I started this blog with one main purpose – to find my voice. The image above is a pretty great representation of my brain over the course of any given day. Add in the fact that I’ve elevated the ability to look right at the tangle in my head, and completely ignore it, to an art form. Sure, I’ve kept a journal off and on over the years, never really thinking about what i was saying. Journaling, for me, has always been more a place to vent my frustrations, talk about my general desires and fears, and otherwise blather until I’m too sleepy to keep going. Not once have I ever considered construction or detail when sitting down to write. In essence, anything I’ve ever written was more of a place to unload the mental mess that I walk through every day with my blinders in place.

As I do so often with anything I’m not sure how to do, i turned to the internet. If there is ever a site that a person attempting to learn to write should support, I’d say it’s the New York Times. I’ll throw a link right here. The link leads to a New York Times piece that lists literally hundreds of writing prompts that run a very nice range of topics. Need help with inspiration for the act of writing itself? Search no more. I had to digest this list in pieces over a few days. There’s a lot of commentary packed into this page. As you make your way down this incredible list and collection of writers’ commentary, you’ll notice links to other pages inside the NY Times site that lead to several other great resources and exercises to help anyone get on the path to finding their inner voice and how to develop it. Incidentally, I am in no way affiliated with the New York Times. In this day and age, it counts to just throw that out there for consideration.

It’s my hope that working through these exercises will help me untangle the yarn tangle in my head, even if it takes years to do so. Practice, practice, practice. Right? I figured I’d use this post to share this treasure trove of writing goodies with anyone who may happen across this blog post. Writing a narrative of any sort is something I’ve never done, and I am sure I will write some stinkers along the way. Telling a story or expressing an opinion after decades of turning a blind eye to the world around me is something I feel is so important to everyone, whether one is writing everything down or sharing it with a friend or loved one.

My goal is to post twice every week. It might end up being once, but i’m being ambitious at the start. Finding an opinion on something and being able to turn it into something coherent will be a challenge. I’ve done my best to not have an opinion for years. That in itself is something I will definitely explore to some degree. At any rate, I wish you well and will post again soon.