Writing With Intention & Courage

  Part of a video series done for the
  Antioch University Virtual Writing
  Center (2012).

Monthly Writing Prompts

LIVE TWEETING

I'm finally catching up with the rest of the 21st Century. I've had a Twitter account for a year now but never used it more than to follow famous people. But this thing called live tweeting... oh man, I'm hooked. You use what are called hashtags to mark your tweet as belonging to a particular thread (idea, product, television show, etc.). The thread appears in real time so you can see what others are saying about the topic as well. It's not necessarily a conversation, though I've seen one become chatty for a hot minute. To me, they're more about expression.  

Lately, I've been following Stephen Colbert's thread, #NotIntendedToBeAFactualStatement. See, last week, Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona said something wildly untrue about Planned Parenthood, and when the media called him out on it, a spokesperson said that Sen. Kyl's remarks were not intended to be a factual statement, rather to prove a point. My man Colbert took this and ran with it, using the phrase as a disclaimer after several untrue statements he made about the senator. He created this hashtag and continued his tirade on Twitter where it reverberates to this day. I've kept the search up while I've written here, and already there've been forty-eight tweets added to the thread. And you know, most of 'em are pretty damn funny. God bless the Colbert Nation.

I also enjoy watching the evening news while tuned in to a hashtag on Twitter. For example, I sometimes watch The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell which has the hashtag #lastword associated with it. Viewers comment on whatever comes up on the show in (nearly) real time... you have to account for a small lag while the search refreshes, but other than that, the comments are spot on. It's very cathartic to listen to other Progressives bitch and moan like I do.  Ha!

I think it'd be great to have enough clout as a writer to draw an audience to a hashtag of my own creation. Truly, that's a sign that you've made it in today's electronic media blitz: if you can attract the most attention. It's also a sign of the emerging market of readers/consumers of media and entertainment. They're always caught up in something new and shiny. As if creative people need one more thing to stress over, right?

WRITER'S MANIFESTO

The Creative Self. I'm a writer, though you wouldn't know it most of the time. I rarely feel confident enough about my writing to share it with the world. Instead, my words fill up notebooks in disorganized bursts. I tell people those notebooks are fermenting for later use, but so far, they collect dust on my shelf, unseen.

Even as I draft this, my brain struggles against creating a manifesto, afraid to commit to an angle on the subject of writing. It gets tangled up in the fear and anxiety instead of exposing their roots. After all, those feelings are not things in themselves. I'm not just anxious; I fiddle anxiously with sentences in order to find a proper fit. I don't just fear; I fear exposing the gaps in my thinking and the scope of my point of view.

I forget that the creative process is not painless. As a writer, I take it upon myself to observe, to make comparisons, to invent people and places and have them interact in situations I decide upon. I'm actively using what I know about the world to build something unique. There will be tension. There will be criticism and rejection. There will be some measure of enjoyment and catharsis involved. There are no guarantees. And all of that is part of the process.

Which is why, of all the agendas to have as a writer, I choose to cultivate bravery. I vow to endure those tensions, to accept them as part of my mind set and thus part of the process. My courage will be rewarded - IS being rewarded right now as I conclude this manifesto. No more shying away from what I love.

Those fears and concerns will be there, but I cannot let them stop me. I must remember WHAT I fear, and that's my creative self.

[Submitted for partial credit.]

XEUS

I came across bits from a fun writing exercise I did a while back. You find or create basic sentences that tell about a situation, and then attempt to show the same thing through description or detail. Here's my favorite one:

My cat Xeus was happy. [telling]

Xeus hopped up on my lap as I watched the evening news. My brown blanket covered my lap, which to him suggested a possible spot to lay. He flexed his paws gently against a bunching of fabric as I stroked his spotted fur. His rhythmic purr was soothing; his warmth appreciated. [showing]

I got a little chocked up when I found that. I miss him.

SUPER GOOD IDEA

I found a well animated Flash on the front page of Newgrounds the other day called Superpope. It had a Dragonball Z-esque feel, which was alright I guess, if not a bit overplayed. The story line was simple; a demon crawls from out of a well and threatens the lives of two villagers, in flies Superpope to save the day. Huzzah. Well good for the artist who created it. Only today, while I was perusing the Bookery Comix, I found an edition of what was called Battle Pope that seemed similar to the aformentioned Flash animation, only this pope was a juggernaught, musclular and powerful. And good for Funkotron Publications.

