My Early Creative Writing vs Poetry (past → present → future)

Script:

Today I’m reflecting on how my creative writing has evolved over the years — from childhood poems to indie publishing to where I am now with poetry and narration.

In my early twenties, I was very involved in the indie publishing scene. It was the early era of ebooks, and it felt exciting and experimental, before the landscape shifted toward more commercial genre fiction.

Even before that, I wrote poetry on and off throughout my teenage years. Most of those early pieces came from feeling lost or sad, and even though I hadn’t had any real relationship experiences yet, the themes were already there.

And going even further back, I wrote poems as a child. Mostly nature or animal themed. A couple were…let’s say “heavily inspired” by other poems, because my moral compass wasn’t fully formed yet. Around that same time I also shoplifted a shiny ring and a marble, so clearly I was in my chaotic magpie era.

As for writing, I eventually grew tired of indie publishing. I realized I didn’t want to force myself into commercial genre fiction just to be successful at it. I admired the writers who could do that, but I knew it wasn’t my lane, and it felt right to step away.

For several years, I detoured into niche blogging, which is where I finally understood the power of having a clear niche. This was something I struggled with in my early twenties when I was writing across genres. I also did more content writing and editing professionally, some of which is on my portfolio site.

From 2019 to 2023, I wrote essays, horror short stories, and slowly found my way back to poetry. I’ve listed some of those publications and awards here. I also published a chapbook with Bottlecap Press in 2023, partly because I wanted the experience of working with a small press, as something different from my early indie days.

And now, in a full‑circle way, I’m back to writing poetry almost exclusively, aside from blogging.

I’m also trying something new by narrating and posting my dragon poems on YouTube. It feels like the right place for them as a space where I have full creative control, separate from my career path.

Over time, I’ve grown to appreciate that separation between commerce and art, whereas in my early twenties I wanted my entire living to come from creative writing.

That’s today’s reflection: a look at how my writing has shifted, circled back, and finally settled into something that feels like home.