I recently discovered a long forgotten (by me) and never explored (by me) type of poetry. In the every Wednesday writer's discussion group I'm part of, we usually decide as a group what project to tackle next. While we all work simultaneously on one type of writing, we each pursuit our own general/major projects individually. Without actually acknowledging it, we seem to have discovered that this system keeps us tuned into our personal projects while helping each of us expand our horizons as writers.
One of our members is a good example of this. He spent his life writing as an occupation. His specialty and income producer was technical writing. The stories this writer initially submitted for discussion by the group tended to be reflective of his background. His pieces were very detailed and graphic in the description of objects and procedures. His writing consisted of facts and figures and were always very well written and interesting. Over time, this writer has stepped tentatively out of that familiar box and become much more creative. He is now quite comfortable with fictional writing and tapping into his imagination instead of relying exclusively on facts for his characters and story lines.
A similar story is reflected in the growth and development of the interests and styles of the other writers in this small group. Each has found the freedom to step out of their creative box and explore new avenues.
That gives credibility to the theory that it's good to explore styles and writing areas we've never had the interest or courage to look at. That's why we decided to write limericks. Not one of the group's members had ever written or even thought much about limericks beyond the ones we all sniggered about as adolescents featuring references to Nantucket. The more Puritanical of the flock had never even heard of those. Now, limericks have proven to be not just challenging but also a lot of fun. The originality shown by the writers in the group is amazing and very frequently side-splitting.
Needing to moralize and make a point, I guess you can all see where I'm going with this. It's most comfortable and easiest to continue down the familiar path for years and even decades at a time. If you think about it and see yourself doing that, consider that there are many other roads to the same destination. There's unexplored adventures and scenery over on those strange routes, and you're going to find them utterly fascinating. Who knows? You might even find one that grabs your interest and turns you in a whole other direction.
Create, explore, and live with enthusiasm. Life is better when each day is an adventure.
