“No One Is Going To Read This” was posted once as a short essay on Substack. Substack is a popular app that is a kind of social media for writers. It’s a place where you can read and write on a wide variety of topics. The system encourages readers to get a subscription for the writers they enjoy. It’s a chance for writers to earn income and for readers to support good writing. My possible  issue with Substack was a nonexistent email list. When I tried to post again, Substack’s software thought I hadn’t completed the process. Whatever the reason I returned to an old favorite: WordPress Blog. 

Writing a blog is a creative writing practice. The blog is going to have the same title as my one and only Substack read.  I think of it as  my sketchbook or my journal with more structure. Enough structure that if someone did manage to read my short essays they would make sense. As an artist I don’t always make large time consuming work. Some of my work (in fact the majority of my current work) is small enough to be completed in an afternoon.  These are warm ups for bigger projects. The blog isn’t a sketch. It’s more like an 8 x 10. 

Artists practice with an audience in mind. As a visual artist I pull out my paints, pencils, and markers in the morning when I work in my sketchbook. I usually have several possibilities for artwork which come from that practice. In my sketchbook I allow myself the freedom to never open them up to the public. They are for me. I pay zero attention to fixing a compositional problem. I can always make a note, mentally or in writing and start again on a new page. 

My journal is similar. I write in a moleskin journal without lines. I use a particular pen. (It’s a pilot gel pen with a comfort grip in pink. I have them on a three month Prime subscription purchase.) On the lower right side of the front cover, I write the date the journal was started. Almost everyday I write without any concern for grammar. I let my thoughts flow onto the pages. Recently I started using  a meditation timer and I write until the bell rings. If I have more to say I continue writing, if not I put my pen down and sit for a minute. Occasionally I reread entries. Some entry topics flow from day to day. Other entries are just weather reports or to-do lists.

As an artist I understand the value of constant improvement. Improvement requires time and repetitive practice. There is a place for failure. Failure is not an end, it’s a message. So if “No One’s Going To Read This” never gets an audience; then it’ s message. I am planning on writing with regularity over the course of a year as a creative practice. In my next post, I will examine my motivation for this project.