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In case youāre teetering on the idea of giving the Couch to 80k Writing Boot Camp a shot, hereās an actual quote from an episode:
āKeep the fantasy within the limits of known science please, even if the idea of having a whole day free to do what you like currently feels about as feasible as mid-morning consensual buttplay with an emotionally intelligent xenomorph.ā
So I mean, the question shouldnāt be ifĀ youāre going to do it, itās really a matter of when.
:)
I am absurdly happy I havenāt made a habit of posting the exercises Iāve been writing for this C280k workshop. Today and the rest of week 5 are focusing on trauma. We can elect to skip these exercises, create a fictional trauma to write about, or dive in and write about our own.
While Iām not opposed to sharing what Iām writing -- because this is the ultimate of anonymity -- Iām not in the right mindset to handle anything that might come after. Multiple studies done (that Tim referenced) have proven that this practice worsens the effects of trauma immediately afterward, only to showcase improvement over time.Ā
So in time, I will be okay to post them should I ever feel like it. Right now, though? I should probably complete the exercise and then disappear off social media entirely for the rest of the day. Social media exacerbates depressive thoughts, itās not healthy for me to feed into that cycle when Iām already knowingly experiencing a low.
C280k Wk 4 Day 4
He just made me write a scene using only one syllable words! One syllable words!! Do you realize how hard that was??
Let me paint this for you: This week is about the elements of style. Heās pushing us to work outside whatever style weāve naturally adapted and try out different ones by rewriting the same scene over and over again. I havenāt minded, itās been a fun exercise. Until today. My scene is a memory I have from college and it happens after the semester is over. USING ONE. SYLLABLE. WORDS.
Iām honestly surprised I was able to get some of those sentences out. I have never considered my style elaborate or anything beyond quietly simple, but holy crap was that a simplicity Iāve never attempted in my life.Ā
Fuck.
Photo by Jonny Caspari on Unsplash.
C280k Wk 4 Day 1
This week is all aboutĀ āElements of styleā and all I want to do is write a fanfic. Which would be okay, only no -- I donāt want to write more of mine or more related to what Iāve written: I want to rewrite a short story I just read. Completely. Take the characters and the events and mess up the timeline and make it into something I almost wish it was.
Thatās not!! helping me stay motivated to with this boot camp. Though Iām excited I have three weeks done and only five more to go and Iām happy that itās starting to settle in my routine. Even though I havenāt had the same day off each week, the act of sitting down and writing is there. Today felt odd until I realized I didnāt write yesterday.Ā
So I guess itās working? Which is weird, but okay, letās see how this goes.
Photo by Pascal BrƤndle on Unsplash.
C280k Wk 3 Day 6
Memorable quote:
āYouāre training yourself to accept that failure is part of the process.ā
Iām grateful for todayās episode. It reminded me that I havenāt been happy the last few days because my writing hasĀ āfailedā the last few days. I realized that I havenāt liked what Iāve written in a couple days and rather than acknowledging the hard truth, I distracted myself with other things like motivation.
Itās not a good feeling when you have to call yourself out, but man does it make moving on afterward so much easier. I need to remember this.
Iām starting to miss writing. I think itās because I have all these ideas and no way to push them out, but I feel like thatās part of the purpose to this boot camp. I burned out writing so much during July and August. If I continue trying to push out more writing while doing this, Iāll end up the same. Itās really hard to break the sprinting habit Iāve had and tailor it toward a marathon, but Iām determined to do it.
Even when all my doubts surface and I'm practically convinced this blog is a waste.Ā
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash.
C280k Wk 3 Day 5
No memorable quote for today, again.
Iām not sure if Iām losing interest or if this is just a busy week. Considering the holiday Thursday and trying to fit an entire week of work into two and a half days, Iām hoping itās the latter. Iām also hoping that Iām just not feeling this week.
Today I was supposed to create a character completely different from myself and I did, but I donāt think I did the best I could. Iām just not satisfied with my work today, but Iām letting it be. I have to accept the bad with the good and let it all stand.
Aiming for tomorrow to be a better day.
Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash.
C280k Wk 3 Day 4
Memorable quote:
None.
Iām not here today. I got home from dinner with my parents to find our internet is out, the earliest we can get it fixed is Wednesday morning, and then after going through the process of tech support and scheduling a tech to come out to the house, my husband asked me, āHave you tried unplugging it and plugging it back in?ā If it were possible to reach through the phone and strangle someone, I would have.
We were summoning demons today! Crazy, right? Only not when he actually got into it. He read two excerpts from The Screwtape LettersĀ and wanted us to write based on that premise. I actually enjoyed it, even though it was a weird exercise and Iām mentally twelve miles away standing on sand and doing nothing but watching the water. It was an interesting exercise that I wish I had done yesterday. I would have been in a much better mindset to do so.
Photo by Matt Heaton on Unsplash.
C280k Wk 3 Day 3
Memorable quote:
āJust because something isnāt real, per se, doesnāt mean itās not true.ā
Heās speaking to other writers. Iāve known this, Iāve accepted this, Iāve let it glide over me, but man, it was harder to get past it today. I throw out something I wrote quickly and to me, itās rough and unedited and just the start. But that doesnāt mean it or the potential it has isnāt good.
Tim is speaking to writers who wonāt let them even throw the words on the page, who expect perfection on the first draft, who are so cooped up in their own fears and expectations, they donāt even give themselves a chance. Writer Friend is like this. Iāve known that for a while. The further I get into this boot camp, the more I know Writer Friend will benefit from it.
And itās not a bad thing! These exercises are good for me even if Iāve already leapt over that particular mental block. Thing is, while heās trying to break through that block for other people, Iām stuck with a ridiculous amount of ideas swirling in my notebook and the knowledge that I donāt have the time or energy to flesh them out into stories.
Considering this is my only complaint, Iām not bothered at all. Itās not even a real complaint, more a mild irritation that my brain doesnāt want to deal with. I just know Iāll have three dozen more ideas by the time this eight weeks is over.
Photo by Tom Rumble on Unsplash.
