So Why the Announcement?

I recently decided to shift my focus from Facebook. I don't plan on getting rid of my account or abandoning the methods of communication there, which continue to be useful. Why even make an announcement, then? I suppose it wasn't really necessary, but it was out of courtesy. I was averaging about 7 to 10 wall updates a week, so I had established a constant presence there. I don't assume that it mattered very much, since there wasn't a lot of back and forth on my wall, but I didn't want to take the chance that a sudden drop-off in Facebook presence might cause worry with friends who have no other way to track me.

So why can't I do both (Facebook posts and blog entries) at the same time? Typically I would, but until my long-form writing gets back into shape, it serves to hinder my progress. I don't know if all writers face this problem, but I do. I have to get myself into a certain frame of mind to write long-form. Adjusting to Twitter and Facebook in the last few years has catalyzed a sea change in the way I approach writing and communication in general, and I'm not entirely happy with the result. I want to try and go back and delve and dig with words, rather than merely 'sum up' or think of the most clever way to say something in a small space.

I don't hate Facebook. It has allowed me to re-establish contact with people who I would otherwise have never seen again. It's nice to know that some people are doing well. It's sad to know that some have passed on. Overall I am thankful for Facebook. That said, I've found lately that the more time I spend there, the more isolated I feel. In the last few weeks, it got worse. No specific reason for that... I think I just hit a wall and needed a change and needed it to be symbolic, to usher me into a new phase, at least for a time.

But again, I'm not into extreme pronouncements or burning bridges. I just need to take a sojourn into another form of communication that temporarily excises all the good and bad that Facebook represents. I promised myself this year that I would write, and doing it in this manner has given me the kick I need into that disciplined frame of mind.

As I said in my first post here, I'm not constraining myself to particular topics. I have a passion for activism and politics. I find a lot of enjoyment in critiquing pop culture. There is nothing too highfalutin about my interests. I just hope that something interesting and creative comes of it.

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