These posts were written during the summer while I was in Bangladesh,
in preparation for the upcoming academic year. Long story short: when I
looked back at the archive, I didn't have the desire or the time to
put them up. But now, since I'm coming back to the blog, I decided that
some of them aren't half bad. Read on!
I always wondered what it would be like to be a subject blogger. To host one of those blogs that had a label attached to it - J's fashion blog or her social justice blog or whatnot. And while I've participated in those projects before, I always come back to this generalist platform that I loosely call a personal creativity blog, but really focuses on everything from activism to understanding the self.
When describing my life, I generally use one of two metaphors. The first is that my life is like a novel: twists and turns abound and I am almost sure that something ridiculous will be happening that shakes it all up from time to time. The second is that I have my fingers in many pies: I'm a proud generalist that gets involved in a bunch of things, learns a lot, and never really settles into one specific focus.
But, you're saying, those two things seem to be a bit of contradiction - novels have plots and a trajectory, whereas generalized chaos seems to be what you describe in the second point. Oh no! My entire worldview is based on contradiction! The horror! And yet I continue to live.
The thing is, I think that being a generalist does have a trajectory. First of all, being a young person, I don't feel like I need to have a set focus yet. If I forced myself into one and then found myself complaining about it at age 30, what would be the point? Best to let the larger powers that be take care of that part.
Similarly, generalist blogging may not garner me a niche audience, but it does get me in tune with myself and my writing styles. I'm writing for me, although sometimes its easy to forget that in the "look what I've done!"-style social media work that I do to put myself out there.
Simply put, if I were someone who blogged on fashion or on social justice exclusively, I think I would feel awkward to post something completely frivolous. I like to indulge in a ridiculous list every once in a while (though my tight-lipped inner editor frankly disagrees). And as such, I'd like to give a shout to everyone who participates in everything they possibly can! Don't worry about focus, not even when you're older. It will come to you in time.
I always wondered what it would be like to be a subject blogger. To host one of those blogs that had a label attached to it - J's fashion blog or her social justice blog or whatnot. And while I've participated in those projects before, I always come back to this generalist platform that I loosely call a personal creativity blog, but really focuses on everything from activism to understanding the self.
When describing my life, I generally use one of two metaphors. The first is that my life is like a novel: twists and turns abound and I am almost sure that something ridiculous will be happening that shakes it all up from time to time. The second is that I have my fingers in many pies: I'm a proud generalist that gets involved in a bunch of things, learns a lot, and never really settles into one specific focus.
But, you're saying, those two things seem to be a bit of contradiction - novels have plots and a trajectory, whereas generalized chaos seems to be what you describe in the second point. Oh no! My entire worldview is based on contradiction! The horror! And yet I continue to live.
The thing is, I think that being a generalist does have a trajectory. First of all, being a young person, I don't feel like I need to have a set focus yet. If I forced myself into one and then found myself complaining about it at age 30, what would be the point? Best to let the larger powers that be take care of that part.
Similarly, generalist blogging may not garner me a niche audience, but it does get me in tune with myself and my writing styles. I'm writing for me, although sometimes its easy to forget that in the "look what I've done!"-style social media work that I do to put myself out there.
Simply put, if I were someone who blogged on fashion or on social justice exclusively, I think I would feel awkward to post something completely frivolous. I like to indulge in a ridiculous list every once in a while (though my tight-lipped inner editor frankly disagrees). And as such, I'd like to give a shout to everyone who participates in everything they possibly can! Don't worry about focus, not even when you're older. It will come to you in time.
