No Advice Necessary

It's not that I haven't ever gotten any good our sound advice. It really just comes down to the fact that nothing has ever stuck with me. And in this post, instead of trying to think about the tidbits I have received from teachers, friends, and others who have guided my writing career, I am going to explain why I don't feel it is necessary to have writing guidelines for every single paper I write.

Now this is not to say that I don't think anyone should follow guidelines. I have a friend who will spend two days researching his topic, spend another day or two writing out a detailed outline, only to spend another two days finally writing out the paper. Now to me, this is ridiculous. To me, it is just a waste of time. But for him, it is the best process in the world and is how he achieves the grades he wants. But for me, I don't like guidelines. It's the same reason why I didn't like to color inside the lines when I was a little kid. I just don't like rules. I don't think the freest form of expressing ones self, writing or spoken word, should have any rules or guidelines. There is a reason why it is called "freedom of speech" and not "guidelines for expressing ones self".

I love writing. I love writing about sports one day and then writing about the most embarrassing moment of my life another day (if your interested, it was a time when I was in the ocean and...well this isn't the time or place). Writing is the basis of all forms of expression. Whether it is poetry, song, novel, movie, anything, it starts out on paper. In fact, many people who write music (Bruce Springsteen for one) write in journals without lines. Now while it may not be for the same reason as I perceive it to be, I would like to believe that he does this so he can just get his ideas out on paper. He doesn't need to make a guideline of how the screen door slamming leads to him wanting to pull out of a town full of losers because he wants to win (I'm sorry if you aren't a Springsteen fan but he is a genius). To me, there is no need to rationale a story or create an outline. For me, the easiest thing to do is write what I am thinking, finish my thoughts, and then revise. When I write, I feel that I start to get into a groove. I feel like John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever. I feel like MJ against the Jazz in '98. I feel like Tiger on the 16th at Augusta. I just feel invincible, I feel like MIdas. Everything I touch just turns to gold in my mind. So why would I ever stop my groove, or not even enter a groove, by creating an outline or just jotting my ideas in bullet points. To me, setting any sort of guidelines are just unnecessary. I don't like being bound down by a rule and don't plan to write that way.

So how has my writing been in my career, even without any sound advice. Well quite frankly, I think I have done quite well for myself. I believe that my writing has evolved to a point where I am writing concise and comical papers. So what if I haven't gotten any advice or don't follow any guidelines. Hell, I gave myself my advice. And I pass it along to anyone who wants it. "Write whatever, however, and whenever you feel like writing. It is the best way to express yourself without rules."