Starting the conversation...

The act of writing is an art of personal expression. It is an opportunity for the writer to share what’s on their mind; their observations, their beliefs, their message—whether it be a simple passing thought or something weighing on the brain, something fully developed over time or something they just feel the need to blurt out. But, while it is sometimes important to consider the intentions of the author, the most important part of writing is the reading.

As a reader, whether you’re part of an audience of millions or an audience of just one, you are engaging in a conversation with that writer. No matter what the writer had in mind when writing, each reader brings a different view to the table. That is the true beauty of the individual. And it is only by critically engaging with a work that a reader can find the meaning within a text. To do a critical reading is to fully participate with the material; read every word, read it twice, ask questions, look up words you don’t know… really process what is in front of you.

It is so essential to read critically these days because it is necessary to fully understand the texts around you. With the advent of the age of information and technological connectivity, we are increasingly subject to a barrage of texts and it is important to be a part of the conversation. You can, and should, read everything critically. Not just books and poems, but songs and movies, newspapers, commercials, even cereal boxes. Accept nothing at face value but analyze it. This kind of critical thinking is fundamental in relating to the world around you, in finding meaning, and understanding relations.

I try to exercise this critical engagement at every chance possible. It has been an immense part of my development as a student, as a writer, and as a person. By always seeking to understand I discover a lot about myself by simply what sticks out to me. What interests me? What kind of questions do I have? What emotions and meaning arises from a text.

For me, this blog is a chance for me to contribute to the greater conversation that is taking place around us. I will be posting a wide assortment of material; snippets of short stories I’m working on, maybe a poem or a song, shameless plugs of a television show that I write and produce (thedebonaires.wordpress.com), or random observations I want to share. It may be my writing or someone else’s work that has caught my attention. This blog will be my way of collecting and sharing the creative ramblings that flow from my pen. Instead of keeping them within the pages of my notebook, they will now be readily available on the internet.

To start it off, here’s one of my favorite poems. Engage with it:

Q & A by Kenneth Fearing

Where analgesia may be found to ease the infinite, minute scars of the day;

What final interlude will result, picked bit by bit from the morning's hurry, the lunch-hour boredom, the fevers of the night;

Why this one is cherished by the gods, and that one not;

How to win, and win again, and again, staking wit alone against a sea of time;

Which man to trust and, once found, how far—

Will not be found in Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John,

Nor Blackstone, nor Gray's, nor Dun & Bradstreet, nor Freud, nor Marx,

Nor the sage of the evening news, nor the corner astrologist, nor in any poet,

Nor what sort of laughter should greet the paid pronouncements of the great,

Nor what pleasure the mulitudes have, brining lunch and the children to watch the condemned to be plunged into death,

Nor why the sun should rise tomorrow,

Nor how the moon still weaves upon the ground, through the leaves, so much silence and so much peace.

Beautiful. Thanks for your time and now go on, surf the web, read a magazine, go outside, but remember to give the world your full attention. And I hope you come back soon to see what else makes its way onto the blog.

This has been an All Smiles Production.