It looks like I have finished my 100 writeups that was a goal for this month. Or at least, when I finish this writeup, I will have finished 100. Kind of recursive, isn't it?
I was planning on writing a titled node saying what I am saying here, perhaps with the title "Good Writing is Killing E2". Which does express my feelings. However, I have to admit that by this point I am somewhat tired of writing. For reasons that should be pretty clear. So instead of gathering my thoughts and writing them out in a logical order, I will just rant a little bit. If I can be immodest for the shortest amount of time, I have earned my bullshit, as we used to say.
Back to good writing: there are a lot of good writers on E2. There are even some great writers on E2. Many people who were professional authors have come to E2. Some have used E2 as a springboard to greater success. One of the things I've written about is Doctor Who, which a large part of the modern mythology of the show was crafted by someone who was a writer here on E2. A person who I remember reading in 2001, and thinking "well, this is pretty good". And even amongst those of us who aren't professionals, many of the writers here are diamonds in the rough, hidden dragons, or whatever cliché you want to use, people who can come out of nowhere and craft beautiful pieces of writing. There are a lot of people like that.
And then there are people like me. And quite possibly, like whoever is reading this. We aren't professionals. We aren't great experts. Sometimes we fumble for the right words, the right concepts, and confuse our "there" and "their". Sometimes when we write, it doesn't come out as an epiphany, it comes out as a prosaic explanation of something we don't totally understand. Not every write-up will be a touchstone here, not every write-up will become a meme, or catch fire and inspire others. Not every write-up will get C!ed. And none of these things need to happen. Sometimes it is okay to write something that is mediocre, because it fills in spaces in the database, and because it might provide a link between two things that are more important. If my experience is any guide, people here are very forgiving of mistakes. When I wrote write-ups that had broken grammar, meandering points, or were just unoriginal, people didn't despise me for it. I am not saying that people shouldn't try to put care into there write-ups, but if you occasionally fumble, it won't bring down scorn.
During the process of getting to 100, I wrote about a lot of things that I am not an expert on. I am not an expert on much. I wrote about pastries and Chuck Berry and Chinese defense policy and congressional elections in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, even though I don't know much about those things, and could not provide an exhaustive, authoritative, immaculately written essay into what role "Groove is in the Heart" had in American culture. But before I started writing, there was nothing here, and after writing, there was something here. There is little reason not to write something. We are dealing with text and modern hard drives, all of E2 would probably fit onto a thumb drive you could buy at Walgreens for 20 dollars.
I am not saying that cranking out 100 writeups a month is expected. I mostly chose to do it this month because of a combination of life circumstances having to do with having too much time and anxiety on my hands, and wanting to set a goal for myself to see if I could reach it. But in general, it is possible to write much faster than most people have come to believe. Pick up a random object from your environment. Say, a pencil sharpener. Think about it for a few minutes. Think about what you can say about it in three paragraphs that is interesting. Chances are, you can think of something. Submit it. Even if it doesn't say everything it needs to, it might inspire someone else to write more.
It is 4:30 AM, and I probably have explained this point as much as I need to. I now cease the process of becoming, like Rory Williams, the Last Centurion, and return to normal life. It has been a fun and exciting and challenging time! Thank you for everyone who helped me with it.