[Audioblog length – 4:03]
Life got in the way and I strayed from my goal of writing consistently. I wanted to do the “Bradbury Challenge” every week until the end of December. The idea was to read classics, write analyses of them and emulate them in reinterpretations or original writings. I was also supposed to work on finishing a collection of poetry about breastfeeding and then move on to a children’s book involving an original cast of superheroes. The Bradbury Challenge is not over, it’s just evolving.
The Bible is a huge part of my life. I study it a solid 6 days each week, sometimes 7. Keeping up with the Sonnets on top of my scriptural studies wasn’t going quite smoothly. I was having a bit of a struggle and I only did it for 3 weeks! I was supposed to do 4 weeks of Sonnets and then move on to 4 weeks of short stories. I was worried about how I would manage them, then it hit me: I have been reading and studying some of the most classic stories in history! Thus, I decided to roll the Bradburry challenge into my studies and write short stories inspired by the weekly Torah portion. To date, I have written two: one relating to the expulsion from the Garden of Eden and the second about the aftermath of the Flood. I am still unsure if I will go back and attempt to catch up to the current Torah portion. You’ll find out this week.
I am adding another twist to things: I plan, plan being the operative word, on publishing 5 original writing pieces each week, Monday through Friday. I did alright last week with a three day streak starting Monday. Thursday didn’t happen because of personal obligations and really Friday was the same. The objective is to fail faster. Do I want you to ready my messy, mediocre, unpolished work? No, but I have to write it. I have to write all the junk out of my system. I recall years ago hearing a sculptor remark that his art was easy because all he did was remove the stone that didn’t look like the horse (or whatever) he was sculpting. I don’t know if he was an artistic genius and the work came to him with that kind of simplistic ease, or if he was remarking on the fundamental truth of the matter. I have no desire to chip away at stones or wood, I want to pour out and put down words that will leave an impression on your mind. I currently have so little time and so little energy left when all my necessary work is done that it proves difficult to make the use of my time to write like I want to. But I do want to write. I figure I can either not write at all, or I can write in fits and starts, even poorly at first if I have to. Earlier in the year I did the 10 Minute Writing (and Drawing) Challenge. This feels similar from this side of the screen. There is some comfort in that. We’ll see what happens after this week is over, I may tweak my efforts to be more like that. I currently have no constraints on how long I will write or how long the piece will be, other than what time I have available.
This update counts towards my goal of writing and publishing 5 days this week, so I am in good shape already. I plan on finishing at least one more poem about breastfeeding. I will definitely talk about Stan Lee as I learned of his passing (Blessed be the True Judge) the morning of writing and publishing this. I will be following the maxim: write what you know, by broadly discussing Anime, Tokusatsu and Star Wars. I have a regular diet of media in all those categories and shouldn’t struggle too much writing about them. I don’t need to stick to a particular genre as I go forward with this, I just need to write. I will be doing something I love and honing my skills while doing it. I hope so, anyway.
MJ Muñoz 