Struggling with What to Write About

“Be thoughtful about what you write,” she said. “But I’m always thoughtful,” I replied.

I still struggle with what to write about. I’ve pulled two of my best posts this week because I now see how they could have been a problem for the subjects of those posts. I sometimes forget as I write that this is not a private diary where I am allowed to say anything I damn well please. But rather it is a very public forum, where people can Google and easily make connections, especially since I provide my full name.

What I have come to realize is that it’s more than a concern about slander. It’s about privacy as well. There are many people who legitimately just do not want the world to know what’s happening with them. And that should always be their right.

I tend to write very spontaneously – not thoughtlessly, but spontaneously. If I had to go check with someone first before writing, it would simply ruin the idea. This emerging responsibility to honor people’s privacy – to not even mention them with fake names or skewed facts – makes me feel like I am in a straight jacket when I sit down to write. The interesting part of my world involves other people – it is not just about me and nature (that might get offended but has no voice of protest other than the wind and the rain!)

I haven’t received more than a slap on the hand for anything I have written yet. But hurt feelings are just as important to me as a legal action. My intention is to avoid both. So I will continue to be thoughtful, maybe even a little more so than I have been in the past, as I weave together the story that is my life.