The last post on my blog was dated May 10, 2023, just over two years ago. My lack of writing hasn’t been from a lack of desire to do so, but dramatically less time to coherently get my thoughts on screen that I am satisfied with. I have five blog posts I have been working on…for nearly two years. So what happened?
Well, my son happened! 🙂
When my last post was published, my son was about seven months old, which tracks with typical human development. Right around that time, he became exponentially more mobile and required an equal amount of attention. As a result, I decided to focus my time and effort on my son rather than push him aside so I could get some words out on screen.
I will never regret a two-year gap in my spare-time writing, but I will certainly regret ignoring my son to write in my spare time. My priority is, now and forever, my son.
That said, something interesting has happened since I stopped writing. It seems that people have stopped writing, and chatbots, like ChatGPT, Grok, and Claude, have taken over. And I thought I was on the edge of cool when I used Grammarly!
I’m not sure how I feel about that development, though. I understand how useful a tool these chatbots can be, but I feel that a lot is missing from writing lately. Surprisingly, I’m not referring to what we read, but how we write.
It is much easier to copy/paste some information and give a chatbot instructions on how to write an article. I would argue that the end result is much better than the average of all writers out there, but it is the back end I’m referring to.
You see, I actually have fun doing research and writing – a process that was definitely an acquired taste for me. Research writing was the bane of my existence in junior high and high school; however, I really grew to love the process in college and especially when I was working on my Master’s.
Take the aforementioned post on the Trademark Distinctiveness Spectrum. I actually had a lot of fun researching it and putting that information down coherently so I could easily reference it in the future. (I admit it – most of my writing is for me to return to as a reference!). There really is a joy in research writing that you simply don’t get when you give a chatbot instructions.
But, to each their own. So long as the information is accurate, I guess.
With all that said; boy, do I feel rusty! I need to get writing again!
The bottom line is that I now realize that I find the process of writing fun because there is a learning element. It is not simply regurgitating information that you have memorized, but the acquisition of new information that you need to process into coherent thoughts. It’s fun!
Christopher Padilla 