…the refinement process for public performance is remarkable! The comedian comes up with an idea that might work as a joke, so they think it through and write it down, they tell it to the four walls, they note the changes and do it again, repeatedly, then and only then is it performed to a tiny audience at an obscure venue, and in the full knowledge this must be repeated over and over again, constantly refining, constantly changing, constantly adapting, constantly cutting and dissecting, and constantly being prepared to drop it altogether!
Robert Campbell
Learning from losing
In January I managed to achieve a big win! But February had other ideas, it reminded me of life’s realities, by kindly handing me a huge loss! In January I set a lowish bar, and straddled it easily. So in February I assumed, that with equal ease, I would stroke the next hard thing to … Continue reading Learning from losing
14 days and 6746 words.
I love numbers, connections and patterns. So today after two weeks I am where I should be in one month. I’d better explain that last sentence. As my New Year’s resolution I decided to write 200 words each day through January. This was towards a story I promised to write for my children in the … Continue reading 14 days and 6746 words.
Facile Caverns – Peep Frae Your Mind
Peep Frae Your Mind "Apprehensive trepidations go hand in hand with thy privations." Facile Cavern, Peep Frae Your Mind. https://amazon.co.uk/Peep-Frae-Your-Robert-Campbell/dp/B0BN62H8P3… #Poety #Quote #Quotes #PeepFraeYourMind #FacileCaverns #Graphic
If you quit, falter or stop…
“if you quit, if you falter, if you stop, all the pain will be for nothing.”
Starting the year well
New Year New Opportunities! The 1st of January is just another day, a turn of the calendars page, and in this electronic age it’s not even that! But none the less it does give us the opportunity to re-set or re-focus. It is more mental than actual, but in this case a mental change is … Continue reading Starting the year well
F Fae – A Commentary on Educational underachievement (video)
https://youtu.be/03VLRr1UoNQ Here’s a short video on my poem F Fae. The poem deals with the reality and consequences of educational underachievement. I also mixed the music. Over the last while I’ve been trying to add spoken work to EDM. The original poems was 14 verses long, but through the advice of legendary record producer Rick … Continue reading F Fae – A Commentary on Educational underachievement (video)
Climbing Mountains (is the easy bit) – Hard Truths For Writers
Mountaineer - image from WordPress It’s like climbing a mountain; all alone and totally untrained. You learn as you go; you work out what to do; you learn how to use the equipment. Then you wing it; you get lucky; you take hard routes, easy routes, bizarre routes. Eventually you traverse the final assent, you … Continue reading Climbing Mountains (is the easy bit) – Hard Truths For Writers
Peep Frae Your Mind (& Lock Doon Poyams) Audio Book
Peep Frae Your Mind & Lock Doon Poyams This isn’t going to turn the world upside down, but today I’m very proud, I’ve accomplished something I’ve always wanted to achieve - an audiobook! This has been neither easy nor straightforward. Like everything during this writing and publishing carry on, I’ve had to do it myself, … Continue reading Peep Frae Your Mind (& Lock Doon Poyams) Audio Book
Four New Poems – a work in progress (video)
George and the Elephant (promo video)
https://youtu.be/l5OiUDPtntE Here’s a short video about George and the Elephant, you can read more about the book here or you can buy it here
George and the Elephant – a proud moment.
George and the Elephant I think I’ve hit one of my proudest moments as a writer. This week has seen the publication of George and the Elephant. Along with that Lock Doon Poyams (as part of Peep Frae Your Mind) has been placed into the hands of the great AI bit rate checker in the … Continue reading George and the Elephant – a proud moment.
Captain Timmy has set sale!
Okay, sorry about the dreadful pun in the title, I thought it was good, I’m excited, it’s early in the morning! But whatever the title of the post, finally Captain Timmy and the Bobbing Barrel is live and for sale.
Spring Is Now
Spring is far more than the arbitrary turn of a calendar’s page. It is mindset. It is flow. It is process. It is seasonality. It is ceasing to think of then, as if now has no bearing upon it.
Don’t be wasteful!
In reality someone who isn’t wasteful, reuses things and appreciates the world around them, but never thinks of themselves as an environmentalist, is much better for the environment than someone who is wasteful, decadent, and in practice shows scant regard for the world around them, but thinks of themselves as an environmentalist.
Social Media Works – the odd time!
The story is about someone who worked extremely hard over a very long period of time. It is about someone who loved and believed in their creation. It was about someone who wouldn’t give up.
Act pro with your time – Hard Truths For Writers
Life speaks to every person who would make, create, design, paint, illustrate, sign write; who would be an author, a writer, a poet, a composer, a singer, a musician, a performer; but will we listen, and then will we do?
How Helpful is Men’s Self Help?
I’m not sure how helpful mens self help is. Specifically that which exists within the hierarchical structure of social media. These influencers were perfect fits: they looked right, they sounded right, and they understood the system. Some have a genuine interest in trying to help others, some wanted to tell their own story, some used … Continue reading How Helpful is Men’s Self Help?
Poems and Music
The greatest song lyrics are poems. The lyrics tell stories. The music and words transport you to another realm, to another place, another state of mind. Words and music are a magical combination.
Hard Truths For Writers – loss of motivation
I haven’t written a “hard truths for writers” post in ages. There’s a lot of water under the bridge since the last one, life changing stuff, not as bad as it could have been, but totally transformative. This time I want to think about: a lack of motivation, a loss of motivation, a waning motivation, … Continue reading Hard Truths For Writers – loss of motivation
Hard Truths For Writers – Momentum and Traction
Momentum and traction aint the same thing! I can create momentum, I’ve got a system, a routine that works, that works for me, up at twenty past five (every single morning), dressed and teeth brushed straightaway (every single morning), coffee maker turned on and sit in silence for five or ten minutes (every single morning), … Continue reading Hard Truths For Writers – Momentum and Traction
Hard Truths For Writers – Writing and Selling
Okay, here comes a slightly controversial opinion, writing a book isn’t that hard. Anyhow that’s what I’ve found. But quickly I need to add, that doesn’t mean it’s easy or takes no effort, because it is gruelling, and takes copious amounts of time.
Prison or Art College
I have written this premeditatedly, you know beforehand, that’s not a good thing to do, to premeditate is to imagine, it is to imagine what will have happened, and you don’t know what’s going to happen. At least on election night politicians only have to write two speeches, one for winning and one for losing! … Continue reading Prison or Art College