the life and times
I’ve been working on my submission to the CBC Nonfiction Prize. I’ve hit a bit of a hurdle, though. I’m stuck trying to figure out how to get the ideas that are in my head onto the page.
What are your experiences with submitting to writing contests? What do you do when you get stuck?
Last week, I was standing in one of the six aisles of cat wet food at a PetSmart when I got a text from a friend of mine. He was asking me about my latest blog post. He was just curious to know how I was promoting myself. When he found out that I don’t do much, he asked if I’m just writing for myself. I told him that I am, that when I was focussed on my stats, I would get discouraged when I didn’t get the readership that I was hoping for. Now, I just try to focus on writing. If I can do that, I feel successful.
Continue reading “Self-Promotion”
My relationship with pens, even to me, is a bit strange. I’m not quite so sure why I like them as much as I do. Maybe it’s not something that I need to figure out but it’s something that I question from time to time.
Continue reading “The Value of a Pen”
Several years ago, when I had first moved to Toronto, I was going to a good number of job interviews. One of the most common pieces of feedback I got when I wasn’t successful in an interview or when I was being let go was that I was “too creative for the position.” At the time, and even now, it felt like a nice way to brush me off without having to provide too many details about why I wasn’t right for the position. As the years have passed, I think that the feedback might not have been too far off the mark.
Continue reading “Finding a Voice”
There’s so much going on in the world right now. Not just my world but the entire world. Whether I focus on issues in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, North America, or globally, there is something happening that is worth thinking about and considering. The news is full of events that are exciting, pointless, nonsensical, and tragic. There is an endless stream of events filtering through.
Continue reading “I really can’t think of what to write about”
My knowledge of firearms is very limited. I’ve played a few hunting video games in my day but I’ve never fired a real gun. I’ve seen movies with people shooting at each other in them. My friends have told me stories about the times when they’ve fired guns. The custodian at work told me that he’ll take me out shooting one day; he used to be on a SWAT team in the
I have a hard time expressing myself. It’s true. Far too often I find myself in a pickle because I found myself dumbfounded or, more often, excessively revealing. Both extremes stem from the same source: my inability to properly measure the value of the message that I’m trying to deliver.
Continue reading “Self-Expression, Part 1”Well, it’s now July 21st. It’s been three weeks since the summer started and, well, it’s been about that long. Continue reading “3 Weeks into Summer”
It’s been a long time since I’ve played with LEGO. Tonight, I did. For a few weeks now, I’ve had this urge to build something. But, I’m soft so LEGO was the only thing that I’d reasonably be able to approach.
Here’s a video of me putting together the LEGO Architecture: London kit:
“Dude, just wake up fifteen minutes earlier.”
“I will.” Continue reading “Just Write”