It’s June. Six months into the year. Coming up on halfway through 2024. What have I achieved?
In January, I released a post looking ahead at my hopes and plans for 2024. How have I done so far?
The thing to say before getting into it is this; life is hard. It’s busy, and never does as it’s told. So even before I look at my first post, I’m going to remind myself that a lot has happened in the last six months. You did your best, and this isn’t an excuse to beat yourself up.
Now, with that out of the way, let’s see all the ways I messed up.
The Slate
In my original post I said “a writer with only one project to showcase is an amateur with ambition.” Let me tell you, dear reader, that six months in I am very much still an amateur with ambition.
I Have Sinned continues to be a source of great pride, but each read is highlighting areas I desperately need to fix. This most recent draft is clearly the strongest… it’s just not finished. After five months of beating this thing over the head (unpaid), I’m going to be putting it to one side for now and focus instead on a screenplay.
I need to cleanse my palate, and nothing will do that quite like a half-hour comedy drama about a traditionalist old man and his idiot grandson.
Enter Competitions
Based on how the slate has gone, you can probably imagine my competition entering has been lacking.
I did, however, enter the BBC Writer’s Open Call and Channel 4’s 4Skills New Writers Scheme. Both, unfortunately, didn’t get my foot in the door.
The entry of I Have Sinned was probably a mistake, the project clearly isn’t ready, so that doesn’t hurt too much. The Channel 4 entry of an old script called ‘CAM’ was also a shot in the dark. But at least I entered them.
I intend to continue that for the rest of the year.
The Blog
Another instance where life got in the way. While I have been enjoying more activity on the blog, sticking to a schedule and flourishing in my niche has been a struggle.
February’s Pride Month ‘LGBTCU’ was a great project I loved doing, and one I’ll be returning to in June to celebrate the start of the Pride event season. I’ve dipped my toe back into script editing and have further explored both Transmedia storytelling and the writing craft.
Was the blog as active as I would have liked? Probably not. But it’s getting there, and each time I fail I learn something new to ease the process next time.
Have Fun
I really do love writing. This year my imagination has been firing on all cylinders for the first time in what feels like a lifetime. Characters are pouring out of my head, scenes and story turning points are fighting to get to the light. The one thing I’m not doing? Writing them down.
That doesn’t mean I’ve been idle. I’ve been learning basics of the Adobe Creative Suite, dipping my toes into Illustrator and Photoshop, not to mention some rudimentary video editing. It feels like, as the second half of the year approaches, I am starting to actualise my January hope of marrying structure with enjoyment.
The Next 6 Months
The next six months will be the most important of my life since graduating, as I turn my attention towards employment. I’ve always understood that putting food on the table always comes first, but with the 26th May marking four years in my current job, reality is starting to feel stale.
It’s time to learn to drive. Time to prove I’m more than just a guy with a couple of creative degrees.
Time to be a writer.
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