Don't rant about things that don't bother you
A reminder and lesson to myself, writers, and creatives who post online.
Last week, I wrote and posted an article titled, “Why creatives dislike the word ‘Talent’?”
In that post, I talked about why artists don't like to hear the word “Talent” as it underestimates the hard work that goes into their artworks, in the first half of the article.
It's a good topic. However, I made a mistake– which thankfully has taught me a lesson. Especially thanks to those who were kind enough to point it out without leaving any hate comments.
“What is that lesson?” You asked? Well, that's what we're discussing today.
Okay, I admit, I haven't been putting much effort into writing my articles as much as I used to. Especially because I'm working on a fairly big project of making a comic with a Japanese art style.
I was watching YouTube videos about artists discussing the meaning behind talent and thought, “Huh, it seems like a topic that is talked about a lot in the art community. Why don't I write about it for my next article and share my thoughts and experiences?”
And so, I did. I didn't have much time to edit it. I spent most of my time in the comic project and patched up the freshly-written article at the last minute before uploading it.
That was a mistake.
Never neglect spending a lot of time editing your articles, and don't do it in a rush.
A phrasing mistake…
The mistake I made is that I used the words, “I” and “Me” instead of “They” and “Them” when the latter is the right phrasing.
I wrote,
“I don't like being called talented.
It implies that my skills naturally come to me and that I didn't do any work to achieve them.”
I don't know what I was thinking when I typed that. But, honestly, I don't mind what words people use to appreciate my work. Receiving appreciation is more than enough to make me happy. What words they use is something I don't think much about.
When I wrote the before-mentioned lines, I was probably thinking: since many artists like me are concerned about it, I should be too right?
*Slaps forehead* you're easily influenced, me from days ago…
I tend to write about the topics that I just discovered. When the topic is so new to me that I haven't developed an opinion of my own regarding it.
It's my way of noting certain things and how I feel about them (‘cause, I can be super forgetful). This is one of the many benefits of having a blog or a newsletter.
When I was watching those YouTube videos, I found myself wholly agreeing with the points they covered.
Thus, leading me to write an article about it, but adding my own opinions and stuff.
I was naive when I wrote it without paying attention to the details and I didn't realize It's a topic that should be handled with care.
Since then, I've been feeling like I wanted to crawl inside a pit if I found one.
You're probably saying, “But, why does it bother you? If you're going to be an online writer, you shouldn’t be bothered by such trivial thin-”
Well! I know it's silly to be bothered by such trivial things, but, it caused a misunderstanding.
It led my readers to think that I'm a nitpicky person who criticizes compliments! The alarms in my brain were going off and the voice in my head was saying, “Oh, no… you messed up big time, dude.”
(As the saying goes, it's always worse in your head than how it actually is in reality. But this time, I wasn’t sure.)
The solution is simple and the lesson is learned.
I edited the article. (Because, of course, I don't want future readers to misunderstand.)
This is what I edited that part into:
“I've heard of artists who dislike it when someone says that they are talented. I wondered why and looked into it.
I understood why this word upsets them. “Talent” implies that their skills naturally come to them and that they didn't do any work to achieve them.”
I edited it by replacing the “I” and “Me" with “They” and “Them”.
I initially wrote it in the tone of a rant article, then I edited it to sound calmer and closer to how I actually feel about the topic, “Talent”.
Even though I edited that article, the fact that I bought it up and the slight implication that it's a thing to be concerned about, can still make some of the future readers think that I'm a nitpicky person who rants about trivial things.
Nah, I was just running out of time and ideas to write about.
Lesson learned: don't rant about something that doesn't bother you, just because people like yourself are ranting about it.
This is a common pitfall I assume most writers, bloggers, and commentators can fall into. Be careful, think about the ways someone can misunderstand what you're saying and correct your phrases, and most importantly, spend a lot of time editing your articles!
Author’s note: After I edited it, it became one of the well-received articles I wrote, people liked it. Plus, I learned something. So, I don't regret writing it.
Another thing I'm aware of is that the title “Don't rant about things that don't bother you” might have a double meaning. It can also mean that “Don't be a drama queen and quit ranting about things that you're not even concerned about.“
But no, this isn't about drama queens, that's a post for another day.
This is about the little factors that influence the way we think, judge, and act (using a real-life example). This title is also a reminder to myself.
No matter how small, there is something we all have to learn from the little things we notice in our everyday lives. I may not have any big, blasty, or super-amusing topics to write about. But, I'm good at noticing small things that slightly impact how we think or act. It's a topic I'm interested in learning more about.
If this kind of topic interests you too, you might also be interested in this collection of articles about our minds and thoughts: Self-exploration for all.
Before you go, check out a few articles I liked reading this week:
That’s it for today. If you liked this post, you can let me know by leaving a quick like, comment, restack, or share this letter with others.
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed reading this post and I hope it was helpful. Come again next week on Friday for a ✨new post✨
- Harshini
Thank you very much for the shoutout, Harshini!👍💪✌️🙏😊
Editing is an important process in my writing as well. I relate a lot to your text, especially when you state about the possibility of being misunderstood. That's what I fear as a writer... To have my readers miss the point of what I was trying to say. I guess it's also the fear of negative evaluation.
So I'm trying to find a balance between editing a lot, and leaving my text alone, no matter if it gets misconstrued in another way.
You gave an interesting perspective that made me reflect. Thank you :)