the creative minimalist
A flip through of my junk journal and planner and a little thought about the sort of things I write on my to-do lists. Why do I add things that aren’t actions to my lists? They cause nothing but trouble.
Bandcamp
this temple eden
Shop: Planarchy and Stuff
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/darrenrhill
A Fiction Writing Prompt to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.
There is nothing I can do. My fate is in the hands of the gods. I am helpless. Everything is out of my control.
Many things that make us anxious and worried are beyond our control. Our actions rarely affect events in the world around us. We can influence others and play our part and do our thing, but we can’t control events. For instance, the current pandemic is beyond our control. We can do our part in trying to ease transmission but how others and governments act is not down to us. Things beyond our control can make us anxious, and that is what this prompt explores.
Remember this is not about you personally. This is a fiction writing prompt. It can relate to any situation and the character, even though it is written in the prompt in the first-person, it is not you. The setting of the scene can be for any situation, from something major like a pandemic to something more personal like waiting for a phone call. Characters can find themselves helpless in a variety of situations. However, I hope the prompt doesn’t leave you feeling hopeless as you try to write.
As always these writing prompts are optional and entirely open to your own interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story or something a little more grandiose. If you do write something, please share it or a link, in the comments or tag me. I’d love to read what you create. Write and enjoy the learning process.
Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox
If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.
Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest
And so we find ourselves in September. Well, I do, and I am assuming that you are too. Although this year has been full of the weird and out of the ordinary, so perhaps I am just here on my own. ‘Welcome to September’, I said as I looked at my junk journal and created the page above, and ‘welcome to a need for infinite patience’ a voice replied.
There are a few things I want to do. There are several reasons why those things can’t be done. All of the reasons are beyond my control. Welcome to my need for infinite patience.
The good thing about not being able to do certain things is that I can get on and do other things.
The challenge, as always, is to actually do them. I find it far too easy to let the issues I have no control over take up too much of my time. Worrying about something I can’t do anything about feels like my superpower at times. I like to think that it is down to my active imagination, which makes me a creative person. But when my imagination is engaged in worrying, I am anything but a creative machine. Anxiety can be a creative muse, especially for my songwriting, but it is also a creativity killer when it stops me in my tracks.
I need to be patient. And while I wait, I need to create and not let the worry and concern stop me. Watch this space.
Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox
If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.
Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest
A video flip through of my junk journal and an update with my planner. Plus a little trip to the beach to deliver a creativity tip.
Shop: Planarchy and Stuff
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/darrenrhill
The incense fell straight and created these columns as it burned. Little creative accidents are nice when they occur. But creativity can also involve hard work and effort. In a bid to both motivate and make myself accountable, I thought it was time for some creative field notes. What exactly am I creating?
This past week I have been updating and creating websites. You should see a few changes here as I begin to roll out the changes. I have tried various designs over the years but, for this site – and quite rightly too – I find myself returning to a simple minimal feel.
This Temple Eden is also going through a few changes. This is taking a little longer to roll out, but you will be able to find things easier and quicker in the near future.
Waoao (freelance) has partly prompted these changes. I am working on simplifying and creating a couple of websites in a freelance capacity. This has meant going back to basics whilst keeping up with the ever-changing technology of the web. If you’re thinking of setting up a website and don’t know where to start, drop me a comment and I’ll get back to you. I offer a friendly service and tech talk-free solutions.
This past week I finished the first draft of lyrics to a song that is now called ‘The Sun and the Moon’. I’m letting the lyrics settle for a while and will then work on an arrangement and get some recording done.
I have a couple of other tracks in progress and they are going well.
The music I have completed is available on Spotify and Apple Music, and Bandcamp. My Bandcamp site is still offering hours of music for the price of a couple of cups of coffee. And on September 4th Bandcamp are waiving their fees for artists to help during the pandemic. So if you want a little music, feel free to purchase and enjoy.
I still don’t quite feel like I have my song collection organised. I have it all in a database at the moment. However, I feel like I need to go old school with it all and use index cards. Will something tactile help me create more music, or am I just procrastinating again? That’s always possible.
Well, let’s put it this way, I haven’t been. I could blame the virus but I don’t think it is that. It is more a question of time and priorities. I have been posting the writing prompts here and there will be more writing tips to follow. In conclusion…
‘Not blocked, just not’
darrenrhill
I have moved into a more visual journey in my journal and planner. I am sharing this process regularly on YouTube and cross-posting here. If you haven’t visited my YouTube channel, here’s the link and if you want, I would appreciate your subscription. And any stickers I use in my journals might be found on my pLAnarchy Etsy store, so do check that out.
So that’s the state of the creative minimalist as August draws to an end. There are plenty of other things I would like to share with you, but they need to wait for a later post. In the meantime, I need to get going with my freelance work, making some music and seeing if my fingers want to type a little fiction.
Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox
If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.
Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest
A Fiction Writing Prompt to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.
The detective walked up to the store worker. “So you saw the man running away? Can you describe him?”
A key skill in writing is the ability to describe someone. All of the characters you create need to be believable. Your characters need to become real as your words are read.
This prompt is all about describing someone and making them real. However, you don’t know anything about them apart from what was seen. There is no backstory to your character. They simply ran past the store worker. So how real can you make them? What things are important to describe?
Beyond the fact that the police are involved and the character was running, the setting of this prompt is up to you. It could be a robbery. It could be a kidnapping. It might be about someone being recognised and trying to getaway. The main point is about describing the man. So let’s get those descriptive words and phrases going.
As always these writing prompts are optional and entirely open to your own interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story or something a little more grandiose. If you do write something, please share it or a link, in the comments or tag me. I’d love to read what you create.
Original running man image Image by Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox
If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.
Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest