Brittle roses dance on the battlefield of summer breeze and suns withering under weight of nemesis guns tunes to dance to creating a shade of doubt is this the summer we had a season of war
Tag: motivation
Chronic
Got me that midnight chronic Ain't gonna stop till your on the bonnet Drawn, down, down, down to the rock bottom Sticking to the game like a fly trap My problems just gonna go snap So you choke under wrath's righteous back Telling yourself you'll make it back.
You are Enough
Hi all. Hope you’re having a great day.
After having a read through sites lately I noticed that the general negative attitude of people is generally being dominated by positive messages. I am enjoying seeing these uplifting and heart warming posts. Particularly on Twitter (follow me if you want: @Thomas87520559).
It wasn’t long ago that the timelines – mine at least – was obscured with such ill wishes. Of course a lot are real, insulting and dangerous. Most can be classed as bait, stirring up arguments among the Writing Community. Join the community by talking to the indie authors on Twitter. Thankfully a lot of people are waking up to the fact that not responding and antagonising such people is better. I was ready to delete my account at one point before the new year because all I saw was arguing! It’s not nice!
Well this brings us to the title of this post. You are Enough. You are, truly. Don’t feel like you are worth less because you don’t respond to the negativity. Don’t feel like less even if you do. Don’t compare yourself to those who produce negativity and hate and then tell you it’s your fault. Stay true to yourself. You are enough the way you are, nobody else defines that. So, no matter how much it might impact you, in reality it shouldn’t.
I love the above quote. You don’t need to feel less worthy if for example, you wrote a story but didn’t get published. You don’t need to feel like you are better than people who haven’t published either, if you have. These are dangerous comparisons. Sure, you have goals, aims and such but that is your life. Not theirs.
I can imagine that the reason that many people are depressed or anxious is because they think it’s a race, a competition. It’s not, no matter what people say. This is life and you can do what you want. You do not need to be wearing someone else’s clothes to feel good, nor do you have to be driving a sporty car, or running ten miles a day.
If you are happy to be you, then you will always be happy.
Aside from that I’m writing on my work I’m progress today. It’s a ghost story if you are wondering. Strange happenings. I hope to have a good first draft by mid-February latest. I’m not keen on working on anything else at the moment. Although I did have another story in the works, it can wait.
That’s enough chat, time for a poem. Titled You are Enough.
A rain drop trickles, alone along a pane of glass
Humbled
Humble as the day I was self aware the gift of consciousness the gift to be aware to think that people would try to bring me down to attack my crown is a coal in your jewelry box is a dead bird atop a devouring fox ... humbled beneath my eyes your the one I see inside so the dark days they pass fast like Alice, looking through the looking glass
My WordPress Anniversary!
I absolutely love writing on my site and love the word press community!
I’ve been informed that today it is my 7 Year Anniversary…
This is such a huge achievement. I never thought when I made my site all alone in my bedroom that it would still be running today. I never thought I’d have even this many followers or supporters either. Things have been so dramatic and changed a lot of the last several years.
So fellow bloggers, here’s my emotional tribute to you all! Keep on writing and enjoying life.
I hope I have another several years writing on here. Cheers.
Five Essential Writing Tips to Better Story Writing
You’ve nailed a concept, plot, character or dilemma and formed a vision of a beautiful story in your mind. You have it planned, or perhaps are waiting to unleash it without planning anything. I want you to finish your story and enjoy the process. From my own writing I’ve found five essential writing tips that will considerably improve your story writing skills!
- BE OPEN TO CHANGE – Just because you’ve planned a story it does not mean you cannot change the plot, characters or direction. Being open to change is really the number 1 tip you must take on board when creating fiction! Always be open to change, and feel free to change your story or the elements. Nothing is worse than being stuck in a chapter confused as to where to take the story because your planning hasn’t worked out, or the story simply went another way!
- REVIEW YOUR CHARACTERS AND EVENTS REGULARLY – Be sure that you have understood your characters and what happens to them to make sure that inconsistencies don’t exist; such as Jane with blonde hair turning into a red headed man called John. Don’t be afraid of taking time to comb through a chapter for these little cracks in story either, it may save you the confusing editing process where you discover someone has grown several feet or has managed to teleport across country with no explanation whatsoever.
