I started this blog nearly 10 years ago. This was my first post, on April 3, 2016. All in all, MyHappinessObsession has been a personal sandbox where I get to write about what I want, when I want it. This has been liberating for me, as a highly-expressive creative person who has thrived on the freedom to write without limitations or expectations.
My first 365 Day Blogging Project was the most satisfying online project I had done to date. I kept the blog on a low profile and let myself write about whatever topics (running, investing, Law of Attraction) or in whatever format (prose, poetry, rhyme) interested me.
I followed up with another year of posting a few years later. The second go-around also had its high points, yet I started noticing dissatisfaction with the process. I had already shown myself I could blog everyday for a year, so daily blogging lost some of its character-building novelty. Also, I yearned to develop more of an audience. I put a lot of time and effort into my posts, and though I told myself I was writing for myself (and a few supporters: shout out to Rick!), I admit it: it could be disappointing that more people weren’t seeing my work.
These were factors in deciding to write a book about piano playing. After all, the subject for my book is something I already teach others. The book’s content is drawn from nearly twenty years of teaching others. Even the process of writing the book involved directly involved my students. Unlike the blog, the book had an intended purpose beyond satisfying myself. And for the past year, the book has been serving that purpose with my students and others who have bought it.
In conclusion, this blog has shown me both the sides of the writing-in-solitude coin. On one hand, there’s the freedom to grow in confidence and clarity about being myself unencumbered by social expectation. On the other hand, it can be unsatisfying. As my desires have evolved, I have naturally spread my wings.
Now I am back at the blog now because I want to dip into the sweetness of creative freedom and expression. I hope some more “writing-in-solitude” (albeit on a publicly-accessible website) will do me good.