Confusing times

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Followers of JennaDee blog might have noticed a lack of posts in recent weeks and I feel I owe you an explanation.

This dry spell isn’t due to diminished enthusiasm or effort, in fact sometimes I try too hard making matters even worse. I’ve lost touch with my word flow and temporarily lost my zest for writing. Several reasons for this situation spring to mind.

  1. I finally made peace with my past and (almost) always live in the moment
  2. I am content with what I have and (almost) always accept the way things are
  3. I learned how to stop worrying about things outside of my control
  4. I began a creative writing course

Sharing my thoughts and fears with others was therapeutic when I first started blogging. My online space created an outlet to write about things I’d never spoken about. It felt exhilarating and dangerous to tell my secrets.  Writing posts about mistakes, regrets and heartache flowed freely allowing me to face up to and deal with unresolved issues.

After a year of soul-searching combined with the support of fellow bloggers I learned how to make peace with my past and stop it negatively affecting my life. This shift in attitude  greatly improved my outlook on life.

The problem is now I don’t know what to write about. My life is wonderful, I am healthy, comfortable and want for nothing. I feel guilty that so many people are dealing with adversity in their lives.

Maybe that’s why so many songs and poems reflect stories about heartbreak? Maybe people more readily relate to sadness and difficult situations?

This leads to my last point about my blog drought that arose when I decided to try my hand at creative writing.  While I enjoy the intricacies of developing characters and plot I feel like it is corrupting my natural style of writing. I tend to overuse adjectives and when I re-read my drafts the writing is over-exaggerated and clunky. I seem to have lost my natural voice.

If anyone has any suggestions about how I can retrieve my blog writing vitality  I will be most grateful.

Yours in anticipation
Jenna Dee

47 thoughts on “Confusing times”

  1. It’s so wonderful to hear you’ve conquered so many things that most of us struggle with. I still can’t conquer #3, though I try and try. I’m also a writer – freelance writer by career, so most of what I write is nonfiction. But I do have fun with creative writing as well, and I found that you can incorporate your own voice and tone into your writing if you put less emphasis on creating “product” and more emphasis on just writing with the flow of the moment. What comes out in my natural voice when I’m not thinking about *how* I’m writing is so much better than “choreographed” writing. The same goes for blog writing – I write as if I’m chatting to my fellow bloggers about something I’d be telling them on the phone if I knew them. It’s good to see you back!

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    1. Thank you for your advice, you’ve explained it perfectly. I need to focus less on “product” and more on writing with the flow of the moment in my natural voice. I appreciate your comment very much. Love to you from Jenna

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  2. Hi Jenna,
    It seems like there is an ebb and flow many of us go through. Maybe a time of rest. I noticed Bird by Bird was already suggested. It is a really wonderful book. I listened to it on CD and thoroughly enjoyed every minute.

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    1. Hi Denise, thank you for your input that is very much appreciated. I have reserved Bird by Bird in my local library and look forward to reading it. Meantime I will take a rest and only write when I feel no pressure. Love to you from Jenna

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  3. Let your blog evolve, and write when you are inspired. Accept where you are as part of the process. Eventually, ideas will come to you when they’re ready. At least, this has been my experience. Enjoy! 🙂 Warmest wishes, Jane

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    1. Hi Jane, thank you for your advice that is much appreciated. I will sit for a while and wait for inspiration or passion to stir my creative abilities. It is a lovely place to be in right now. Love to you from Jenna

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    1. Yes I follow The Daily Post and have twice posted from their prompts. Are there any other blogs to follow that have writing prompts that you can recommend? I also like the idea of photos and poems. Love to you from Jenna 🙂

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    1. Hello, welcome and thank you for your input. I think I’ll remove the pressure of willing myself to write and wait for an idea to come along spontaneously. Love to you from Jenna 🙂

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    1. Thanks Bert, you’re right. The overwhelming support and input I receive from fellow bloggers makes me very happy and appreciative of their kindness and friendship. Love to you from Jenna 🙂

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  10. Jenna, I am new to your blog as you know. I have not read a lot of your past posts. I am not a professional blogger nor a professional of any kind so I am not one to be giving advice. I will say though that if you just continue to write about what you feel in your heart your blog will be a success and many will be encouraged and uplifted by you sharing the happiness you now have found. Hugs

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    1. Hi Maggie,
      First of all I urge you not to apologise or put yourself down by saying you are not one to give advice. We are all equal. I am not a professional anything either but my opinion is just as valid as the next persons. I’ve read about the selfless work you have done giving a home for foster children and I am in awe of the way you live your life and share your love with so many. Thank you for your advice I will continue to write about what I feel in my heart. Love to you from Jenna

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  11. Jenna, you probably know what I’m going to say, but I’ll say it anyway. Go deep within yourself and let your mind go blank, then ask your Spirit what you’re supposed to write. Stay present, notice everything around you and just flow. In doing this, what you should write about will come to you. Keep sharing all that you have learned on your journey, because you just never know how you will touch a soul and make a difference.

