Journey Within: Writing for Writing’s Sake

I miss the way I used to write. 
I want to write as I used to, baring my heart and soul;
I want to write for kindred spirits, 
I want to write for me, myself, and I.  

Heraclitus is right though. “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man”.  

For the longest time, I was caught in limbo as I juggled commercial writing projects with this personal blog. I wanted to remain stupidly stubborn where travelbeckons.com is concerned, and prioritise writing for kindred spirits and myself over search-engine optimisation. 

Yet, I feel like my head has been under water. Writing that earns often takes precedence, leaving me too lazy drained to share the raw parts of me. Are there fellow freelance writers out there who feel the same as I do? 

Do you miss writing simply for writing?

While I appreciate the efficiency and (sometimes ruthless) effectiveness of SEO articles and AI-generated content, I miss writing for what it simply is. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be technical. Hell, it doesn’t have to have a call-to-action or monetary purposes. 

Looking back at old articles I wrote more than a decade ago was like taking that first dip in an onsen, with tingling warmth that makes me sigh. Where did that fearless young lady go? How did she convey her adventures so well? Where did she find the time to do all of these? 

By the way, those were not SEO articles. Those articles (like this) require a reader’s focus, who would eventually be rewarded with curiosity, contemplations, travel lust and perhaps, even wonder. There are no headers and some paragraphs may be long. They are not easy for today’s fast-food readers*. They are articles that I am proud of.    

*Fast food is generally unhealthy for your body. In the context of fast-food readers, you’d just have to be careful for your brain health. 🤓 

If you have read till this part, thank you for absorbing my ramblings. There will be more to come. It would be great if you join my “journeys”. Just subscribe below. Cheers!