Category Archives: Uncategorized

Force Yourself to Write–Every Day

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After the long work week, I am caught up on sleep.  I spent last night caught up in a fascinating (and disturbing  conversation with one of my closest friends.  We spent more than an hour talking about what we would do if we were eccentric billionaires.  Are basic conclusion would be that neither of us should ever come into money because we would use it to create strange social experiments.

I failed to write–yet again–last night.  I need to start forcing myself.  With only 44 days until I leave for the Peace Corps, my time is short.  I want to finish the rough draft of what I am working on before I leave.  That means a 1,000 word daily minimum is necessary.  I will start this evening.  I get back from Denver in the afternoon and have plenty of free time after that.  I need to force myself to make this happen.  Here is another poem from my 14-year old self:

The One Thing the World Needs

 

More Work to Come

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I am exhausted.  I’m starting to reconstruct this website the way it should have been all along.  It’s starting to look much better.  I can’t wait until I start getting certain parts done to show off to all my followers.  By the way, we just hit 90 WordPress followers today!

I am going to go have fun for a few hours.  As a result, I will do all my writing and reading tonight.  I am going to re-implement the 1,000 word minimum to my daily schedule.  I will do that tonight.  Somehow my mind develops better prose when it is dead tired.  [As long as I am not to tired to write at all.]  I am also going to start working on a new book.  This one is one I have tried to read many times, but failed due to a busy schedule.  Homepully that is not the case this time.

Enjoy another poem:

All That Matters

End of the Work Week

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I spent the last four days in a Elementary School Severe Special Education classroom here in Greeley, Colorado.  It was exhausting  but amazing.  It looks like I’ll be holding onto the same assignment for at least part of next week.  For now, however, the work wee is officially over.  It’s long overdue.  I am sore and quite tired.  I will sleep well tonight.  But, before then, I have some writing to do–and a fun weekend planned.

I am going to work on the remodel a little bit then write for a little bit.  As promised, I am going to continue providing you with poems from my teenage year.  This one is from the end of 2003.  Most of my angsty poems will be from 2004.  Most of them are rather simple, but they are still enjoyable.  Here you go:

A Life Without Love

 

Complete Remodel

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This always happens.  Every time I think of something cool that could spice up my blog, I end up biting off far more than I can chew.  It doesn’t matter.  It will be well worth the effort.  I am redoing the site by time rather than by type of writing.  It seems to be a better way to present myself and my writing   This way, when you read poetry from my teenage years, you’ll better understand why it is angsty.  It’s also the best way i can think of that shows how my craft has improved over time.

If you are looking to read any of my work, I would recommend looking through blog updates for now.  The navigation bar is going to be pretty much useless until I finish my work–which will likely take at least a week.  As I prepare the new website, I will be updating once or twice a day with old poems and stories.  Here is one of the oldest poems I wrote.  I was 14 at the time–just finishing up my first semester as a freshmen in my small high school.

And Then

Back to Writing

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For the first time in quite awhile, I am writing again with a great level of consistency.  Along with this comes the concern of disclosing what I am writing.  It’s difficult to talk about what you are writing about without losing the excitement.  So, in the meantime, I think I am going to work on re-organizing the website so that it can include older works.

I started writing 9 years ago–at the age of 14.  It started with romantic poetry.  It developed into flash fiction.  That quickly turned into short stories.  By the time I was 20, I had written my first novel.  The thing is, I don’t have many of my older writings here.  They may not be as good, but I love the idea of presenting them as a way of seeing my progress.  I will likely start updating them this evening.

It will take awhile.  In the meantime, check out an old Sci-Fi Short story.  A recent discussion with a lovely girl reminded me of it.  I think you will love it.

The Prototype 

50 Days Out

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I got back from Washington about 14 hours before Thanksgiving Dinner.  Now, as the Holiday Weekend comes to a close, I find myself with a score of decisions and realizations.  With 50 days left before I am scheduled to leave for Morocco with the Peace Corps, there is plenty to figure out in a short amount of time.  For the first time in my life, I am coming to a crossroads where straight is no longer an option.  I must make a hard decision.

Although I do have more pressing matters to think and write about, the one I spent today on seemed appropriate.  I have been mulling over the idea of home for more than a month now.  I finally found the words to articulate the feeling that has been grown inside of me.  I hope you enjoy it.

on Home

 

on the Electoral College & the Presidential Election

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With 25 hours or so until the first polling stations close on the East Coast, we are nearing the start of the 2016 Presidential Kickoff (Just Kidding…actually, maybe not).  Anyway, this has been a long and obnoxious election.  In the end, I became a part of the annoying group that talked too much about the election.  Sorry about that.

Tomorrow I will upload my Election Day Wish List–just something I put together every election day.  But, for today, I want to spend my time with you talking about the Electoral College.  I consider myself one of the fiercest opponents of this disgusting piece of law.  I cringe with anger at the mere mention of its name.  If you want to see the extent of my anger or just want to know more about the Electoral College, please read on:

Repeal the Electoral College

Love & Fear

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I am on my tenth day in Washington State.  I came here to figure out a lot.  For one, I wanted to challenge myself.  I wanted to throw myself as far away from the monotony of daily life and prove that I could endure it.  Ever since this summer, I’ve been afraid.  I don’t want anxiety over little fears to be a daily part of my life.  If, however, I must accept it, I want it only on the condition that I view it as a challenge I cannot walk away from.  I want to confront my fear head on.

The other reason I came to Washington was for love.  That’s not to say that I am in love.  Moreso, for the first time in far to long, I feel as though it is a possibility.  These ten days have opened me up in ways I haven’t felt in years.  This intense emotion has helped me challenge my fear, start writing in new ways, and has made me genuinely happy.  I don’t know what to make of these strange twist of fate…but I know now that they are worth it.  So long as you do succumb to anxiety and fear, you will find your way.

With Love,
Richard

P.S.–This entire post reminds me of Donnie Darko.  Please ignore that aspect of it.

My Affliction

CALLING ALL WRITERS!!!

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When I was in high school, I didn’t know how to be anyone but me.  Looking back, that wasn’t the case for everyone.  Teenagers tend to fall into cliques, subcultures, or certain behaviors in order to feel that sense of belonging that we all yearn for.  Looking back, I am under the belief that the best way to experience high school is by being yourself.  I would love to share this idea with teenagers getting ready to enter high school or already in high school.

So here’s the plan.  I am looking for 15-25 people who are willing to share their high school story.  I want to know what kind of group(s) you fell in with.  I want to know how you stood out as an individual.  I want to know when you found it hard to be yourself.  I want to know when you found yourself conforming at times.  How did it affect your academic life?  How did this affect your social life?  How did this affect your romantic life?

The plan is to make an anthology of these stories.  I am looking for stories between 3,000 and 6,000 words (these aren’t set guidelines, but don’t go crazy).  If your story is among the best, I will contact you and let your know that it will be included.  Once the anthology is set, you will have an opportunity to buy a severely discounted copy of the book.  Also note that, should the book ever be professionally published (it’s incredibly difficult to do so, but who knows), the profits will be split evenly between all chosen contributors.

Send you story, information, or questions to FFman@comcast.net

Make sure to include your name, contact information and name/location of your high school.  I can only accept stories until Christmas Day 2012—so get started!

Feel free to reblog to spread the word.