Reflecting on Freewriting 1000 Words A Day

teddywritingBack in November of 2013, I stumbled on an article on Medium that talked about making a habit of writing 1000 words a day. Around the same time, I also started to freewrite 1000 words a day and did so for the past few months. Most of it was total freewrite, so any words that came to my fingers or the dreams and thoughts that went through my head.

Some became album reviews, blog posts, tweets and Facebook statuses. The majority were rubbish. I started each morning with the exercise, not ceasing until I had indeed reached at least 1000 words. In the end, it became exhausting. I ran out of things to write and it became repetitive. I also often found myself ruminating in negative thoughts over and over. Sometimes it would take up the entire morning and would leave me with little energy to do anything else (though I think that partially has to do with winter SADS). The quality and my enthusiasm for the exercise had plummeted. I didn’t want to write to fill a quota any longer.

That doesn’t mean I’ll stop writing, hell I’m writing this blog post right now. However, like I said in my New Years Resolutions vlog, I don’t want to set strict guidelines for myself that will make me hate things that I normally enjoy. I’ll remain living in the moment and writing the second inspiration hits, like 11pm right now. I’m sure the 1000 word writing challenge can be helpful and useful to some, but it isn’t for me!

Taking over One Week One Band This Week!

oneweekoneband
Starting tomorrow, I’ll be taking over One Week One Band for a couple days to talk about Canadian chamber-pop group Ohbijou.

The site’s a really cool platform for music writers to swoon over bands they’re passionate about for a week. I’m so excited for the opportunity to contribute.

The Mystery of the Random Lighter

Yesterday, I opened the cubicle in which all our mail usually lay. Inside the dark hole perched a tiny grey package. It was addressed to me, and even included my phone number. There was no exact return address. It only mentioned Shen Zhen China and there were some Chinese words I couldn’t read. I was elated, thinking that one of the packages I had ordered off Ebay had finally arrived.

I ripped open the envelope to find a mysterious object wrapped in white foam. It was steel tubular object attached to a keychain. A knob could screw off and revealed a metal rod with what looked like a screw and a tiny bit of cloth at the end. I took a whiff of the inside of the tube and it smelt of gasoline. I was very confused. This was not the camera accessory, film or dog costume I had ordered. I had no idea what it was, so I took a photo of it and turned to Twitter.

A bunch of people assumed it was a tiny flask, but within minutes my question was answered. It was a flint fire starter, something people took camping and used to start fires in case of emergency. The question still remained, “Why was it sent to me?”.

Initially, I thought it may have been my 12 Days of Holiday bullshit so I took to Twitter to ask. Cards Against Humanity replied and said it would be very obvious it was from them. I guess they wouldn’t forget to include their own branding on their items. A confusing tube that could start fires was quite a quirky object so CAH was a good guess, but not the right one. Now I must wait until I get all my other orders and see which eBay seller sent me the wrong thing.

However, I could get all the right parcels and still be left with a flint lighter from a mysterious place. We’ll have to wait and find out.

The Art of War For Writers

IMG_3718
I’ve never really considered myself to be a writer. I sort of just fell in to it through blogging. I’m continually growing, finding my style and turning to others for inspiration. I read obsessively about anything and everything.

I picked up The Art of War for Writers, mostly because it would look awesome on my someday office desk. It wasn’t until recently that I picked it up and read it.

The little reference book by James Scott Bell focuses mostly on novel writing but a lot of it can be applied to other circumstances. Like the title of the book hints, it compares writing a novel and getting it published to fighting in a war.
IMG_3721
There are three sections in the book. Reconnaissance deals with the mental game of writing. This was probably my least favourite section as I found it obvious and fluffy. It might be a proper push for those who are afraid to write in fear of judgment. As a blogger, I feel like this fear is close to non-existent or I wouldn’t be a very good blogger.
IMG_3722
The Tactics, the most resourceful section, is loaded with tips to improve as a novel writer, many of which can be translated into writing in general. One of my favourites tips is when you have writers block, call on a word and its cousins (synonyms or related words). They can strangely open you up to new pathways.

