Posts Tagged ‘Silence’
What ‘Interstellar’ Taught Me About Writing
Last weekend I watched Christopher Nolan’s new film, ‘Interstellar’. It’s a film set in the near future about a group of people who have to travel into deep space, to save humanity. It has some of the best cinematography I’ve ever seen, and a powerful, emotive narrative. It’s epic in every sense of the word.
‘Interstellar’ is a demonstration of a master at work. It’s Christopher Nolan at the absolute peak of his powers as a filmmaker. Someone with total mastery of their craft, in every possible sense. The storytelling, cinematography, soundtrack, editing, and epic size of the movie are perfectly seamless.
‘Interstellar’ is a cinematic masterpiece.
And when I watched it, and reflected on it afterward, one of the things which stuck with me purely from an artistic perspective was simply this:
My main goal in writing is to leave a positive impact on the world. To serve others. But outside of this, my biggest hope is that I can master the art of writing and storytelling, in the way Chris Nolan has mastered the art filmmaking. To have the command over words and stories which Nolan currently holds over the art of filmmaking.
It may be my biggest test as a writer.
The film also convinced me of one other, crucial fact. That to become a master writer, I must become a master storyteller.
Read More10 Life “Messes” with Potential to Improve Your Life: Part 3 (Guest Post)
Today we have the final part of Erin Brown Conroy’s popular series back to the blog, about finding purpose in the midst of our mess. It’s been a pleasure hosting Erin, and today’s post is as good as ever. Over to Erin:
The last two posts, we talked about five messes in our lives—and how we can turn those messes into triumphant stories.
Here are the final five messes to avoid…and how to fix them.
MESS #6: Saying “later” to something that needs to be addressed—and never coming back to it.
Too many of us have the ostrich affect, with our heads in the sand (and if ostriches had fingers, the fingers would be stuck in their ears, too, to keep anything “bad” from getting to us).
We get good at ignoring, hoping that problems will fade away.
Ignoring a mess, a problem, or an issue never helps, never solves, and never sets lives right. Never.
Read More10 Life ‘Messes’ With Potential To Improve Your Life – Part 2 (Guest Post)
Today I’m delighted to welcome back Erin Brown Conroy back to the blog, in the second of her three-part series on finding purpose in the midst of our mess. Over to you Erin:
Last blog post, we talked about how writers use messes to create a good story. Messes can serve a purpose, making the Hero of a story learn, grow, and become story-worthy. The Hero’s messes can serve him well.
Our messes can serve us well, too.
Read MoreWhy I Want To Be Rubbish At Impersonations
I didn’t have anything to write when I sat down to write the first draft of what became this post. I was sitting thinking of what I was going to get down on my word processor, and I almost began two or three times. But what kept coming up was the same old piece in a different format.
It happens so often now it’s almost not funny.
I don’t want to go round in circles in my development as a writer and growth as a person, that I keep coming back to the same ideas every few years, or even every few months. I recognise, as C. S. Lewis once said, ‘there’s no new ideas in literature”.
But at the same time there’s always a fresh way of communicating something which isn’t repeating yourself.
Isn’t there?
Read MoreWhy You Need a Rollercoaster Season
When you ride a roller-coaster, and your entire body is strapped in tight, you are completely safe. There’s no getting you out of that roller-coaster. You don’t need to hold on.
However, I don’t know about you, but when it comes over the brow of the highest point of the ride, my first inclination is to hold on tight. I don’t need to hold on, but I do.Because it makes me feel safe. Holding on tight somehow this gives me control over my safety.
But to get the most joy out of these rides, I need to let go. Wave my hands in the air as the ride descends from the highest heights. It’s totally counter-intuitive, but it’s the only way to fly. And when you do it, you feel alive.
Life is very similar. We think holding on tight to what we have is the way to keep moving forward. We feel safe. We feel more in control.
But the key to personal growth doesn’t come from holding on tight. It comes from letting go.
Surrender is what leads to growth
Read MoreWhy Contentment & Growth are Partners, not Enemies
As many of you will know, I recently had a little sabbatical from social media and writing. And there is one thing I noticed over and again both during my break, and even more so since: When you’re disconnected from the world, everything takes on a different meaning. Suddenly, what seemed life or death is…
Read MoreWhy It’s Time to Rest
(Picture – Oliver Kendall via Creative Commons) No human being can sustain what we do most of the time for all of the time. If we keep working, eventually it’s going to catch up to us. And when I say work, I’m not just talking about our jobs – because despite what culture says, work…
Read MoreWhy we are Mysteries Within Mysteries
Source: pinwords.com via James on Pinterest I was recently making a dent in my sofa after doing some cleaning and tidying. I felt I’d earned it. I let my body go like a sail with air through it, and just relaxed. I was tempted to turn the radio or TV on. But for some reason…
Read MoreThe Liberation of Knowing Nothing
Source: pinwords.com via James on Pinterest Last weekend I blogged about how we need to feel the absence of God in order to have intimacy with God. It’s a major part of my journey right now – and today I want to take this discussion further. I’ve been going through a season of doubt in…
Read MoreWhat Story are You Telling?
Source: pinwords.com via James on Pinterest I recently noticed something about my life. Most of the stories I’m telling, all the big, significant moments in my life that impacted me the most. They’re in the past. They aren’t in the present. Bullying at school. Growing up in a broken home. My Mum’s death. Even, to…
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