Writing and Music Update for 2024

 Today, I have two different thoughts on my mind. These topics are often on my mind. My ideas and thoughts on these subjects often circulate around and around. I think about how I used to think and feel. I compare it to now.

Writing

Writing doesn't come as easily to me as it used to. I struggle to understand why this is the case. There's more self-doubt now. And maybe my thoughts and feelings are more complex so they're harder to articulate clearly. 

I'm going to practice the skills it takes to become a good writer. I want to go beyond the knowledge of what makes a story work and put that into practice. It's so frustrating to try that again and again and feel like I've made no progress. But that's only in the moment. In context, I have made progress. 

Not only that, but I've experienced more of life. I don't think I used to understand how much of a difference that makes. I think I understand better now, but I'm always painfully aware of how much I don't know yet too. 

All of that makes writing difficult, but I'm going to anyway. I'm going to do a lot of free-writing and writing exercises. The exercises are focused on certain elements of writing. I've had so many doubts about my writing for the past couple of years. I've become increasingly discouraged. It's very unlikely that anything I write will have much of an impact. I think that bothered me for a while, but wanting to create has mostly overtaken that.

Music

I'm almost as obsessive about music as I used to be. It's changed now, but music has the same way of influencing my moods as it used to. I still enjoy Twenty One Pilots and Owl City, but I have expanded my music tastes. 

In 2016, I discovered the wide wide world of music artists on YouTube. Dodie was, and remains, my favorite of these artists. I also enjoy Rusty Clanton, Tessa Violet, and Adam Melchor. All of these I found through Dodie. And because of those artists, I found many others. Right now, some of my favorite artists are:

• Laufey
• Sarah Kang
• Lizzy McAlpine
• Cavetown
• Jacon Collier
  

 Like I mentioned before, Owl City is one of my favorites still. In September, I finally attended an Owl City concert. It was at the Newport Music Hall, right outside of The Ohio State Union. The concert didn't feel real. It was surreal. I almost wish I'd been alone so I could cry about it. It was probably the most beautiful two hours of my life. I might write about it someday soon.