Go Back to A Guide To Creative Writing
So, what is so important about writing our thoughts and ideas down on paper? Thoughts and ideas come and go. A bit like wind or an approaching storm. Wait just a short while and the moment is ‘passed’ or PAST if you like. Gone, fleeting, and yet there was an idea there, so very important, so precious, so real, so very much you. That moment will have been accompanied by a warm glow inside, a feeling of deep inner satisfaction that we pulled an illusionary rabbit out of a very ordinary drab-looking hat. Coaxed a divine moment of bliss from just one single thought. Since the dawn of time, men loved to sit in their caves and tell each other stories and draw real and imaginary beasts they had seen on their brave travels, upon the walls of their secure, safe “free from harm” domains. Sharing the moment with someone else is what makes sense of this life entire. So, many times in life we feel so alone, even though surrounded on all sides by an unseeing mass of humanity.
We pick up a pen, and there is a connection straight away, from its inky blobby nib straight to the mind, heart, and soul of another.
The whole of our lives revolves around very simple observations. A lot of our “Life” is just a set of stories that exist in our personal mind. We “colour” events and make judgement calls on things that we really have not understood.
To resolve these misunderstandings we often accept them without question just to resolve our doubts about what was truly said and meant and is.[UPDATE:- this is the function of the left side of our brains which acts as an interpreter of the 5 senses. It stores memories and categorises EVERYTHING – it is a filing system, nothing is NEW here it contains only stuff you have seen, heard, tasted, touched or smelt.] This can lead to a very troubled mind full of confusion and muddle.
Hence my great affection for Sydney Banks and his ability to help us un-muddle our minds and get back to seeing the world clearly. This is the part of the website referred to as 3PGC (The Three Principles Global Community). Or most recently 3PYC (The Three Principles Yorkshire Community) which is a group that I started myself. This community leads to the realisation that humans are spiritual beings forced to live in a physical body. This sounds bizarre BUT your body cells die and are replaced using clones of stem cells every 4 months or so. The body you have now is NOT the one you had 4 months ago. It is physically 100 per cent different. BUT the being that you know as “ME” – has not changed at all. You still “feel” exactly the same “me” that you always were.
Body, Soul, and Mind are all very different things. So that leads to the third part of this website.
Spirituality. We each have a divine mind (as well as a personal mind) and we are all from the same source. No matter what our physical and cultural differences may be. We are one, and this “oneness” leads to a need to understand what I call OM/ God/ THE CREATOR/ JESUS/ THE Holy Spirit/ Jehovah/ Ad Infinitum. He has many names but he is the same CREATOR no matter what you call him. We think we need a name but actually, we don’t.
Father McKenzie will try to explain to you the rudiments of exploring God.
It’s a work in progress (hereon in referred to as W.I.P.)… but isn’t every damn thing?
An Exercise is shown below: –
JUST TO GET YOU STARTED with ELEMENT 1 – Creative Writing.
My hope is that when you need input / inspiration for your writing you will progress to an understanding of “The Three Principles”, and then seek after understanding spirituality. We are all a work in progress. If you want to talk about any of these 3 elements then contact me Paul Hickman on…
paul.hickman@gmx.com
Writing a ‘Flash’ story Instructions:
Flash ‘Cricket’! Use the words in a short story (100 words max.) strictly in the order given (no going backward or restarting allowed)
- Shadows
- flint
- shimmer
- stealthy
- jealous
- priest
- steel
- mother
- candle-wax
- harbour
You can choose no fewer than six words from this Ten Word list. (Ten Minutes… Go!)
An example so you get the drift, but very much do your own thing.
“The shadows cast by the flint outcrops (despite the shimmer of moonlight upon them) enabled the stealthy entrance of this jealous Roman Catholic priest. In his coat inside pocket he could feel the steel and brass ‘mother Mary’ effigy and the candlesticks soft squidgy candle-wax. For 20 years his mind had been the harbour of a grudge that he held against his brother.” (64 Words – ran out of time, with the remaining 36 words I could have finished the story thus.) “ suddenly he was outside the door of his brothers house. The front room lights were on. The candlestick was in his right hand. He rang the doorbell. Bludgeoned by a mighty object. mission accomplished. “
(100 Words) * You must try not to write the opening of a much longer story. *
All stories are about movement. A story is a journey from one place to another. * “Before I was a writer I was a reader” Edith Pearman
Group Observation: – Never give up being a reader, even if your writing is going very well for unless you share the readers experience you will never write anything of any worth.
- Ernest Hemingway is thought to have said that 10% of any story is revealed by the writing the other 90% is created in the reader’s mind.
- Flash fiction is a snapshot “glimpse“ of a journey.
- It is not a vehicle for memoirs and neither should it be A place for random thoughts. * Flash fiction is a complete stand-alone story which could be expanded upon but does not have to be.
- The idea is for the reader to build the paces of the story that are missing in his mind. When your story has been written read it and then re-read it placing emphasis on different words below is an example.
Chaos. And then I found you.
- If the emphasis is on CHAOS then this sentence has one meaning.
- If the emphasis is placed on the word YOU then it has an entirely different meaning.
A Task.
- What terrifies me is…
- It’s hurt so much I…
- No one believes…
Pick one of the prompts above and write a flash story that begins with your choice.
The first attempt at a draft version.
Title:- NO SENSE (using Task option 3.)
No one believes any more. The world seems to have promoted the eye way beyond its merits. The eyes now stand on a victory podium where the noble pair control instead of serving the mind. The ultimate power in his region had asked but one important, vital, unanswered question “And what is the truth?” The ensuring silence sealed his fate. The end of the beginning had begun.
In my mind, when writing, was the picture of Christ standing, after being severely flogged in Pilate’s inner office. Pilate’s wife had a very bad dream and had begged her husband to find some way to let Jesus escape with his life. BUT what image another reader has depends on where he focuses the emphasis and thus the story conveyed to him might be an entirely different one.
DO YOU SEE? I decided to give my short story the title No Sense. I then re-read and re-wrote the story so that I could make some now obvious improvements.
No one believes any more. “Now” has promoted the eye to the pinnacle position of the five. Its lofty place dominates, whereas it used just to serve the mind. Long ago two men met in a room. One was an authority and the other was just subject two. Only one question trumpeted around the room. “And what is the truth?“ The question resounded into a world whose hearing was severely diminished through time, it failed to touch them, had no taste, The salt was missing, they just felt nothing. The eye saw only that one man lived and the other died. Although a tear was shed the event meant very little out of the ordinary. People live. People die. [117 words]
This draft needs an edit to remove 17 words. And just then the ThoughtTree session I was so involved with ended. Try the exercise yourself, and see where your inner thoughts lead you to write a flash story about.
Try to keep as close to 100 words as possible.
These exercises were carried out at Howden & District U3A Creative Writing group meetings that I used to run at Howden’s Shire Hall in the Green Room. I had a bit of a barney with the U3A and packed up leading the group. The crux of the dispute was about accusations I had not paid the rent for the Green Room. (If this was true then surely the shire hall manager would have asked me about it?) This was an Accountancy error at the U3A. He was new and there were OTHER accounts that he knew nothing about?? Normally, I would not explain such things oor mntion them, after all a lot of water has gone under the bridge. Better to forgive and forget I would think. but somebody has accused me of being an out and out trouble maker and all I did was stand up for myself. Whilst I am clearing the decks of the “muck raking” going on. The disputes over The Bar at St. Cuthbert’s Masonic lodge was caused by STOCK going missing. I upset the thieves by putting YALE code locks on the bar and the stock room. I did not realise there were so many thieves in the rank and file and they forced me out. The Ashes? well the Chairman lost the plot and demanded that the minutes and the agenda appeared on the same document? well, if you have the minutes you know what the agenda was… I would think. Apparently Not. So using common sense I put the next meetings agenda on the previous meetings minutes. NO! this delays the minutes going out. Result an email like the recent one I have just received accusing me of being awkward 🙂 well if you have a position of responsibility (trainee secretary) and let every daft idea get implemented then you’re as daft as the person suggesting it… are you not? Water under the bridge. I am reminded of Dire Straights “Private Investigations”
“Well, what have you got, at the end of the day, what have you got to take away? A Bottle of whisky, and a new set of lies, blinds on a window, and a pain behind the eyes…..”
You can find out a lot more abut Sydney Banks by going to the section of this web site that gives “3 Principles” Basic Training. You should read all this info before joining the meditation group I hope to start because the proposed group will be all about mental health and nothing whatsoever to do with eastern mysticism / buddhism / mediumship etc. although all these things will, of course, get a brief mention.