The Power of Quiet — Applies to Writing Too

I’ve written four stories in July. That’s not a lot, especially for someone who claims in their bio to write every day. The claim is not a lie — I have been writing consistently on Medium since the fall of 2021.

Now a hiatus. Can I even call it that? I think the word is most fitting for musicians or real writers. I’m just a blogger. Well, I prefer to call myself a writer, but it’s also okay to be more down-to-earth about my abilities.

It was a conscious decision to slow down. I just don’t have much to say right now. I’ve had success with some of my current affairs stories. There are a lot of current affairs I could comment on right now: American politics, the Paris Olympics, Bronny James playing in the NBA, Elon Musk’s confrontation with his estranged kid.

But I have nothing to say right now. I follow the news but it’s been pleasantly quiet in my head. I’ve had something to say in my almost nine hundred stories, but then I found myself coming to a stop. Kind of like Forrest Gump — you know how he kept running across the country and then suddenly stopped.

I’ve broken the most sacred rule of self-improvement — interrupting consistency. But it’s okay. I don’t feel bad. I’ll wait patiently for good ideas. This one felt like a good one a month ago and, interestingly, it got boosted. What felt like a high-quality story to me was also appreciated by Medium’s editors.