A few weeks ago I enrolled myself into theCertificate IV in Professional Writing and Editing course, not as another way of avoiding actually writing something, but as a structure that “forces” me to put pen to paper. Or in my case, fingers to the keyboard.

It’s working, the structure that is, and I am finding myself more inspired to write than I have ever been. Being an online course, interaction with other students and lecturers is via discussion boards, chat rooms and live internet sessions. For the first two weeks I was very nervous about posting my comments online. Scared that everyone else in the course knows more that I do and of course are way better writers than I am, or could ever be. I found myself writing drafts of my discussion comments and trying so hard to find the exact right words.

This was going to be a very long, stressful course that I would no doubt drop out of in the very near future if I continued to let those feelings get in the way. So I have ditched them and given myself permission to be fully self-expressed no matter how silly I may look. After all, how else is my writing ever going to improve if I don’t have the courage to let anyone read it.

Maybe I should also apply that to this blog, which as of this minute, only 2 other people know about. No surprise really! So I am signing off now with a promise to go email my friends, family and anyone else in my address book the web address to this blog.