Study Yourself

Us writers love to study the world around us.  People are a favorite subject of many.  Why do people say the things they do, wear the clothes they do?  Why do they decorate their homes the way they do?  Why do they eat certain foods, use certain modes of transportation, befriend certain people?  These are all great questions to learn and understand.

How many of those questions can you answer about yourself?  Do you understand you?  If so, what have you learned from it?  If not, how come?

Writers tend to have great deductive powers.  Even if they are not consciously doing so, they are unconsciously figuring out the way things work and why.  Not using those powers on yourself seems a waste.  Learn who you are, what you do, why you do it.

Writers are always encouraged to do this, but usually in smaller scale.  What kind of writing do you like?  What style do you resonate with?  What subjects interest you?  All I am saying to do is to widen the scale.

While you are in the middle of some activity, try to take a step back from yourself and analyze the situation as though it was a different person you were observing.  Ask yourself what you are doing and why.  Think about it until you get to a sheet of paper, then write down the answers you come up with.