I have to be honest though, I'm a bit upset. It's not the success of these artists. Anyone who fancies themselves a creative person will understand it is no easy feat to get started on your dream. Today's world expects you to produce, "come back to us when you've got something we can market." Anything but well wishing for these two ideas would be heretical to an aspiring writer. Lots of karma at stake.

I'm upset because one of my own comic / Flash ideas is for a supernatural pontif saving the day (although mine is extremely comical, and involves a lot of Catholic mythos in the telling). In all truth, these two produced ideas are nothing like my own, so I still consider my cartoon pope a valid expression of my creativity. Mine is more a commentary on organized religion.

I guess you could say I'm kicking myself. I didn't act on my impulse to create this, and now see evidence of its positive reception in the public eye. Oh no, not to worry about me readers, I've still got plenty of ideas left ... but what if I see another one displayed tomorrow? What if all my great ideas are actually quite common, making it a race to the publicist for validation of one's life work. Even if it's a one in a million kick ass and take names idea, there are still millions of heads capable of generating ideas every day. Stick a bunch of monkeys in front of word processors and watch them churn out the Fiction section at Barnes and Noble.

I'm overreacting, which is perhaps a good way for you to understand why I have yet to produce anything successfully in the eyes of the literary or online Flash community. Overreactive, overly critical of something that is by nature a process, a perspective that is cluttered and in constant need of distraction. I think that's why I've got so many friggin' ideas ... it keeps me moving back and forth and this way and that, so that I never finish anything. Lesse, two collections of short stories with about 6 stories a piece, two novels, a couple comic strips, and an army of cartoon foolery. Big talk aint it? In my defense, this shit doesn't roll out in neat little packages. A lot of times experience is what adds to a good idea to make it better. At least I'm constantly writing (which now includes this forum).

Sorry to whine at perfect strangers. I dunno, I felt a need.

HOOKED ON A BLOGGING

DUDE ... I've only been on Blogger four days and I'm already addicted! I have a habit of clicking that NEXT BLOG button on the top right of my dash board, just to see what someone else has to say. I must have been around the world at least ten times by now; China , Pakistan, Washington D.C., Canada, South America ... and now in each of these countries festers one of my opinion(ations). I may not be able to read everything I find, but all these blogs kick ass. I think I'm home (or at least relaxed for awhile in reasonable cyber accomodations.)

When I first started, I chose that boring face template everyone else is using. I've since emboldened myself to dig into the HTML of the template to make it a little more mine. I've already changed the color scheme to my old familiars as well as added a couple of pics for fun. And hey, as I learn more about HTML and moveable type (that's what this is, right?) you can watch this blog grow and, ultimately, bud new ideas.

One thing troubles me though about this endeavor. I've noticed other bloggers seem to write stuff ALL THE TIME! I mean, its tempting to type every little thing down, but who wants to dig through all that for meaningful posts? Therefor I'm giving you dear readers the charge of keeping me on track. If I seem to stray, call me on it! Don't let me embarass myself with a forum full of "today was a crappy day cuz I farted and woke myself up ... it was all downhill from there."

After the newness of this community has left me, I'll probably post a LOT more to other people's forums than my own. Expect a good'un to come out once a week or so. Feel free to contact me.

!SHALOM!

Greetings fellow monkeys! Tis I, yer old pal Denny, dissident darling of the Midwestern states, back from the cybergrave to prattle on! Some of you know me as DeenerBob from my old website. I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye. Honestly, the site was a lot of fun to put together and maintain, but what were most enjoyable by far were my Opinionations. It certainly was the page that recieved the most hits. It is because of you that I return to my vigil in written form. Thank you for reminding me what I love to do.

As for the rest of you, I'm shocked at how much time you spend behind that computer of yours. Remember to hydrate, and stretch now and then.

I hope you enjoy the topics and discussions this forum will generate. My interests and research lead me into quite a few areas which include religious study (hence the name), philosophy, history, politics, sociology, anthropology, sexuality, psychology, and even a bit of neurophysiology if you can believe it. And yes, even media ... especially cartoons!

So anyway, yeah, I'm back in the writer's seat and ready to rumble. Please tell yer friends and neighbors about me, and yes even those you don't like. I want to find lots of unique perspectives, but not necessarily those I agree with all the time. I mean ... what's the point in that, right?