- HAVE THE END GOAL IN MIND – Always, when writing, be in review of your ultimate end goals or climax. Are you working toward that? Are you getting side tracked and possibly creating a completely different story? If you have a clear end goal – which comes from good planning – then you will write your plot, characters and story in that direction. Sure you might improvise elements of the story or a chapter or two away from the central plot, but at the end of the day distraction shows you lack direction in your own story. I should know.
- WRITE FOR YOURSELF – Ideally always. Many writers and published authors will say write to the market or for a particular audience, but this will cause you to quickly lose your honesty and soul. You’ll find it harder. Write the story how you want, for you. Worry about the opinion of others later.
- EDIT YOUR STORY MULTIPLE TIMES – This will give you the chance to do multiple rewrites if needed, to comb out mistakes and such and to actually review your own story in full. After a first initial draft you should aim to go through to do the initial rewriting followed by a copy edit of the manuscript. You can pay an editor to do this for you, and then work with their suggestions. Reviewing and editing allows you sometimes to take a great story and make it shine like gold. It really can make the difference, allowing you to smooth out sentences and such for easier reading. You might find you delete a lot too. Ideally you’d go through two to three times minimum.*
*A point on the editing; writers tend to go for a developmental edit followed by the line edit, followed by a spelling and punctuation check last. After that they get a proof read.* This is by no means something you have to pay for. You can do all of it yourself, and plenty of resources exist to find beta-readers etc. that can help the process considerably.
Thank you for reading this short, important post. I’d love to hear if you have any tips you’d share yourself. Of course one unwritten rule is that you should have fun. So create the story and enjoy writing it!
Christmas tis the Season to be Jolly
What are your feelings about eating meat?
This Christmas you’ll be tucking into some warm, succulent turkey I imagine! Although, nothing wrong with cooking any large bird, or having any alternative meats!
I’ve been venturing to different areas, some more decorated and in the spirit than others. I have my list of go to places for a meal or drink – those which are nice, have a Christmas theme going and are generally happy in nature. Unfortunately, where I live there isn’t many decorations around the town. Only a little. But I can always travel which is what I have been doing!
If you are looking for gifts to buy people, I’m sure you will have plenty of options. I found this site to give me some ideas – https://www.notonthehighstreet.com/christmas
Then there is the Etsy website. It’s full of great gifts and for reasonable prices. https://www.etsy.com/uk/market/christmas_gifts?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=christmas%20gifts_e&utm_campaign=Search_UK_Nonbrand_BNG_ENG_Holiday_Christmas-Gifting_New_holiday22_&utm_ag=Christmas%2BGifts&utm_custom1=k_7a3af9be58f812a1eaf29a32ea5772d7_k&utm_content=bing_420477294_1309518711678861_81844994200993_kwd-81845108055951:aud-808167869:loc-188_c_&utm_custom2=420477294&msclkid=7a3af9be58f812a1eaf29a32ea5772d7
The time of year to relax, have fun and get into the spirit. Maybe you should try out a Christmas market. I’ve been trying to find one that stands out. As I said I have my preferences for locations to visit, but they never have a massive market. Some places have mostly food stalls. My recent trip to the Intu Trafford Center revealed a small festive fairground with ice skating which I did not know about! I will be going back at some point.
I also hope to be able to do some skiiing over this winter. I doubt it will be on a real mountain, but I nonetheless want to. That’s a great day out if you are struggling with things to do with the family. I’m hoping to spark some creativity in you by sharing this post. A lot of people are alone and struggle at Christmas. Why not go out and do it yourself? What I mean is that if you are struggling for ideas on what to do you should just do it yourself because you will probably have a good day.
There are loads of Christmas pantomimes on this time of year and a load of Christmas themed shows. Not to mention the markets in the cities, although primarily food based are still a good way to socialise if you are lonely.
Don’t feel pressured into being happy and cheery though. You aren’t doing anything wrong by simply not having a good time. People struggle, it’s human nature.
Hurt & Healing
Daisies grow in the flower bed during the spring the sun beats them out during the fall, they begin to wilt winter is a blank skeletal stare yet they are to come full circle for the daisies were never there *** Your hurt and hate has been negated and I have seen a beam of light that will destroy your negative plight *** Now you can heal begin to reveal and to feel once again strengthened through grace empowered by God a beautiful seedling ready to yet again, grow from the soil.https://medium.com/@thomas_maxwellharrison/new-poetry-the-healing-we-feel-3128af97a42e: Hurt & Healing
Getting into the Holiday Spirit
- Welcome! What’s new?
