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Ireland Calling ( Day 11 )
The Challenge for Day 11 Today’s challenge is an interesting one, it’s called “Persuade me.” As an example, Jeff suggests persuading someone to try something new. As it happens, while checking up on Twitter this morning, I came across a tweet announcing that Ireland ranked at number two in Good Countries, just behind Finland. So that gave me an idea…Why not try to persuade people of the benefits of choosing Ireland as a holiday destination? Obviously, as I live in Ireland, I’m already a believer. Now it’s just a matter of convincing you! Ireland Calling Well, what is so special about Ireland? The answer lies in its’ uniqueness. A small island, located…
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Happy Mars Day ( Day 10 )
The Challenge for Day 9 The prompt today for my 500 Word Challenge is to ” Write about Writing.” The joys, the pitfalls and how I’m coping with the Challenge. We seem to have days for everything now, so why not have a Happy Mars Day? And I mean the planet, not the chocolate, but I guess both could work at this stage. Just check out Twitter! Happy Mars Day Why am I calling today Happy Mars Day? As you might know, I’m currently taking part in a Creative Writing course with Pauline Clooney. Each week we get a story prompt, usually quite open to interpretation. One particular week the…
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Vodka, Sunscreen and Goat Stew ( Day 9 )
The Challenge for Day 9 Interesting email from Jeff Goins today, where he asks us to ” Teach something.” Well, after my years of teaching primary school children, I’ve learned that sometimes it can be fun to go a bit left of field. So, with that in mind, here’s my advice on getting the best out of a foreign holiday trip… It’s satire, But I’m Irish so I hope I can get away with it 🙂 Vodka, Sunscreen, and Goat Stew ” An Irishman’s Guide to Travelling Abroad” Don’t waste time on Research Who wants to waste hours trawling through the internet? Or even worse, stuck…
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Ten Writing Tips ( Day 8 )
Day 8 of my 500 Words Challenge ” Make a List” I’m reading my email from Jeff Goins and I do a double take. A list? That’s all he wants today? And me on a roll with all that creative writing? I’m joking, of course. It is such a relief to wind down the dial a bit for today. Gives my brain a chance to paddle along the ocean edge. The big waves are fun, but you can’t keep that pace up constantly, you just might get rolled over. With that in mind, I thought I’d share these ten writing tips with you. Stuff that I’ve learned during my six-month…
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Hope ( Day 7 )
The Challenge for Day 7 The challenge for Day 7 was to write a letter to your younger self. I found this quite difficult. Too many competing emotions, I think. The poems of Emily Dickenson have always inspired me and never more so than today. Here is the first verse of ” Hope” “Hope” is the thing with feathers – That perches in the soul – And sings the tune without the words – And never stops – at all – Hope Dear Bernie, You are probably wondering who is writing to you out of the blue like this? Well, let’s say a little bird told me…
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Hitting the Ceiling Light ( Day 6 )
The Challenge for Day 6 ” Tell Another Person’s Story” The challenge from Jeff Goins today is to tell a story from someone else’s point of view, perhaps even a friend. I reached back into my past and this is what I came up with. Part fiction, part memoir, but told from a friend’s point of view. Hitting the Ceiling Light… Hitting the Ceiling Light “Look at the pair of ye.” Miss Hennessey has me and Annie Smith standing out in front of the class. Rows of wooden desks in front of us and her sitting behind us. I can’t even see her face, but her voice makes me jump.…
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Old McDonald had a Car ( Day 5 )
The challenge for Day 5 Today’s 500Words Challenge( Jeff Goins ) is to write about a day you will never forget. Everyone has loads of those days that stick out in the memory for one reason or another. I went for the day I attempted the driving test for the second time. Most of it is true to the original event, though I changed a few small details. Here it is, Old McDonald… Old McDonald had A Car Just an hour to go. I’m sitting in my car, the little orange Punto, waiting. And breathing. Calmly. In through the nose, out through the mouth. My heart doesn’t seem to…
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Free Writing ( Day 4 )
Free Writing The email from Jeff Goins today is to do some free writing. Now, this is a concept I’m quite familiar with because it’s something I do regularly as part of my creative writing course. Basically, you just keep writing for a set period of time, usually on a suggested prompt. You are supposed to keep going no matter what. No self-editing or revisions, the grammar police are banned. The aim is to encourage creativity. This is how Jeff describes it: “Master the art of silencing the inner critic, letting go of perfectionism, and embracing your art.” Jeff Goins So, if you can’t think of anything, you…
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Before Coffee (Day 3)
Before Coffee Help! The latest email from Jeff Goins suggests that the best time for writing is first thing in the morning. He even recommends getting up an hour or two earlier each day, just to write. Before coffee, before food, before anything. Now, anyone who knows me can testify that I am not an early riser. And to make it worse, it takes me ages to tune into life. But, maybe that’s the whole point…Perhaps waiting for the fog to clear is the wrong approach? Tomorrow, I am going to find out one way or another because I intend to take up this part of the challenge in the same…
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Three Questions (Day 2 )
Three Questions Today’s suggestion for the 500 words challenge is to outline my main goal for taking it on and then explain how I hope to achieve this. These three questions should help me clarify things: Why did I take it on? What do I want to achieve over the next 31 days? How will I go about it? Hopefully, by the time I finish this post, we will have some answers to these three questions.. And yes, as you’ve guessed, I’m winging it here. Why did I take on the challenge? This question is easier to answer and I mentioned some of the factors in the Day 1…