Dear NJ Poet,
Remember how we met... on Twitter? It all started off with Fifty Shades of Grey. I guess something good did come out of it...
The book enabled pretty much every self-proclaimed (or not) literary god or goddess to sit down over coffee and bad mouth the book and the author. The book is also a big reminder that shitty writing but erotic story lines can take you further than great writing about wisdom and finding inner peace. Sex sells.
I really loathe that book and the numerous copycats that came after that book. Do you know I've actually never finished it? The second book that is. I managed to finish the first one while cringing during every S&M scene; basically, I was cringing throughout the entire book.
I found this on the train last year:
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| Fifty Shades of Trash. |
Let's talk Twitter again. My Twitter timeline is a mix of everything. But I always notice the coffee tweets. The American society tweets. Basically the tweets ending with #NJPoet. It stands out to me because there's always honesty, humility and understanding behind it. I can also relate to most of what's been tweeted. Especially the coffee stuff.
But why am I writing this letter? Simply to express my gratitude.
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| Yes I did have to search for you through my favourite tweets! |
Many a time, I expressed my frustrations on Twitter in regards to writing, i.e. writer problems. I expressed fear. I expressed my unwillingness to do it. I expressed a huge lack of confidence. I started to see writing as tedious. I started looking at it as a task that needed to be done, rather than a hobby I take great joy in doing. I wanted to give up and just kiss writing goodbye.
It's when I started reading your tweets in response to my 'outcry' (all of which have unfortunately been lost because silly me didn't favourite everything along the way), I started looking at writing differently. No seriously, I did. And why? Because an English prof., well-respected, well-liked, articulate, etc., told me (small-time blogger whose teacher slammed her university personal statement claiming the grammar was atrocious), that I am a writer.
And it's only then when I started believing that and started taking pride in it.
No amount of posts for my own blogs or guest posts for other blogs made me feel like a writer. It was you simply telling me that I'm a writer.
Literally since then, my focus changed. I'm not so afraid anymore. I am more confident. And I know I can improve along the way and only become better.
Look out world.
P.S. the stickers, the badge (will join other cool badges on one of my bags), the bumper sticker (for my first car perhaps?) - I thank you for that too.
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| From now on I will write my ideas in this and these stickers will inspire. |
