The Problem With Writing ‘About Me’

I’m just an excuse

At the time of writing this piece, I have published 760 stories on Medium. They are a bizarre mix of poetry, essays, short stories, wellness advice, and some posts that will forever remain unclassified.

And yet, when I learned I was to write an “About Me” kind of story for The Bad Influence, given that I was one of the winners in the Thrifty Words 50th Fifty Words Challenge, the first words that came to my mind were, “Oh, shit...”

In a strange turn of events, although I write mostly about my personal experiences, the idea of writing a bio, which, by default, puts me in the spotlight, was not that appealing.

Sure, I can write about everything I learned when I decided to increase my cabbage consumption — spoiler alert: don’t do it — but that’s because I’m trying to come up with a takeaway. Or maybe I put on my lyrical hat and do my best to build you a poem in which I use pieces of my heart as bricks.

However, in all of those cases, I am not the point…I’m just an excuse.

So, no, writing this is not as easy as it would appear to be. Case in point, we are already on paragraph 6, and I have barely told you anything. However, and since one is supposed to get to the point and all that jazz, I’m going to use the old dirty trick of telling you what I do instead of telling you who I am because, frankly, we met only 5 paragraphs ago and I don’t think our relationship has reached that level of intimacy.

How I Ended Up Here

First things first: I’m Mexican. I was born in a sunny Mexican border town 40 years ago, and I have lived here all of my life. I guess I feel so comfortable writing in English because I have been studying it since I was 12, and I hold a degree in Translation. By the way, if you are curious enough to want to read my work in Spanish, you can do so here.

Also, I have an autistic son and, thanks to the tiresome process of getting a diagnosis for him, I found out I’m autistic too, which, I must say, explains a lot about me.

I have been a high-school teacher for 19 years, although I am planning my way out since the job has become soul-sucking. Everything enjoyable about teaching has been slowly chipped away, so I’m looking for more satisfying waters.

In my youth, I used to write…and then I stopped. It wasn’t until I found Medium around 2018 that I got back into it. At first, since Stripe wasn’t available in my country, I wrote for “free.” However, sure enough, the second I was able to get into the Partner Program, I did. And, as I mentioned above, I write about different topics in different styles. I have read all the advice about niching down, but my brain doesn’t work that way.

I’m an editor for too many publications. Too many. It’s almost like whenever I feel passionate about a certain topic, I just have to make sure there’s a space so people can write and read about it. My publications cover anything from health to cooking, poetry, and writing advice, and I even had room for the crazy ride of motherhood. So, if you ever come across a publication called “The Lovely Tales of a Strawberry” that deals with everything that could be written around that particular piece of sweetness, I’m probably the person behind it. Not sorry.

Where to Find Me

But Medium it’s not the only place where I like to hang around. Recently, after I parted ways with my abusive ex, I discovered I tend to hide myself. I used to think it was out of shame, but now I know it was the fear of being seen and what he might think of me trying new things.

So, I have gotten back to photography, one of my first loves, and I have decided to venture into the glamorous YouTuber life. And, after being told a content creator is supposed to promote their work all over the world, I tweet too much on Twitter, and I gram too hard on Instagram. Luckily, I haven’t shown my face that much on Facebook but, who knows what the future might bring?

Oh, and before you ask, yes, I do have the mandatory mailing list and the evergreen link tree.

What the Future Will Bring

What a magnificent question! What will the future bring? I have no idea. To quote a famous movie, “You met me at a very strange time in my life.” I know, I know; given the current climate, perhaps it’s not very cheerful to make a movie reference in which everything comes crumbling down — by the way, did I mention I also write about movies?

But, in a way, the fact my future seems so uncertain means I have made some progress. In the past, trying to look ahead used to bring me nothing but darkness. Right now, I’ll take the unpredictable over an endlessly painful night.

And, yes, if you were wondering, just like that, I gave you a takeaway. What can I say? Old habits die hard.

If you wish to support me, you can do so here.