Is anyone out there?

Welcome to my very first attempt at blogging. The title of my blog reflects my own hesitancy in writing in blogworld... Writing of any form can at times appear to be such a narcissistic activity. Is anyone really interested in what I have to say? Will anyone really care about my inklings and musings? Indeed, who am I to voice my perspective? An author must, after all, possess some inflated sense of self-importance to even contemplate putting words to paper or in this case bytes to blogspace. Of the writing of books there may be no end... but of the writing of blogs there appears to be no shame... we part of the "express yourself" generation - where personal opinions are the opiate of the masses. I would like to think that my intentions for commencing this blog are far more noble... but my own awareness of my predilection towards self-importance suggest otherwise.

But sometimes things have to be written. Sometimes ideas must be questioned, sometimes differing beliefs need to be challenged, sometimes we really do have something to say and sometimes the only person who can articulate it quite like me is well... you know. The title for my blog also is a reaction against my own vocational compliance to audiences and readerships. Academia and higher learning is so much about writing to please others, appease others, placate others, refute others, impress others. Rare is the scholar in this or any age who actually dares to write truth that flies in the face of his mentors and editors. So perhaps this blog will be somewhat cathartic for me - writing for no other purpose but to express those passionate, resolute, creative urgings and personal longings for a voice in this scholarly sea of semantic syncretism.

We are sometimes told to sing like no-one's listening, to dance like no-one's watching, so why not write like no-one's reading? It is a paradox, I know. Isn't the whole purpose of writing to be read? Isn't the task of the truly great writer to know their audience? All true... But perhaps, in this seemingly paradoxical process, this writer could discover and truly know himself... finding authenticity and voice in new and novel ways... I'll keep you posted on the journey...