Weekly update 1

Welcome to my weekly update on my writing, readings, and other interesting ideas. If you like what you're reading, make sure to subscribe to receive the next newsletter!

Writing Journey

• Not much creative writing is happening these days. Recently, I came up with a short story idea. I was thrilled; I hadn't had an exciting bite-sized idea in a long time. I quickly took notes and prepared the plot points, but I couldn't get down to writing.
  • I jotted down lots of details about the plot points.
  • I structured the story, but I couldn't find details about the conflicts and the characters' journey when I started writing.
  • Eventually, I decided to write a minisaga (a 50-word short story) to make myself write down the whole story.
    • It ended up being 300 words, a promising progress.
    • However, I'm still stuck with the details.
    • I lost interest in the details of this story because the story I have in mind is a sci-fi one, a genre that I wouldn't say I like that much, but ironically, it's easier for me to come up with ideas for.
  • For now, I paused this story and decided to focus on my nonfiction writing in this newsletter and my blog.
  • I'll set aside occasional timeslots to expand the story but won't force myself to write it.

Learnings

• I'm taking this fantastic course these days: Masterpieces of World Literature
  • Before committing to reading, I started this course to learn about some intimidating classics.
  • Most lectures are in discussion format, and they're absolute gems.
  • So far, I've learned about "The Epic of Gilgamesh" and "The Odyssey".

Books

• These days, I mostly read books from my fantasy tournament.
  • I chose these series/books to check out next:
    • The Second Apocalypse
    • First Law World
    • Remembrance of Earth's Past
    • The Emperor's Soul
      
• I'm also reading "Bird by Bird." This is my latest highlight from the book:

One of the things that happens when you give yourself permission to start writing is that you start thinking like a writer. You start seeing everything as material.

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird (Canons) (p. 138). Canongate Books. Kindle Edition.

• Lastly, I read a few pages from the ancient masterpiece, "The Epic of Gilgamesh," as part of the reading assignment for the Masterpieces of World Literature course I mentioned earlier.

That's it for the past week's updates. If you want to support this newsletter, please make sure to subscribe. Comment on your thoughts and ideas on what I shared; I'd love to read them!