    Love, Michele 🙂

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    1. Hi Michele, I welcome your advice and am inspired to dig deep to continue writing blog posts. When I was struggling to find peace I was often inspired by your posts and those of others like you who held my hand when I needed it most. It is very humbling to know that my words may now be just the right thing someone needs to hear to help them have a better day. I will keep my eyes and ears open. Love to you from Jenna 😉

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  12. I have been tuning in to a quiet place.. often i don’t have a lot of words too.. but good to connect with this place that isn’t about all of the healing.. but being in the moment..
    I have been putting together a little book of my prose and sometimes it is hard to find words.. I guess that means we have found a little peace. 🙂
    Much love!
    Laurie

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    1. Hi Laurie, I believe we have both traveled on separate paths but share similarities in finding peace at the end of the journey. I like knowing everything is as it should be and I am happy. Love to you as always from Jenna

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      1. Thanks, Jenna. The strange thing is this peace was with me all along,.. There was just so much other noise that I didn’t recognize it. Glad to now though. And glad we crossed paths too. Much love
        – Laurie

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  13. You just shared your heart with your blogging friends again Jenna, and that’s what you do. First up, don’t feel guilty that you feel blessed whilst others are coping with adversity. It is a sad reality, yes, but it is not your experience now. You can empathise with others, but you should not need to share an adversity of your own with such people. Don’t you know that sharing happy news can and will actually lift the spirits of those who are feeling down? You can even share the process of how you climbed through your own sadnesses through writing and reaching out to people. Flippant accounts of ordinary days are often the most interesting posts to read, and what many bloggers do write about, so if your heart says share, then share an interesting event of your day.

    When I first started blogging I always thought I needed to have a particular purpose for a post, that it must have a message and a deep meaning that someone may benefit from. Over the years it has become apparent that everyone feels a certain amount of hesitation when writing, that no one feels they are perfect, that every blogger thinks the next blogger is better at writing than they are. We’re all in the same boat together! Just keep on writing from your heart Jenna, be it about your positive and happy day, or something troubling you that you wish to get off your chest. Those who are meant to be in your world will stay and those who need someone or something else in their lives will go, and that’s all okay. One of my favourite quotes is ~ “You can’t say the right thing to the wrong person and you can’t say the wrong thing to the right person”. Bottom line Jenna, write from your heart, and from your heart alone. xx

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    1. Thank you for your considered response Joanne, I really appreciate the time you took to assist me. I will lighten up on myself and continue to write from the heart when inspiration strikes. Love to you from Jenna 🙂

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    2. Joanne, Jenna and everyone else at this community – I just want to echo what both Jenna and some of you have said in this post. Jenna, I totally identify with what you said about feeling the blogging has been therapeutic, and wondering whether the time for it has passed in your life. Though we are far from free of the life circumstances that prompted me to start blogging, I do think that I am in a different place now than when I started. That being said, I agree with Joanne and others that blogging for me has been mostly about connection and sharing, something that happens far too little in our rushed world. I would miss the bloggers and readers I have met so much if I dropped out altogether.

      I hope you will continue to write as you have time and inclination, not feeling pressured but just to stay in touch. I have a dear friend who occasionally used to call me years ago just for a brief chat, and I loved when she would ask, “What’s for dinner at your house tonight?” It meant so much to have someone sharing the smallest details of my day. Thanks Joanne for that lovely quote at the end of your comment!

