seeing as the newspaper industry appears to be continuing on its merry slide downhill). I don't think many things would make me happier than to see my name on the front of a book. However, if this is ever going to become a reality, I should probably start actively improving how I write. You see, there is one main thing that is wrong with my writing:
- lack of organization/ability to organize

And there are three main things wrong with my so-called writing process:
- lack of energy
- loss of train of thought
- the fact that most things sound better in my head

So, yeah, it's kind of an issue. Luckily, I have composed a handy list of things that I am aiming to do from now until whenever (so specific, I know):****

- Improve vocabulary.
Okay, so when I was younger, I sounded (key word is "sounded") crazy smart because I had the great gift of a) reading an insane amount and b) picking up "big" vocabulary words that I c) tended to use in everyday conversation. Granted, the word "probably" isn't that difficult, but when you're four, these things seem more special... ahah. Unfortunately, I don't pick up vocabulary that easily any more, most likely because I am older and my brain is more formed (scientific reasoning, ooh) and have less time to read more challenging books outside of school. Tragic.
- Spend more time writing.
Seriously, for somebody who professes her love for writing on a daily basis, I don't write often enough at all. The fact that people tend to write quite poorly during their younger years demotivates me to a certain extent, it's the whole "it'll suck anyway, so why bother?" attitude. To which the proper response is either the reasonably encouraging "Well, you won't get better if you never practice!" or the more brutally honest "If you love writing so much, you should do it just because you want to, and suck it up/shut the hell up."
- Be more thoughtful.
Thinking about what I'm writing and spending more time choosing my words rather than just typing out the first thought that comes across my head is not my strong point, I will admit.
- Be more objective with the subject matter...
It's an important point; if you're not just writing for yourself, you have to consider your audience. If it's your best friend who lives next door to you who accompanies you everywhere, then naming people by name and telling an only semi-interesting story is acceptable, but when it's two people who do not share your life and, as lovely as they may be, probably do not care which classmate is going out with which upperclassman (hi, guys! :) ), you have to be a little more selective. I'm not saying I'll never talk about my life again, but... there is a bigger world out there than me, myself, and I (I am just a big ball of cheese tonight, aren't I?).
- Organize self. Really.
Um, yeah. As in "pick a train of thought and go with it" which is generally not something that I am good at doing. I just sort of... explode. Like a firework: I go in dozens of different directions, but they all fizzle out pretty quickly. (Hooray for cheesy metaphores!)

w00t. I'll let you know how that goes (although if you're planning on reading this blog much longer, you'll probably see for yourself, hehe).

Oh, and I was planning on timing myself to see how long it takes me to write a blog post, but I forgot to record what time I started, and then I spotted a big bug on the wall and went into Crisis Mode, which consists of me running into the other room and staring at it until it's far enough away that I can safely return to the computer. Even now, I keep checking over my shoulder to make sure I can still see it (yes, I know this is a very wimpy and typically "girlish" thing for me to be afraid of, but I have a very near phobia of bugs. I don't know why, I know it's not logical, but they freak me out. If they're in nature and seen only from a distance, I'm okay, but once they start landing on me or invading my personal bubble, I spazz. Sorry... though you may be happy to know that I am too much of a wimp to actually kill them [except mosquitoes], so PETA won't be after me). ANYWAYS, I'd estimate that it takes me about 30 minutes to write an average blog post, but I tend to get distracted while I'm writing them, so sometimes the page will be sitting open for two hours and I'll have only written a few sentences. Whoops.

If you were a vegetable, what would you be?
A turnip. No reason.

Do you have a cellphone?
Yes, I do. I got one almost two years ago, in the fall of eighth grade. I guess I didn't need one before that, really *cough fourth graders with cell phones cough* but I honestly do need one now. Just... whoa, I guess it's bad to be so dependent on technology, but I seriously don't know where I'd be without one.

Describe yourself in six words:
My realistic attitude conquers romantic inclinations. :(

If you could only wear one color for a month, what would it be?
Out of any color, black. Out of the clothes I own, blue.

Do you tell other people about this blog?
Not in a "you shouldn't because this is like a PRIVATE DIARY" way or a "you should because my one goal in life is to achieve INTERNET FAME;" I don't mind either way. I'm just curious. :)

I have to go listen to the new episode of Pottercast now and log off before the thunder potentially cuts off the electricity, hugs and toodles! :)

* And also because I already freely admit that I am not a genius in math and science (given step-by-step instructions, I can manage, but I am very bad at applying complex math skills and making scientific discoveries on my own) so I feel that it all averages out to a relatively modest assessment of my academic achievements
** BCR = Brief Constructed Response = less than an essay but more than a paragraph, in case you don't have those wherever
*** I usually don't do this; as I have mentioned previously, my brain works less the later it gets, and when this does happen, it is because I generally write a rough draft and edit it into a final draft a day later, so there's either little pressure to write it well or less to produce because it's mainly just refining the paper. Then again, there are (albeit rare) times when I produce my best work at 11:00 at night, simply because I get to the stage where I'm so frustrated and tired that I barge my way through the "writer's block" stage by sheer force and unlock a brainful of ideas that I can't stop even if I want to.
**** I really did write these for myself, despite the liberal use of the word "you," although you're welcome to adopt any of them for yourself if you feel the need... but they're really not intended to be sly, sneaky ways to criticise ya'll (oh God, did I really just say "ya'll?" I'm not even sure I spelled it correctly). I sort of went from "self-motivating tips mode" to "lecture the general public mode" for some reason, my mistake. :)