I always love writing posts on my journey with Publish0x because they are fun to write and allow for critical reflection and nostalgic introspection. Ok, ok, I will confess my true intention. Such posts are about my personal journey and hence, require no hard facts. No one can fault me for feeling what I feel, so all bets are off and I can just write to my heart’s content.
Every few months, I will write a post on how Publish0x has shaped my writing. So, in order to order you a different reading experience, I will adopt a helicopter view of Publish0x’s impact on my life and attempt to give a holistic account instead of just my literary efforts. So I used the word “transformed” in my title. It is up to you to judge whether this is an instance of hyperbole. Or is it the case that I am truly a different person as a result of my engagement with Publish0x? You be the judge!
To begin with, if you haven’t known this yet, I work as an English teacher. I think due to my profession, I always carried around this expectation that I had to maintain a certain proficiency in my writing. This is not to say that I would use obscure and obtuse vocabulary words, but I definitely leaned towards using more sophisticated words in my writing in an attempt to do justice to my profession. An editor commented before that the tone of my articles was too academic and hence, I needed to dial back a bit. But I couldn’t just let go of my entrenched writing habits. This is why I think writing on Publish0x helped me. Having to maintain daily output meant that I didn’t have time to agonise over my word choice. I learnt to write simply, quickly and from the heart. I realised that if adjectives like ‘great’ and ‘magnificent’ fit the bill, there’s really no need for me to prove to anyone (or myself, for that matter) that I can use difficult words.
Apart from adopting the mantra of “Keep It Simple, Stupid” (forgive the use of the S word but that was what my middle school teacher taught me and it somehow stuck in my mind), I also let go of my impatience. I used to approach writing as something that had to be done in one sitting. Otherwise, I would feel angsty about leaving work unaccomplished. However, there was no way I could do that on most days since I’m juggling a full-time job and parenting duties. So, if I cannot change my schedule, I gotta change my approach towards it. That’s why I have several articles in the drafting stage right now. And I’m proud of myself for having the discipline to go back and finish the drafts when I have pockets of time on subsequent days. Instead of begrudging myself for not finishing my writing in one go, I now see myself as having the tenacity to write despite life’s challenges. “There’s always tomorrow” works well in my favour.
Most importantly, I’m humbled. During my lessons, I preach about the importance of keeping Purpose, Audience and Context in mind during writing so that my students will write articles that appeal to their target audience and stimulate their interest. As a writer, I realise just how difficult it is to anticipate my readers’ needs and wants. Articles that I’m confident will do well get nary a view while other musings that I pen hastily in a rush do unexpectedly well. Or I get a strongly worded comment that puts me in my place. But I guess the disparity between my expectations and my readers’ authentic responses keeps me on my toes and injects a sense of freshness. I will like to think I’m less ego-centric than before - appreciating the good feedback and taking the constructive criticism in my stride.
The recent Publish0x’s reintroduction of ETH as a tipping token appears to provide a burst of adrenaline into the platform. It is like spring has come and everyone is eager to leverage this opportunity to accumulate one of the blue chips. I hope that more people will discover Publish0x and choose to make it their home. This will spark new perspectives and hopefully fuel my growth further. I look forward to more great times with Publish0x!
