Post #700

Copyright Charles Schulz

"Every secret of a writer's soul,

every experience of his life, 

every quality of his mind

is written large in his works."

Virginia Woolf

Copyright © 2018

By Ralph F. Couey

Written Content Only

Twelve years ago, I started on a journey, not knowing exactly where it would take me.  I had been doing some writing here and there, and was starting to get some pieces published in the local paper.  On the advice of a friend, I decided to open one of those new-fangled weblogs, or blogs for short.  My first post was a commentary about a motorcycle accident involving Steelers quarterback Ben Rothlesberger, which ended up in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  I discovered that writing was the creative outlet I had been searching for, a way to unload the thoughts that had been to that point uselessly banging around inside my head.  It was also a path to a personal kind of peace, a zone where thoughts were converted to words and displayed for all to see.  

I was a newspaper columnist for awhile, weekly gigs in two small-town newspapers in Pennsylvania.  But some of my essays were picked up by the Trib Group and ended up on the webpages of newspapers across the country.  Heady stuff, that.

I stayed away from politics for two reasons.  First off, we're already deeply divided and I didn't want to contribute to the widening of that fissure.  Secondly, there are a lot of unhinged people out there who react forcefully and sometimes violently to words and ideas that disagree with their particular view of the world.  While I enjoy meeting people, those were people I decided I was better off not knowing.    Beyond that, I've written about a broad range of subjects covering the plethora of the human experience.  I've written about events that happen deep beneath our feet and far beyond the stars. I've tried to write things that everyone would enjoy reading and walk away with a smile. 

Three years ago, I decided to tackle my Great American Novel.  It took awhile, but I managed to assemble a collection of short stories about people inhabiting a small town in rural south Missouri.  After editing, I self-published the book on Amazon.  It was a triumphal experience to hold a hard copy in my hands, and an emotional one.  It was at the same time the achievement of a goal and the realization of a larger dream.  

But beyond such big picture considerations is just the sheer joy I get from the process of turning thoughts and feelings into words, and the challenge of finding the right way to describe the often indescribable emotions I feel.  There is also the challenge of finding the right combination of words and sentences and connecting them as a theme running through an entire essay.  And nothing matches the joyful satisfaction in that rare moment when I know I've gotten it just right.

I'm proud of the 700 essays on this blog because they are all deeply personal.  If someone wanted to profile my personality they would only have to wade through the whole content.  All I am, all I've ever thought and felt, and most of what I know is contained here.  If you are a repeat visitor, thank you for sticking around.  I appreciate you more than you'll ever know.  If you are a new visitor, I hope you dig around, read a few, and leave me a note about what you thought.

I will continue to do this as long as I am capable, and as time rolls onward and the future unwinds, we will all discover the journey upon which we have been.

My name is Ralph Couey, and I am a writer.