Write Recycle

About Write Recycle: this site is for me

The main purpose for this blog is to designate time for creative writing in my life that would otherwise be spent on other, less inquisitive, endeavors. I have been an avid reader and creative writer for what seems like forever and have been collecting ideas, stories, and tidbits from my life because, well, that is what writers do. However, what sets myself and other writers apart is one simple factor:  

I am the only one who reads it.

In an effort to alter that behavior in myself I have decided to approach sharing my bits and bites as a writing exercise, which could possibly make sharing my work fun, interesting, and worthwhile. THE GOAL: take an idea and recycle it

I will be posting an original idea from my collection and using it as a prompt for a new and constructive writing exercise. The idea could have come from last week, last month, last year, or from an unknown point of time. It could have been recorded on a late night out, on a sleepless night, on a brisk walk at the beach. No matter the case, it must be repurposed.

BONUS: as I said, this site is for me. However, if even one person (maybe you) gains anything from these ideas, ramblings, and rigmarole, then this project will have been a success. I believe the point of writing is to see and be seen. As someone who accepts criticism but struggles with presentation I can present plausible deniability because my writing is far superior than the me five years ago who thought THAT was a good idea. In any case, this is for me but could possibly help other writers while honing their ability and accepting the need for re-imagining and re-working their craft.

RE-THINK, RE-DO, RE-CYCLE

Altered Dialogue

February 10, 2024

Original: “Things become recognizable and good if they’re referential or bold or both. What if something made a reference to the fact that personal bias and a need for creative understanding made things seem good that are actually garbage?”

Word for word, that was the idea. I know, right? I’ll circle back on that later.

This is a confusing question and that’s coming from the guy that wrote it. As you will notice, a lot of these random entries they have a very similar feel to them. Some are questions that deserve almost no consideration, most of them are incredibly short, and absolutely every single one lacks even a pinch of polish to help their lackluster appearance. That is part of my purpose for this blog. Practice in a craft comes in many shapes and forms but always requires one thing: time. In this case, the time spent away from these thoughts and words has altered my consideration and appreciation for writing, whether that is good or bad remains to be seen. However, I suppose we’ll find out together.

Let’s break down the question a bit. Can someone make something that shows personal bias and creative understanding as a bad thing? Absolutely. Will that be a good way to spend one’s time? Not possible. It is the opinion of some that any expression of art and creativity from a child’s finger painting, to the Mona Lisa, to the Fast and the Furious franchise, is worth something to someone somewhere and deserves existence. Any form of expression can have any impact on anyone, which is the reason for a number of professions we arguably do not need. Critique is easy when you know that nothing is set in stone as the ‘best’ or the ‘worst,’ although many lean towards the latter for clicks and views. The real importance of art is alteration. Are you different afterwards? Why or why not? These are important questions to ask yourself when existing in this world with all this music, artwork, and expression readily available all the time. Personal bias and a need for creative understanding is a good thing because those two factors differentiate what is good and what is bad TO YOU.

Let’s take a crack at a writing exercise about biases and creativity. This is a short exercise on dialogue versus detail and how it varies between genres. Let’s call it “A man on a horse.”

There is a large, scruffy man on a strong, dark horse. He somberly drifts into a small, dusty town studded with tall, wooden houses covered with layers if dust and debris. The tall, bearded man dismounts his trusty horse in front of a pair of swinging oak doors and surveys the dusty town. He stroked his long, itchy beard and shoves his way into the crowded saloon filled with shouting, laughter, and song.

“Hey.” the bartender says, scrubbing a dirty glass with a disgusting dish rag.

“Hi.” returns the bearded cowboy. He takes a seat on a decrepit stool across from the bar. “I would like a glass of water and a menu if you please.”

The bartender nods, turning away from the strange, worrisome cowboy across the bar. “Of course sir. Would you like to hear our specials?”

The cowboy squints his dark eyes in disgust. “No thanks, I know what I’ll be purchasing today. I could really go for a nice steak and some broccolini, perhaps a side salad.”

Bad, right? That’s kind of the point.

The purpose of this exercise, strangely enough, is to have fun with it. Every story should start the same. There’s a man on a horse, people have expectations about this man, what period it could take place, what might happen, so on and so forth. Break the expectations using dialogue only. They could speak a different language, use science fiction bits, maybe reference a comic book you like, something to take an assumption and change it creatively. Simple, right?

One of the reasons to find new and creative ways to write and what to write about is to just flip the script while CONTINUING TO WRITE. You don’t have to sit down every day and check boxes off of to-do lists to get better, but you do have to change perspectives once in a while. Be open to writing badly or strangely so that one day you can create something you enjoyed doing that has an effect on people. You can make an impact, just keep writing.

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