Creative Content Guy
A valuable companion to morning pages We rush through life: wake up, check the phone, walk the dog, dash to work, grab a coffee, lunch at the desk, trawl through emails, go home, have a quick dinner, watch a bit of telly, then sleep for a few hours until we have to get up and … Continue reading The Evening Check-in ✍🏻 Reflecting on the Day
Men don’t talk. We don’t “open up”. We find it difficult to show our feelings. We won’t ask for directions – and with satnavs and smartphones, these days we don’t have to. These may be clichĂ©s, but clichĂ©s are rooted in fact. When I used go to collect our kids from primary school, I noticed … Continue reading Breaking the Male Silence 👤
The old man’s gone, but the music lives on It’s approaching the third anniversary of Mark’s dad’s death. And he’s just given away the old man’s saxophone. It was the day of their son’s graduation. Mark and his wife, Sue, went to the university for the ceremony, accompanied by Mark’s mum, Mary. It was a … Continue reading Giving Away Dad’s Sax 🎷
In a previous post, I mentioned morning pages; if you’re not familiar with the idea, this is what it’s all about. The term “morning pages” comes from Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way. This is an inspirational book for anyone interested in exploring creativity, or who feels their creative impulse is floundering. I was first … Continue reading Morning Pages ✍🏻
It’s OK to be you As writers, we observe and analyse, document and comment, our own feelings and opinions thinly veiled behind the exploits of allegedly fictional characters. A certain level of detachment is essential if we’re to be at all effective in our craft. As writers are typically introverts, this tends to come easily. … Continue reading The Writer as Outsider đź“„
Clarify your thoughts, write a great first draft Computers, phones and other gadgets are essential to everyday life. With their convenience and speed, we use them to communicate daily. But for reflective, exploratory writing, writing that’s just for you, I’m a firm believer that writing by hand is much more effective than tapping on a … Continue reading The Benefits of Writing by Hand đź“„
This is a photo of me taken in 1989. I was in a band called Emma Gibbs Love Badges. The lead singer, Lee Scott Revelle, died recently; this is one of several photos that surfaced as a result. Great times.
But which one? A letter to my younger self. I admit that I thought this would an easy little exercise. But then I sat down to write… To what age me should I address this letter? Which of the many people I’ve been? On considering the options, a certain song by Frank Sinatra sprang to … Continue reading A Letter to My Younger Self đź“„
Martin Sketchley 