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Every so often, I’ll read aloud something I’ve written to my wife.
We’ll be lying in bed, trying to wind our brains down for the night, and I’ll grab my phone and begin reading.
But I don’t just read. No, I get really into it.
I’ll laugh uncontrollably through the funny parts. I’ll stop and explain my esoteric references (even though my wife never asked). I’ll enunciate the italicized words, inflect my voice when I reach a question, and emphasize every exclamation point.
From my wife’s perspective, I could be reading a cooking recipe – she just loves seeing how excited and engrossed I become. She smiles and enjoys the show.
But that’s the thing…
I’m not reading a cooking recipe. I’m not reading a book from Jon Acuff, Jeff Goins, or Todd Henry. I’m not reading a satirical piece by The Onion.
I’m reading my own work. I’m laughing at and explaining and enunciating and inflecting my own words. I’m engrossed in my own creation.
It has nothing to do with vanity. It has nothing to do with thinking my writing is perfect (trust me – I’m consistently finding things to tweak). It has nothing to do with thinking I’m the bee’s knees or the cat’s meow.
I just love what I do. I love what I create.
And you know what?
That’s how it should be.
Why write something you’re not passionate about? Why write something you can’t reread days, weeks, or months later and still enjoy? Why write something you don’t want to read aloud to your amused spouse at night?
You might disagree.
You might find the notion a tad crazy.
You might be thinking, “anyone that into their own work is cuckoo for cocoa puffs!”
That’s fine. Maybe it’s true and maybe I am.
But let me ask you a question:
Creative Commons Image via wilB (adapted).
“Wow! If you blog and don’t read Kevin J. Duncan you are crazy.”
“If you want to stand out from the crowd, sign up for the newsletter & give Kevin a high-five on Twitter. It’s one of the best decisions I ever made.”
“Kevin has mastered the art of standing out online. Wanna do the same? Follow along and subscribe – you’ll be glad you did.”
Well written, Kevin.
It behooves us to love what we do as writers anyway because….impassionate writing stinks, and is ever obvious to readers.
And i’m so loving this quote by William Wordsworth, “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.”
Best regards.
Yusuff Busayo
Hi Yusuff,
Thanks! Agreed… It’s really obvious when you’re watching someone not enjoy what they’re doing. Whether it’s a celebrity giving an interview when they’d prefer to be elsewhere, a waiter or waitress worker wishing they had a different job, or a writer writing about a topic they couldn’t care less about; you can tell when someone is bored or unenthusiastic.
That’s an awesome quote. Thanks for sharing it!
Appreciate the comment and tweet, Yusuff. Hope you’re having a great Friday!
-Kevin
Yeehaw! I have the first comment on this one.
SO true Kevin. I mean, I have read my most recent post countless times, I think I can recite it.
Reading your own creation presents you with an amazing opportunity to see how else you can improve, and more importantly, inspires you to get the world out so people that need it can see it.
Good one Kevin. Keep it coming…
Hi Hannah,
Welcome to Be A Better Blogger! This is your first time commenting, right? 🙂
It looks like Yusuff beat you for the time of “first commenter” by two minutes. Sorry about that! Haha.
Glad to hear I’m not the only one who reads their posts (sometimes over and over). As you said, beyond giving people like me a form of entertainment, it gives us the chance to improve. (“How could I have written this differently?” “What should I have said here?” “What can I tweak?”)
Appreciate you stopping by and commenting, Hannah. Hope you’re having a great Friday!
-Kevin
Hey Kevin,
Thanks for the great post and visual image of you acting out your writing! Where would we be without the support of our wives?
You may be crazy, but I love that you take pride in your work. I think so many times we write to hit certain key words or to get noticed and it can strip our writing of what makes it great–our passion for the subject and the readers we write for.
Some of my best posts have been deeply from the heart and have resonated with others because they are personal and funny and real.
I appreciate the reminder to love what we do and share it with others!
Have a great weekend!
Jesse
Hi Kevin,
You struck a chord with me! When I read something I’ve written, not yesterday so much, but further back, it’s like I’m reading it for the first time. I’m kind of amazed and blurt out something like, “Wow! This is freaking good!” It boosts my self-confidence and inspires me to tear into my next project.
So if I get a jolt out of reading my own writing, I guess I’m in the cocoa puffs with you! I do enjoy all your positive plugs about writing. Keep ’em coming!
All best,
Diane
Hi Kevin,
Nice post you’ve got here.
Yeah, love inspires creativity which leads to success.
We’ve got to love what we do to make a success out of it.
Very well said.
Cheers.
Dan
Great, great musing. Love this one and cannot agree with you more.
(…and you knew I would.)
Ya know, Kevin….I think you and I have some serious mental problems…
…but we have awesome taste in sweethearts….cause Devon and Kathi have GOT to think we’re nuts, but they love us anyway.
Sometimes Kathi just sits there, as I do exACtly what you do—laughing at my own books, and she laughs too…mainly because she’s so entertained by my own reactions. Hehe.
Cool thing is, today is Prelude to e Hero day at the Buckley school. The whole day has been dedicated to read my first book, now enhanced, by all the kids and Kathi—passing the Nook about the room and constantly going throughout the day =)
Kinda cool.
Have an awesome day, buddy!
– Jaime
[ Smiles ] Thankfully, I love what I do!
I couldn’t have agreed more Kevin,
That is actually how it should be. If you love love what you do wholeheartedly, it will always show in you.
You can’t possibly be happy while doing that which you don’t love be it a job or on your blog, but if you’re passionate about it then, it will always be a fun filled task.
If you do not love your writing, your readers will definitely not love it as well.