Showing posts with label Writers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Writers. Show all posts

Friday, 5 October 2018

Friday 14th September 2018 - Autumn is Coming


[Retrospectively written - copied from handwritten diary]

The gradual descent into Winter seems tangible.

Today, even sitting in the garden, in full sun, requires a second layer of top clothing to ensure comfort, particularly when the breeze is blowing in from the North or East.

Small birds, tits and robins mostly, are frequenting the feeders again, to the annoyance of the pigeons who have held a virtual monopoly on the easy pickings since the start of Summer. The number of visitors has swollen noticeably, no doubt helped by a good crop of returning fledglings from the Spring matings.

The days are shortening quickly now as the Autumn Equinox approaches so post-dinner sojourns outdoors have ended.

Leaves and fruits drop from trees who've seen it all before, as they draw in their energy and rest beneath bark blankets.

Some welcome and embrace the new season; the jam makers, the game hunters, the football and rugby enthusiasts and the Christmas fanatics. I curse the faint light, the biting cold, the interminable wind and the spiteful precipitation. At least the beach will empty of holidaymakers now, traffic will move freely and there are those hot, slow-cooked dinners to look forward to.

Hoodie's on and I've moved to the garden to write. Dark clouds are rolling across what was a clear sky earlier and it's decidedly chilly. Stormy weather is forecast for the weekend and I fear we've lost the sun for a few days now.

I quite look forward to Fridays, the last day of the working week for most, even though I'm not 'employed' currently and may never be again. They do, I suppose, provide respite from the creditor 'phone calls and there are none on Sunday so my heart can tick with a more natural rhythm and the throat knots and stomach churns will abate somewhat.

As I consider the past week, I feel that matrimonial relations have improved slightly and I've returned to writing after a hiatus. Blog posts have been added retrospectively and links to these no-holds-barred musings have been posted on Twitter, where I'm active again in the #sixwordstory camp. There are more entries to copy to the blog and I'm chastising myself for committing yet more words to paper here but it just feels more natural and personal to use pen and paper.

In other productivity news, Wednesday's woodwork was missed through migraine but a brief willow weaving session garnered another bullrush for the garden.

Just added another couple of days' diary to the blog and was pleased to note that I only had one week left to transcribe. Unfortunately, it appears to be the most fertile week to date. Ah well ! Onwards and upwards.

Been pondering my synopsis that citizenship ought to be an option rather than an obligation. I've done some brainstorming and mind-mapping and it's fraught lwith issues and contradictions. I'm not sure if this is due to the limitations of intellect, a lifetime of indoctrination into the norms of the system or it's just an unworkable idea. I will return to this and write a blog post in due course (I think!). I should maybe research Engels and Marx and see how long it took them to write Das Kapital for reassurance, maybe.

I guess a forum to discuss 'ideas' of any nature would be useful. Maybe one exists already. If it doesn't I already have a name for a collaborative thought site: "THINGK TANGK".

Sunday, 14 January 2018

Sunday 14th January 2018 - Struggling for Inspiration?


#sixwords #sixwordstory #sixwordprompt

Struggling for inspiration? writer's bloc? Try a six word prompt to set off a chain of thought.

Some suggestions:

Capture philosophical thoughts before they evaporate

When your subconscious suddenly throws out a profound thought, grab it immediately. We've all had them, usually at times when the mind is left to wander - more often than not mine appear magically and without effort just before sleep. It's a chore to rise and record it at this time but well worth the effort. Maybe I won't use it straight away but I won't lose it. They are rarely retrievable when you wake despite that mental note you make to remember it.

Write the script that never was

Ever watched a movie or read a book & thought you knew where the story was going. You might have been surprised or disappointed with the direction it took. Why not rewrite it? If you thought it could have been executed better or differently, then surely so will others. It's not plagiarism - everything that has ever been said, written, discovered or made in human history has borrowed from one source or another.

Make strangers a source of inspiartion

Have you ever tried people watching? Most of us see but don't look as we go about our daily lives. Stop gawping at your mobile device. Next time you're sat in the car waiting to pick the kids up from school or for your partner to run an errand. Or you're sat in the park on your lunch break; or pausing at a beauty spot or on the promenade to take in the view, try looking beyond the physical landscape & start noticing the humans within it.

Find one that looks interesting to you. How are they dressed? Why are they there? What's their occupation? What are their physical characteristics? What's their life story? Do they remind you of anyone? What are their life views? Questions beget questions and soon you have a complete profile. Your creative juices have been stirred & maybe you have a new character for that book or at least a thought or two to commit to the page.

Correspondence & comments are very welcome, if you have the time. Thank you for reading.

Saturday, 13 January 2018

Saturday 13th January 2018 - Who Am I? Part 2


Not really a follow-on per se as the previous post went off on a bit of a tangent but what moves, motivates or otherwise informs my self. A list with a social and moral compass summary at the end. There will be plenty missed but who keeps a record? Besides, brevity must prevail over completeness here, lest it becomes too much to digest.....

Passions & Interests :

Art
Photography
Social & Economic History
Politics
Humanities generally - wish I could really 'get' the sciences
Reading
Writing
Cricket, Grand Tour Cycling, International Rugby Union (all passive)
Skiing
Movies
Music

Movies:

Lost In Translation
Lord of the Rings
Matrix
Love Actually
Citizen Kane
Casablanca
African Queen
Animal House
Blues Brothers
Pulp Fiction
Lock, Stock...
RocknRolla

Writers:

Woolf
Orwell
Tom Sharpe
Clive James
Coleridge
Shakespeare
Dylan Thomas
Tolkien

Music:

Classical - favs are Mozart, Beethoven & Grieg
Blues
Rock/Metal
Techno

Skills :

Research
Systems Analysis & Design
Information Gathering
Logistics
Proof reading
Report Writing
Photography
Used to program

High I.Q., inquisitive, free thinking, free speech advocate, socially awkward, unfocused, put comedy over drama, peace over confrontation, love over hate, quality of life over standard of living, pissed off with the state of the world- consumerism, environmental destruction, inhumanity, selfishness, bad manners, celebrity culture, stupid political & religious ideologies? Then, you're a kindred spirit.

Would love to discuss any or all of the above - please get in touch.