If you’re a poet that’s great!
Or a short story writer.
Or even a playwright or a screenwriter.
But, you don’t want to ‘just’ stick to one genre.
You want to spread yourself.
It’s like back when I was doing the training.
Some people only did striking but, you’ve got to remember there is grappling as well.
There is also the weightlifting that can help with strength.
There is also running that can help with fitness.
There are also the soft arts like Chi-kung and meditation that can help you even more than the really physical arts.
It is the same when you are on a skateboard.
It’s good to be able to do the basics on flat ground but, there are also slides and grinds to practice.
And it’s good to able to skate the street but it is good to able to skate parks as well.
And when you’re studying Jesus’s teachings – it is also a good idea to learn Buddha’s teachings…
It’s not like God only focused on one thing.
We have trees, we have the sun, we have the moon etc…
And if you don’t believe in God or prophets then look at the mind, like those great philosophers who took that on for their own amusement and you can see that the mind doesn’t just work on one level!
So, take all these analogies into your writing and spread it out like a vast ocean.
When I started off writing at the end of my teens I started off with journalism, poetry, fiction and film.
When I landed in my early twenties I got a little lost but…
I continued to write poems, stories, scripts and I also kept a diary in hopes I could maybe get some material for a column someday.
Once I landed into my mid to late twenties I unfortunately gave up that time to poetry alone because I felt that’s where it was at for me but…
I was wrong!
When I took that year out coming up to my thirtieth year I put a lot of preliminary work into spreading myself and getting out of mainly being a poet.
Obviously the poems were getting published here and there but I had a few stories lined up that were roughly written out in the past.
Now the fiction has taken ‘a whole life of its own’ and tipping the scales at 29 different styles of stories in one year.
I wrote half a dozen scripts for poetry films, but then, I started off a year ago putting my energy into real screenwriting, playwriting and TV writing.
And I always wanted to come back to journalism and I decided to pitch the idea for this column to the lovely Claire for this magazine and she went for it.
I haven’t written this diversely in quite some time but if I’m to be frankly honest with you: I’m fucking loving this right now!
I was on my morning walk with my dog and I realised this column is like a writing class but a hell of a lot more creative…
Well, for me anyway.
As you start to spread yourself as a writer and artist it is also good to pressure test your material with magazines or publishers to see what they think.
Don’t be discouraged by their feedback, criticism or rejections.
That is a ‘good’ thing and it will help your growth as an artist.
I think I’ve said everything I need to say for now in this one.
So, until next time… stay beautiful!
This articles poem is called: ‘why do you do that for’
I felt it was the right fit for this one.
Love
PBJ
<3
Why do you do that for
Even though there is a chance of permanent deformity when I skate
There is nothing like hearing the sound of tapping boards after landing a trick
Even though there is a chance of being knocked out when you train
There is nothing better than learning to master a movement or a form
Even though when I write and I continue to get rejected
There isn’t a greater feeling when you do get accepted in the form of publication
Even though I have read and reread great minds on life and thought
There isn’t any comparable glory when you learn to find your own truth of Love