Write for love. Of all the platitudes and motivational phrases and thoughts that have crossed my mind over the last few months, I believe, that’s the one that matters the most. The most meaningful, and the only one that will really work for me. Don’t write for money, don’t write from fear, don’t write to be cool, don’t write because you think people will like you more as a writer. Don’t write for any other reason then love … the actual love of writing. If you write simply for the love of it, then everything else will flow from that. You will enjoy the process more. You will feel happier both during and after the act of writing. Do something you love and for love, and you will be happier. Don’t force it … do it out of love for the craft, and love for the act of it. It will be both cathartic and fufilling at the same time. I liked the Jim Carey graduation speech I watched yesterday, where he talked about how he said, his father could have been a great comedian, but he never believed that doing that would have been possible for him. So, he took the safe route, and became an accountant. At one point in their life his father lost his job, and his family ended up living in their car. He said of all the lessons his father taught him, losing his safe job taught him, how easy it was to fail at a career you didn’t really care about, so why not take a chance at something you love. And, he became a comic. The point was, do what you love, and do it for the love of it. Nothing else. You are happier, when you write, and when you create. It’s the process that matters. You’ve already proven, that you can be successful and unsuccessful at doing something you don’t like. You know that. Now, it’s time to prove that you can do something because you love it. Don’t let all those things that clutter your mind of inconsequential value to stop you. Don’t give in to resistance. Be more true to yourself, and what you need. You’ll eventually be really good at it. You know that. There’s nothing you’ve done in your life, that you haven’t gotten good at. Whether it be drumming, or computer programming, or squash, or cooking, or soon to be writing. Be in that moment when you write. Remember the feeling just this past weekend, when you went to Brock, and wandered the halls there, and felt at peace. It was a place that seemed to clear your mind, and you were truly happy. None of the clutter and concern that goes with your regular life found their way to bother you there. And, being around an instutition, that is all about learning and all about the future, and all about endless possibilities … all of that coupled with a worry free mind made you think of the possibilities of creative writing. I love to learn new things, even to this day. Being around universities, or being around libraries, or the thought of always learning new things, brings joy to my heart. There’s just so many new and old and interesting things out there that you can learn about. And, at the heart of it all, they’re all just stories. And, writing is about telling stories. It’s the perfect storm of happiness for you. It’s drawing all those things you love into one intense circle of happiness … creating, writing, and learning. Do those things and the rest of it will all fall in place for you, however it’s meant to fall. Don’t worry so much about others, and how they do it. Be creative, learn new things, don’t feel guilty for doing what you love, and doing it for love. Love of the act, and love of how it makes you feel, and most of all, be happy doing it. Be happy in the moment of doing it. Wherever you are. It doesn’t matter where, even though some places maybe easier to do it in, train your mind, be disciplined, and make a new paradigm for yourself. Write for love, and be what you love. Throw away the anger around you, and keep out the anger of others around you. That’s the way to approach all this. It’s the only way, I think that will work. Will work for me. Do it for the love.

TIGERBLOOD: yea DAILYMOOD: good, distracted LOCATION: home office WORDSWRITTEN: none PUSHUPS: 3:00 wall sits TODO: write, covers TV: orphan black, poetry of Sylvia Plath, Mental Toughness for Writers – Joanna Penn BOOK: it starts with food, bird by bird GAME: 2048 EXERCISE: none WEIGHT: 170 BREAKFAST: bacon & eggs & tomato LUNCH: big ass salad DINNER: porkchops, asparagus SNACKS: grapes, apple ALCOHOL: none BEDTIME: 11:00 AWAKE: 6:00