A few times I've made the case for blogging. Admittedly, though, maybe it's not your thing. I say this all lovingly, but blogging can have some baggage — the word itself is clunky, the format for delivery is old-fashioned (not in The Endearing way to some), and maybe you don't like the technical side of publishing.

Fine, fair enough!

What I'd also like to encourage you to do is write.

Andrew of Writing with Andrew seems to agree and has a great video on the matter.

Once students get over the hump of their initial bewilderment, they find that nonfiction pays off in all kinds of other ways. It gives them a chance to process their own experiences, to find meaning where they thought there wasn't any, to reckon with family histories, to articulate parts of themselves that have gone previously unexpressed, or even just to play with ideas and learn how to think through things in meaningful ways.

Put simply, writing is an opportunity to live more deeply. A chance to revel in the experience of it all.

There are plenty of other mediums to do this aside from blogging. But I bet you'll find some benefit in writing, no matter where you do it.

A common hurdle when it comes to publishing is how intimate it feels. I've certainly felt this. Turns out the feeling doesn't go away, because I keep finding things that feel more personal to share, more exposing.

But Andrew has another perspective on this:

There is always, and unavoidably, a separation between the flesh and blood human who is you and the constructed persona who represents you on the page. The essayist is not imagining characters in the same way that a fiction writer is. Instead, the essayist is making a character of themself.

If you've ever met someone whose writing you're familiar with, you'll catch it. Writing is a bit of a stage, and speaking with the person is not synonymous with reading their writing. Even someone who writes from a place of intimacy or in a casual tone is accessing a caricature.

So don't sweat the feeling of being too exposed — that's partly the whole point, and doubles as a shield.

I still think blogging is a fun way to do it. (Links, man!!) But maybe you prefer Twitter threads, video essays, or good ol' fashioned journaling. Whatever you do, don't miss the opportunity to magnify the experience of life!