The final section is Strategy, where Bell gives tips on entering the publishing world including finding the right agents.

The book reads a lot like a series of 78 short blog posts. They get the point across and there are plenty of examples from existing fiction. I recommend this book to any writers (not just fiction) looking for quick tidbits of inspiration. Bonus, the book has a lovely design.

 

 

Let’s Pretend This Never Happened

letspretendI don’t think I truly knew what embarrassment meant until I read Jenny Lawson’s Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: (A Mostly True Memoir). Thank you Jenny for some roll on the floor laughing moments. Certain parts of the book (actually most of it) seemed so outrageious, but at the same time it was way too detailed and strange to be made up. Like the time she stuck her arm up a cow, or got stabbed by chicken.

The book teaches some valuable life lessons especially to be proud of who you are. Jenny suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, OCD, depression and anxiety, but she makes people laugh and isn’t afraid to share her unfortunate stories of both her past and present with the world. She loves the life that has shaped her into who she is today.

I have now become a follower of her blog The Bloggess. It is equally as hilarious as the book and really motivates me to share some silly stories from my past that were no where near as personal or embarrassing. She would probably think I’m crazy for saying her book is an inspiration.

 

Who Should Blog?

20130107-101900.jpg

A couple weeks ago, I wrote one of my many restaurant experiences on this blog. I hit publish and then proceeded to paste the link on my Facebook wall. Most of my friends enjoy reading of local eats, so I do the occasional share on social networks. A minute later somebody posted this rather passive aggressive Facebook status:

“Unless you know what a mirepoix, paysanne or bain-marie is you shouldn’t write about food. Eating out with a camera doesn’t make you a writer.”

Technically, it wasn’t personally directed at me, but the timing was just too perfect. For the record, I do know what all those things are without looking them up on Wikipedia. I do my fine share of making fried rice, cutting vegetables for stir fry and watching the food network. Anyways, all those things are irrelevant to what makes a blogger.

If you’re reading a food blog, unless it’s a recipe blog, nobody cares if the carrots were julienned. In the Yelp and Foursquare era, people just want to know that things taste good. That is what the food (books and other) posts are for, to give an opinion on something. If you don’t care about my opinion than kindly hit the x at the top right corner (or left if you’re on a Mac). Also, what are you doing here in the first place? I have a modest following of people who do care.

In the internet age, everyone has the right to blog. All food critics probably started out paying for meals themselves and evaluating them. Just like all music bloggers started out paying for concerts and practising their camera shots and reviews. Blogging is not a god-given right to somebody with a pretentious degree in a subject area. In fact I don’t think people would even want to read something with a lot of condescending jargon. Would anybody care if I told you some song had too many parallel 5ths? If you are passionate about a subject, or if you just like sharing things regularly then go ahead and blog.

I lulled on this subject for the past few weeks and then realized. Who cares what one dude thinks? As long as you can maintain readership and a following on your blog (even if it is a few really dedicated fans), then keep writing. You have every right to.

Ps. I love all my followersThank you for continuously following my life adventures and nerdism. I promise to bring you a lot more in 2013.

Inspiration in Colours


The other day I went with my sister to Staples because she needed some things for school. I realized my new Pacman journal had been lacking inspiration lately, stuck in a sort of writer’s block. Then I realized inspiration just like life isn’t black and white. I decided to make my journal as colourful as life and my thoughts are supposed to be.

Are you stuck in a rut with writing?

Perhaps, adding a little colour can spark that brain. Don’t worry, I’ll stick to coloured pens on paper. I think youd all stop reading if this blog had multicolour text.
Your life should be more than just black and white, a pop of colour anywhere whether it be pens, make-up, wardrobe can add a little twist in your life.

Or I could just be trying to find a crazy excuse to buy beautiful pens.