- Recent Photos from a Day out
- I Will Now Feature Writers for a Fee
- Donations to Support Me or Show Appreciation!
Welcome! What’s new?
Welcome to Psychedelic Wizard!
You can now go to the following site addresses for my site:
Psychedelicwizard.org
Psychedelicwizard.uk
You can also follow my YouTube if you would like to stay up to date with any videos or photos I upload. I will of course add them to my WordPress too.
Recent Photos from a Day out
The Trafford Center, Manchester.
The biggest indoor super shopping center in England. (probably)
A massive section of the Trafford Center I don’t usually go in. Already decorations have been put up. It truly is a magical place at Christmas!
I’m hoping to get some proper days out during the holidays, enjoying good food and places, people and ideas! I’ll be sure to show you the food when I go! Hopefully it is not too pricey wherever I choose.
I Will Now Feature Writers for a Fee
As opposed to my generosity before. The first ten I was happy to promote. If you are an indie author or writer with published works, either on a site or distribution platform and want to feature then please do get in touch with me!
Donations to Support Me or Show Appreciation!
My Experience of {Duolingo} so Far 😎
Going into Duolingo was a big leap for me. Not only had I not learned a new language since my school days, but this was an online app which essentially meant I had to learn and teach myself. There is not tutor, and you are guided through each lesson in which you have to comprehend and use a foreign language without input. You may have to read, write, speak or place words in the correct order. I can say this though, I have found it fun to use and it has been a surprisingly rewarding experience so far.
My profile (pictured above in a screenshot) shows that I joined in August, and over 3 months I’ve accumulated nearly 9,000 total XP. This is quite significant. My languages are shown as studying German and Russian. If you want to follow my progress and you are also on Duolingo, feel free to follow and I’ll follow back. I primarily focus on German and have only started to use Russian on Duolingo to consolidate things from a book I use. I have reached many milestones already.
It has been easy to use, navigate and recently they updated the learning tree – which I wasn’t too fond of. The app is online or on a phone and can be used anywhere. The lessons take you through various topics, learning all the essentials, except you will not learning it in order, you will build upon what you have learned. So you may learn how to order in a café and then later learn how to speak the full vocabulary of such an event. For example, you order coffee, then later, you learn how to say things like I would like a coffee please. Or I would like a coffee what would you like? This allows progressive learning in a gamified language learning app.
A big bonus is that it is free. I highly recommend this platform (not sponsoring me, although if Duolingo see this they are free to do just that). Over four months my progress has been remarkable and enjoyable. I’m now soaring through units, learning and retaining information more effectively than reading a book. The repetitive speaking system, in which phrases and words are repeatedly shown the same things multiple times, allows better retention.
Russian is a bit more difficult and as such I am using a combination of sources, like books and audio CDs as well. I feel that you could reach a satisfactory beginner level if you worked through all the units – numbered at around 114 for German. I believe from what I have learned so far that completing all of it would mean you are at least B1 level of the CEFR scaling system. However, this would also be dependent on other factors like frequency of learning, interaction with native speakers and general motivation and of course the learner’s ability to actually remember this information and use it.
I’m happy to rate it at 4 stars up to now: there are flaws and the spoken sections of learning leave something to be desired. It is also flawed in that the majority of the scenarios that are demonstrated in the language you are learning is simply unrealistic.
Unrealistic scenarios include owls not playing football and dogs reading books. But Duolingo’s fun, childlike characters certainly bring a bit of enthusiasm to the learning process.
The site offers a paid option which removes adverts. Aside from this it is now integrating the stories system into the learning, so a milestone might consist of reading a story in the native language you are learning, as opposed to being optional as it was before. This is a good, progress step to keep it mixed up. You also have access to thousands of lessons offered on the site from as low as $2 for an hour. I believe it’s set up for schools too.
Overall, and this is a brief conclusion, it is worth the time. But you need to stick at it daily to actually progress. I cannot imagine anyone progressing beyond introductions, family and dining etc. if they chose one lesson a week. They’d get bored. Consistency and integration into you own life is key. Take the lessons into your real-world experiences to begin to apply the vocabulary to real world situations. Travel or interaction with native speakers is also highly recommended for better learning.
psychedelicwizard 