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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago

I try not to evangelise because I think it's too easy to blow your evangelism budget and cause people to discount you altogether, and also because lives are complicated and advice needs to be contextualised, and what works for me may not work for you. That being said...

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

You should start a daily writing practice. You would benefit from it far more than you think you would, and it is much more viable than you think it is.

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

My recommended starting practice (which is not the evangelical bit - this may or may not work for you) is: Start a blog called "notebook" or similar. Use a pseudonym if you're shy. Pick a favourite book. Ideally a longish one you've read before. Fiction is fine.

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

Every day, pick a random page in the book, copy out a passage from that page, copy it out onto your blog, and write something short on your blog inspired by it. Even just a single sentence is fine. If you're inspired to write more, do, but the success criterion is one sentence.

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

On days where you want to write something else, do that instead. If you want to change books, do that if you feel like. The point is not to stick religiously to any single writing practice. The point of the practice is to ensure that you can always write something, every day.

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

Having the daily writing practice is the important part - even the baseline will be life improving, and repeatedly returning to the practice will give you a platform to experiment within.

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

The important part of this suggested practice is to lower the baseline difficulty of the writing practice so that you absolutely definitely 100% can succeed on a daily basis without pushing yourself. Then do that every day. Success is writing, everything else is a bonus.

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

Also, you will occasionally miss a day anyway. Life will happen, you'll forget, you'll have a bad mental or physical health day, whatever. That's fine. Don't beat yourself up over it.

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5/28/2020
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monk@mechanical_monk• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

@DRMacIver will do, as soon as I put out some fires

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5/28/2020
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David R. MacIver@DRMacIver• over 5 years ago
Replying to @mechanical_monk

@mechanicalmonk1 No. Start the writing practice first. It'll help you put out the fires.

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5/28/2020
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monk@mechanical_monk• over 5 years ago
Replying to @DRMacIver

@DRMacIver I sat down to write in the evening didn't end up writing anything (didn't have a topic prepared), but made a list of topics at least might actually end up writing something soon, unless I just stare at the blank page for half an hour every time

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5/28/2020
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ian hines@imhinesmi• over 5 years ago
Replying to @mechanical_monk

@mechanicalmonk1 @DRMacIver if youre not sure what to write about just transcribe your inner monologue

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5/28/2020
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monk@mechanical_monk• over 5 years ago
Replying to @imhinesmi

@imhinesmi @DRMacIver that'd be suitable for the private journalling, I wanted to get into public posts I have some topics to write about now, I think some of them will dissolve into nothingness if I try to write about them, but surely not all of them

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5/28/2020
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ian hines@imhinesmi• over 5 years ago
Replying to @mechanical_monk

@mechanicalmonk1 @DRMacIver writing down internal monologues sometimes (often) turns into something coherent, which can be edited into something other people would want to read itll take a paragraph or two usually, but thats it

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5/28/2020
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monk@mechanical_monk• over 5 years ago
Replying to @imhinesmi

@imhinesmi @DRMacIver interesting, will try

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5/28/2020
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monk@mechanical_monk• over 5 years ago
Replying to @mechanical_monk

@DRMacIver holy shit I wrote a thing it's galactically stupid and it's 370 words and it took me most of the afternoon, but it has happened now I just have to figure out how to render a website with Hugo before I reread the post one too many times and become embarrassed and delete it

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5/29/2020