Joining Hubpages: My Newbie Statement

 This hub was not inteded to be a hub in the first place. It was just a few personal notes I took after reading a few hubs and pondering on some personal motivations and goals. Therefore, if it feels a bit long and dry I apologize, but please bear in mind I simply rearranged it to be a little bit more "attractive" to the eyes the readers.

I joined HubPages just about 2 months ago, if not mistaken, and so far all I have done is read, read, and read. There are many interesting hubs out there, with explainations and tips on many important topics, so interesting that I honestly thought that reading would be all I would end up doinh here, nothing more (maybe commenting too). Than I got worried that, once again I would deviate from my main purpose here, to write. To write about something, pic a topic, research and write about it, or maybe simply play with words, pick on my experiences (many and still so few), my senses, my feelings, and just write.

I visit and log in almost every day, and yet I have not managed to write one single hub, no clue what I should be writing about, the tone I should use, the topics to pick, no clue at all. I think that's what got me reading the tons of hubs I read, just to search for the right hub, the right topic to talk about. Right for what? I honestly don't know, this is a common little problem of mine, always looking for the "right something", and never really doing anything at all - well in this case, I read and gained some knowledge, I guess not all time was lost here. Anyhow, I think I hit one od those irritating blank moments...

At some point I started reading a few hubs on types of hubbers and the few ups and downs of HubPages. After reading them, something hit me and I realized that before writing any hub, I should first understand what got me here in the first place.

Why did I join? Why do I want to write hubs at all? Is it for money?

Is it to share feeling and experiences? Just for the sake of writing? What is it that made me make a conscious decision of writing here?

I took a piece of paper and started writing down all the good things I could take out of writing here. These are the ones I came up with:

· I Learn

· Potential to Expand my vocabulary

· Develop my writing skills

· Maintain and Improve my “student’s skills”

· Instigate creativity

· Yap, maybe cash in.

 I realize that by writing about a topic, whatever topic it may be, I always end up learning something. If I pick a topic that I know nothing about I, obviously, end up learning something about that specific topic. If it is a topic that I know about, it can take me deeper into the details and even provide me with a different perspective. After all, I think this is one of the beauties of writing -the research and learning process.

As a writer, vocabulary is crucial. I see vocabulary as a pillar of foundation to a exceptionally written text, be it short or long, fiction or not.

Even though I was born a English speaking country, English is not my first language and I lived majority of my life away from an English speaking environment. Therefore, it is even more important to me to explore and expand my vocabulary in the English language.

I think writing is side by side with reading, when it comes to expanding vocabulary. Both play a major role and, because writing also requires some reading, than what better to do than that exactly - writing.

 Someone, I don't quite remeber who, once told me more or less in these words "the best tool to become a writer is to be a writer. To write and write, nonstop, even if feeling one is not capable of a producing a well written piece, just write."

This opened my mind to the many months and years I've wasted just because I did not want to adventure myself writing [publicly] or consider myself a writer, without having the "right requirements".

If you don't try you'll never know where it can lead you, right?

I am, at the moment enrolled in university, taking sociology, for that I am officially a student. And, as a student I need to have my writing skills sharp! I need to know how to write an essay, article, research, analyze, and report. By writing at HubPages, that is exactly what I get, a constant practice of all these skills, hence it helps me maintain them and even improve them – practice makes perfect.

I believe that creativity lives in all of us, many of us just don’t nurture the little seeds in us. So, if this is so, than if I start writing, I will most likely create a train of ideas that can generate other texts and thoughts. It might even instigate some other type of creativity – it can result in a painting, a sculpture, a speech, a dance piece, a… something, a something.

This by itself is already amazing, since I always complain that I am the only one in the family that has not creativity whatsoever.

To be honest, this was the reason that allowed my to find out about HubPages. I only found out about it, because I was initially looking up information on ways to earn money with AdScene.

I would be lying if I said money is, by no means, something I look forward to take out of HubPages. I mean, I am a student and mother of a baby girl, I need to pay bills and put food on the table. Of course a little money extra is very welcomed.

However, after all the reading through the various hubs and after realizing that, the one thing I was always comfortable doing – writing – mysteriously evanesced, I turned my attention more to that, my writing. Especially with school coming up so soon, just in a month, I really have to get my writing sharp!

So yes, a little income helps, but if you look at it, it is nothing compared to the somewhat long list of things I can “get”, non-related to financial matters.

So, I guess I am glad that I’ve read all those hubs first, before writing any hub. It did help, a lot actually, in sort of recognizing myself again and my own purposes and goals.

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This started from being just a few personal notes, but ended up being a mega reflection. So, I decided to just rearrange it a little bit and make it my first hub. It is not about a specific topic of major interest, but it helps me state in stone what I am here for.