Category Archives: Writing

Experiment: Categories for my posts

I’m trying something new. I added WordPress tags for higher level categories of content that cut across the typical tags:

  • Deep Dive: Longer, more detailed posts that require significant research. Very expensive to produce.
  • Essay: Nonfiction writing, usually nontechnical.
  • Lab Notes: Rough notes, typically technical, usually bullet points about some topic.
  • Micropost: Tiny, short thought.

I hope that by categorizing things this way and acknowledging that this blog is a collection of different art forms (that appear similar because they’re all writing), I’ll be more comfortable publishing publicly. For a while I was scared to publish because I don’t have as much time for deep dives before, which is what people seemed to really like, but acknowledging these different categories and specifically calling out a shorter, rougher, less polished piece as such takes the pressure off of publishing it.

Why I write in public

Note to self. I write because:

  • Improved clarity of thought
  • Archive of thought
  • Improves writing skills

In addition, I write in public because:

  • It reinforces a mindset of speaking my mind in public (i.e. courage)
  • Receive valuable feedback and external perspectives
  • Build relationships

Furthermore, I’ve found that it’s addicting to write in public.

  • It feels good to look back on writing and realize you’ve expressed yourself clear and well. And that you understand the topic well know.
  • It feels good to develop a voice.
  • It feels good to watch yourself improve. You can write better, faster with practice.
  • You become more self-observant of your thoughts, and realize that there are so many interesting things to write about.
  • It feels good to get positive feedback on your writing.