When it comes to creating online content, the word “rhythm” sometimes seems to connote consistency. “You should publish content regularly,” says the great and mighty they, “so that you’ll rank, readers will visit, et cetera, et cetera.” I don’t necessarily have a problem with the statement — publishing content on a consistent basis helps with SEO and creates audience expectations — but I think of “rhythm” in a different way.
For me, a writing rhythm returns me to myself. I learn, as Flannery O’Connor would say, what I think. I recognize areas where I’m growing and areas still in need of attention. It resets my heart, mind, and hands.
For that reason, I must write. The rhythm isn’t about consistency or a publishing schedule; rather, it concerns a core part of me, the piece that requires light and life in order to escape and war against the dark. It centers on re-centering: on encountering God in the midst of writing, in remembering who he is, how he guides my steps.
My daily writing doesn’t often look that way. I spend most days writing about software and cloud-based platforms or developing how-to instructions for installing one’s Internet or starting a food truck business. The topics pay the bills. They perhaps help some reader trying to figure out which modem or medication management device to purchase.
They do not, however, feed the soul. I know this as fact. Because I know it, I try to take care to devote time to nurturing it. By caring for it, I can write all the other things. I don’t weary as easily because this particular rhythm recalls the God who upholds me. He gives me words to write, both ones for the soul and ones for people looking to purchase Internet, back-up safety cameras, or smart speakers.
Image: ecooper99 (Creative Commons)
[…] I get more done every day by closing out the web browser. At the very least, I close the email tab. Out of sight, out of mind—something like that. Regardless, checking out of my email lets me focus entirely on the work ahead, which I need when writing about tech and specs or SaaS. Other times, I simply need to close my email so that I can enjoy writing. I find that the fewer distractions I have, the more I fall into the writing rhythm. […]