Strong Artistic Talents Making Drawing Appear so

¶ … strong artistic talents making drawing appear so simple. Writing takes a lot of different skills, some that I possess more so than others. It is important that I continually practice my writing, so I further strengthen my better abilities and improve upon those that need more help.

Imagination is one of my stronger writing skills. Some people can write well, but have difficulty coming up with new ideas and topics. I am better the opposite way. I can think of many different story lines and new plots, but have more trouble trying to get my thoughts down on paper. This has always been the case: When I was a young kid, I used to daydream a lot -- sometimes forgetting where I actually was as my mind drifted off to that other land or adventure. When I read a book or see a movie, normally I can quickly figure out major plot twists and the ending.

This means that I normally can quickly develop the outline of a plot in my head. This is helpful, since it is much easier to write after establishing the order of events. Similarly, I enjoy developing characters. I can spend a great deal of time sitting down on a bench in the park or at the shopping mall and watching people. As a person goes by, I pretend in my mind that I know him/her and develop a scenario about his/her life. Often, dress style, body language or voice offers hints on what a person is like in real life. Since I never meet any of these people firsthand, who knows if my hunches are correct? Yet is fun trying.

I also enjoy researching a topic. In fact, sometimes I spend too much time on the research end and too little on the writing. I like acquiring new information about events and people, so research comes easily. What becomes more difficult is beginning to write the rough draft. Even when I leave the first paragraph for last, it is difficult. I have all these thoughts in my mind, but getting them down is not easy. Part of the problem is that I have not had enough practice. Even though it takes a lot of innate skill to write, it is also something that becomes better as you do it over and over. I believe you become less hesitant and the words flow quicker from the mind to the paper, the more you write.

I also feel that I need more help in my vocabulary and grammar skills. It would not be so difficult to write if I could get the right words down the first time. Sometimes it takes so long just to think of one word or to know the proper way to write something. I realize that this is something that should be done after getting the rough draft done, but I am often too impatient and want to write more quickly than I am able. It is helpful for me to keep reference books, such as a thesaurus and grammar book, nearby so I can look things up when I get stuck.