Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Day 8. Writing Platform Quest. LinkedIn.

Just improved my LinkedIn profile.  That was pretty easy.  Doing a slightly better job of not getting swept up in all this social-media tasking stuff today.  It puts me in such a strange headspace.  I do one thing, and then there is something else to figure out, and then something else, and once my mind gets momentum in that direction it is very hard to stop.  Problem is, it is not at all the headspace that is conducive to writing fiction.  Or should I say, I have yet to figure out how to turn that headspace into the stuff of fiction?  For me, writing fiction involves a lot of silence--a lot of waiting and watching and listening.  These social media sites are all about instant gratification.  I'm reminded of those lab rats who keep injecting themselves with narcotics until they die.  That's probably a little extreme, but a mindset of constant task completion is not a recipe for a sane life.

I think an important thing for me to keep in mind will be the need to be selective about what I decide to publish.  Vehicles like Facebook and Twitter create a sort of Scylla and Charybdis scenario.  On the one side there is the danger of hiding out and not reaching out to others for fear of getting hurt, and on the other side there is the danger of reaching out compulsively and indiscriminately in the insane hope of having someone praise me in a way that will really satiate my need to be loved.  I feel confident I can navigate these obstacles, but I'm still learning, and it will take time.

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