Damian Robb

I’ve been subscribed to the outstanding newsletter of the interminable Warren Ellis for a few months now and find myself getting a thrill of excitement whenever I see it enter my inbox. It’s a fairly basic thing where Mr. Ellis gives his rundown of the past week: things he’s working on, content he’s consumed and the connected thoughts and opinions brought on by that content, links worth sharing, and the occasional interview etc. It is, quite simply, a glut of matter for the brain to digest, and I find it an enjoyable digestion.

I also find that his newsletter inspires me, by providing new ideas, new people, new stories, new…stuff! Stuff I can turn into other stuff by combining and connecting the stuff already in my head with this new stuff. Or as Amanda Palmer so wonderfully puts it – by connecting the dots. Because, in a sense, that’s all artists do.

It also inspires me by hearing how much content Warren (he doesn’t know it yet but we’re on first name basis now) produces in a week! It’s maddening, and astounding, and, as I mentioned, inspiring. Of course he’s full time job is to write while my full time job is not to write. My part time hobby is writing, and while that will hopefully change one day, that day is not today. However I don’t want to use that as an excuse not to write. There are a lot of hours when I’m not at work and I can be using those hours to write (and maybe even a few hours when I am at work *wink*).

Currently those not-at-work hours are spent doing other things, socialising, eating, loving my woman, cleaning the house – all pointless activities! No, those things are great (and necessary), but I do also spend a lot of my off hours doing things that are far from necessary. I loath to think of the hours spent in the wasteland of facebook. And that’s not facebook’s fault! I honestly believe facebook has managed to morph into an incredibly useful tool, one that’s good for much more than just being social. Being able to ‘like’ pages such as I fucking love science, or i09, provides me with great articles, as does ‘liking’ people who happen to think in a similar way and who share great articles. I can then even use the sidebar to avoid my horrible, bloated newsfeed and go straight to my ‘likes’ page, ready to digest the pure stream of these interesting, and brain expanding articles which then provide me with more stuff for me to connect more dots, and the great creative machine keeps on turning, producing beauty and art forever! However I currently use it to scroll through people’s crap.

Like I said, not facebook’s fault, all mine.

Either way there is a point to all of this and I’m about to come to it. I want to write more. I want to write everyday. I want to set myself the unachievable goal of writing as much as Warren Ellis writes. So l’m going to copy him, except instead of writing a newsletter I’ll write a diary, this diary, the one you’re currently reading. My plan is to update it most days, and fill it not only with the interesting things I’ve found, or the inane thoughts I’ve pondered, but also with exploits of me writing. I’m also going to post a photo with each entry as well, as 1) photos are pretty, so you also get the bonus of having something to look at, and 2) I like to take photos. It’s going to be crazy.

And speaking of things that are crazy, and as a way to share my first link, check out this tune by Ben Rector called…Crazy. It’s a funny, and dorky track, that was oh so relatable to me. Basically it’s a club song for people who don’t go to clubs. Hear it here.

And with that I’ll leave you.

Talk soon.

Damian