Thought Bubbles – 2 – Push Through

Has it been a month already since the last edition of Thought Bubbles?  I don’t know about you but this past month has been a tough one. Maybe that’s why time seems to have passed so quickly. No time to dilly dally so let’s get right to it.

What I’ve Been Up To

So things have slowly begun to return to “normal.” Places have re-opened, work, restaurants etc. I’ve been able to expand my bubble to family and a few friends which is nice. It’s good to get out of the house every once and a while besides going to the grocery store. There’s been a lot of changes to the normal routine lately and I’m just starting to get used to my current one.

It’s been a tough month for me in terms of creativity. Finding the balance between too much and too little has been a struggle. Too much and you burn out, too little and nothing gets done. If this is something you can relate to feel free to share your experience in the comments below.

Writing

This has been a slow month in terms of writing. I spent most of my time sitting in front of the computer trying to come up with an idea for a short story.  I wrote roughly 15 ideas down but none of them felt right. It was only yesterday after weeks of banging my head against a wall that I finally broke through. Sometimes that’s just how it goes. Maybe it was because of the pressure of a deadline, or maybe my imagination wanted to go on holiday for a while. Once I formed the idea, however, everything started to flow.

The more I write the more I feel I’m not really a short story writer. Most of the stories I consume and enjoy are ones that are periodical or long and immersive. It makes sense that my writing follows the same pattern. I’ll have to think about where to best allocate my writing moving forward.

If you’re a writer do you feel you lean towards one type of writing format more?

Comics

The short story I was having trouble with above was for a short comic that I submitted as a pitch this month. Hopefully, something comes out of it. I may actually attempt to draw the short comic which could end up being a very terrible idea but we’ll see what happens.

Moving forward I hope to write a few short 3-5 issue comic stories that I can hopefully find a home for someday. Making comics as a writer is an expensive ordeal and going into debt to make comics is not something I really want to do. If that means taking a few years to produce a mini-series that’s ok with me.

Art

I finished an art challenge last month, the 100 head challenge. The challenge was to draw 100 heads in 10 days. It was hard. Halfway through it was a real grind but after that things started to flow. I think I learned a few things from doing the challenge. The main lesson being I need to draw more. It’s fun trying different styles but anatomy, perspective, and dynamic poses are my biggest obstacles.

The Reading Pile

Not as big a pile as last time but still a good amount for me. My usual reading pace in the past has been 1 novel every 1-2 months. Thanks to staying at home I’ve been able to double that. The TBR is slowly shrinking but not by much. As mentioned earlier I’m realizing I’m not much of a short story person. Looking back, although I’ve read a few short story collections, even ones by great authors, I’ve never really loved any of them. Nor have any short stories really stuck with me after reading. Not like a good novel or series of books have. I probably won’t be reading many short collections other than the ones I’ve already purchased moving forward.

• A Little Hatred – Joe Abercrombie – New series off to a solid start. Looking forward to the next installment of the series.
• Kings of The Wyld – Nicholas Eames. I haven’t had so much fun reading a novel in a long time. This book is fun, well paced, filled with action, and just one hell of a book. A must read for any fantasy fan.
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck – Mark Manson. A few good pieces of food for thought but I think its strength is in its marketability as a book. Nothing new in this book just presented in a new way.
• Stories of Your Life and Others – Ted Chiang. His short stories are so well done and I can see why he takes so long to write them. Some of the stories in this one are a little too smart for me though. I think if you like realistic fiction this will be something you really enjoy.
• The Ocean At The End Of The Lane – Neil Gaimen. Such a great little book. It’s short but it sucks you in from the beginning and doesn’t let go. Fantastical Gaiman, highly recommended.

What’s On The TV

Mostly Netflix lately.

• New Girl – Finally catching up on this series. Absolutely hilarious.
• Warrior Nun Season 1 – Decent first season. TBD if show has legs.
• Van Hellsing Seasons 1-4 – Not a perfect series by any means but good enough to have on in the background and good enough that I want to see the 5th and final season.
• Snowpiercer – I really liked the movie and the show does a good job to keep its spirit. The series really starts to get good in the second half. Looking forward to season 2.
• Jumanji The Next Level – Not as good as the first but still a decently fun movie.
• Charlies Angels 2019 – Meh…

Closing Thoughts

If I’ve learned anything this past month is that sometimes you just need to keep trying to push through. It’s easier said than done most of the time. We naturally tend to gravitate towards the path of least resistance. Take a nap, watch TV, play a video game, anything to delay and avoid the challenge. It’s ok to take a break and relax but it’s important not to let the break turn into more than that. Whatever you’re working towards I hope you stick with it and keep on moving forward. Who knows how many wonderful things wait for you at your destination.

Till next time, keep pushing forward,

Paolo

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Are you working on any projects right now? Has it been a smooth go or have you hit any roadblocks yet? What keeps you pushing forward and motivated? Feel free to let me know your thoughts or share your experiences below!

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