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  15. Actually, I think this is great news! You have found your light and now is the time to shine! You have become more of your authentic self and though previously you got support from adversity (yes, we are conditioned to respond to ‘bad news’) now you can be a beacon for others. Are you familiar with the Marianne Williamson quote: “Our greatest fear…” By telling others of your good life, you will show the way for others, if you see beauty share it, if you find something that inspires you, anything that lights you up, share it. In this way, you will attract into your life even more of the same. It is a great and wonderful thing. Gratitude is the path to even greater joy.
    As to the writing course, true of all ‘art’ courses, the teacher will teach his or her style and while it is fine to follow guidelines, don’t give up your own voice, ever! I always joke that I got a ‘D’ in my college floral design course (it would have been an ‘F’, but I think the professor didn’t want me to have to take the course again LOL) because I wouldn’t parrot back the awful geometric atrocities he required of us. I went on to become a successful florist in Boston creating arrangements that were wild and creative works of ephemeral art. The tribe always wants conformity, but in reality, it is the unique individuals who advance humanity. Shine on, girlfriend! 🙂

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  16. I’m struggling with the same thing – maybe not all the happiness – but I wrack my brain and can land upon nothing upon which to wax poetic or share in any other way. Hopefully it comes back soon! Peace . . .

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  17. Creative writing courses can be good places to pick up tips and connect with other writers, but there’s only so much you can take on board without it affecting your own style. I’m having a similar problem with my writing – I seem to have read and heard so much advice lately about how to write that it’s completely cramping my creativity. I’ve been told not to use adverbs, adjectives, passive voice, words like ‘quite’, ‘just’ or ‘rather – I read in one article that even the word ‘was’ should be used sparingly (oops! passive voice there!). I sometimes wonder if I should dispense with words altogether, publish a book with blank pages and let the reader imagine the story. 😀
    My advice (and please feel free to ignore it) is to have confidence in your own style, take what is useful from the creative writing course and discard the rest. From what I’ve seen of your blog, you’re doing fine.

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    1. I am glad you understand what I meant when I said that learning about creative writing has affected the way I write blog posts. I will definitely take your advice and remain confident in my own writing style. After all I have no aspirations to write a novel or short story. Love to you from Jenna

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  18. “I made peace with my past”–Those are such beautiful words to me, Jenna. Words I dream of writing myself one day. For not knowing what to write about, wondering what your purpose might be now in blogging? I’m not sure, but I know you have a gift. Your words in your comments on my blog have helped me more that you will know. I’m selfish. I want you here 🙂 It’s wonderful you’re now pursuing Creative Writing; I can only imagine where it will take you! Best of everything to you 🙂

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    1. Thank you for your comment Mandy. I am humbled that my words have helped you. Be confident that you will find peace one day. The road may be long and bumpy but I know you will get there. And I’m not going anywhere, I will still post on my blog ……..as soon as I think of something to talk about. Love to you from Jenna

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  19. Why not write short, short stories on your blog? Or parts of a longer work? Or blog about what you are learning? How studying creative writing has changed the way you write? Blog about a word or phrase that has captured your fancy. Write about the origins of a word. I’m not sure how learning creative writing is corrupting your natural writing style; maybe you could blog about that?

    Just my 2c worth. 🙂

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    1. Thank you Ruth I appreciate your response. I am struggling to write any stories as a result of learning about creative writing. I think I am putting too much pressure on myself and should just wait for the ideas and words to flow. Love to you from Jenna

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  20. I am SOOOOOO happy for you. 🙂 YaY!!!!!!! But now, on to new and happy things. Write about what you see. Start with simple things. A cup, your table, the trees. Write about a book your are reading or have read. About how it feels to be free of your past, about how it feels to be happy. I’m so excited for you. This will pass. Tell us about your writing group and what you’re writing. Can’t wait for all the good stuff to come out on your posts. Congratulations and YaY again. You’re just taking a break in the creativity but it’s still there taking a nap after all you’ve been through.

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    1. Thank you for your encouragement and enthusiasm, I really appreciate it. I will trust that inspiration will show itself when the time is right for me to express. Love to you from Jenna

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  21. Hi Jenna, I hear you. It sounds like you are entering the next chapter of your life as it changes and evolves. We all have different motivation and inspiration for writing here. I put my previous blog to rest when I felt I had accomplished what I was looking for – peace of mind in my relationship to my mother. I posted on Dec 2 2011 what I have learned on my journey and how I will live my life from now on. http://www.MotherWhisperers.com
    Funny thing is the blog still gets a lot of hits…
    Be with where you are right now. It sounds like you are enjoying your Middle Ground 😉 Trust that inspiration will show itself when the universe is ready. I’ll be here! Val x

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    1. Hi Val, I agree that I’m entering the next chapter of my life. It is strange to realise that once we get there we worry what to do next. I will take your advice and trust that inspiration will show itself when the time is right. Love to you from Jenna

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