Why am I here?
I’m not sure but I think it’s because something is pulling me in.
I have been a poet all my life. I studied to be an engineer but my main project in my final year was titled ‘A Critical Analysis of War Poetry in English.’ The university I studied in was a brilliant place and if you completed all the other degree requirements, it gave you the flexibility to do fun things like that.
When I got caught in exams where I was supposed to put microprocessor circuits together, it wasn’t because I was cheating but because I was quietly writing a poem. If you want to read that rhyming excuse for poetry, you can find it here.
Suffice to say I’ve been a poet all my life. I won a few competitions on the way; I’ve been published in a few places. Not a very good poet, not a famous poet, but a poet nonetheless. However, for the past few years, I haven’t really been writing. I haven’t been reading a lot either. Perhaps that’s why I never found Medium.
But I am here now. After a few days of reading, the urge to write has returned. I read some wonderful stories and highlighted sentences that took my breath away. They tickled something I didn’t know still existed, a wick that still had some wax to burn. So I wrote.
I requested some of the wonderful publications out there to give me a spot on their roster. Jake from The Creative Cafe was the first one to embrace me. He gave me a home. People don’t usually forget their first homes.
All of you have built this strange little world on the internet. And such a wondrous world it is! As I have read, followed and browsed, I have slowly understood the rules.
I’m not going to be a frequent writer but I am aiming and put something up at least once a week on one of the many publications on Medium. I have so much admiration for all the amazing people who are giving their time to running and curating publications. I can’t do what you’re doing but I’ll contribute, if you’ll have me. And at the end of every month, I will create a post on this publication linking to everything I have loved writing or loved reading.
This is mostly for myself but also perhaps for my friends (new and old) to follow if they don’t want to depend on the serendipity of Medium’s algorithms to find my creative pursuits.
I’ll highlight other writers too — words that I have repeatedly rolled around in my mouth, those that left a taste both bitter and sweet. I’ll highlight stories that (I’m sure every writer can identify with this) I wish I had written.
My April 2017 compilation is below. A journey begins and perhaps it is apt that I have no idea where I’m being taken. I’m standing on the rooftop and I’m ready to fly!
