Far Less Loss of Words

I was never the kind of writer that faithfully carried paper and pen with me at all times. The sheer number of ideas and potential stories that disappeared into my consciousness moments after they occurred and weren't jotted down is astounding. Even the notebook I did keep on my nightstand got little use. Waking up to write just seemed like too big an imposition to my half-sleeping mind. So many words I will never recover. Such a waste.

Despite losing so many ideas, I've satisfied a certain part of my creative self by blogging. In truth, I carry my iPhone with me essentially everywhere and no longer have an excuse for failing to jot down whatever thoughts pops into my head. I have numerous apps capable of holding snippets and random ruminations, during the day or in the middle of the night. Not only do I have these apps, I've become a faithful user of them. Depending on what it is that I'm writing down (tracking my weights, a grocery list, a story idea, the beginnings of a blog post...) I've essentially got an app for it. Sure, I don't exactly need these different apps, but it makes organizing my thoughts and my daily lists far easier.

Of all the apps I use, Google Docs is my favorite. The familiarity makes it easy; I just type away and save. The similarity between platforms meant there was little to need to spend time for adaptation. A bonus is that, thanks to Google Chrome, anything I do on one device (phone, laptop) is accessible from another, which means I can quickly pick up where I left off. Technology has certainly had a positive effect on my writing, who am I to argue with it?

For the same reasons I love that writing has been made so easy and efficient, I occasionally loathe these tools, because I no longer have an excuse to be lazy and miss a blog post. I can't simply brush off the stories that beg for attention, well at least not in the same way I once did. Short of being behind the wheel of a car, there aren't many justifiable excuses for failing to capture the words as they present themselves.

Ridiculous as may sound, technology created an answer to any and almost all of my bad writing habits. In all the ways gadgets, social media and the like may have hindered our interactions with others, I cannot deny the incredible way it has aided my creative side. Tonight, and most nights truly, I am grateful that being 'plugged in' is a good thing.