Tag Archives: Writing

On Increasing Creative Output

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This week I am juggling a number of things related to PyCon Canada, and life
in general. Also I came to the realization in the past few weeks, that if I
want to effectively work on long term projects like Rookeries, writing
about tooling, working on my side adventure, et cetera, without burnning
out I need to have the time, space, and health to do so effectively in the long
run.

Still it felt wrong to break my writing/publishing schedule, just because I am
figuring things out. After I want to work on my output consistency while still
performing my normal day-to-day activities. Rather than force myself to rush
through the more technical post on Rookeries, I will something simpler.
Today I want to discuss some guidelines that have I adopted that help me get
better at creative work. Since both technical writing and programming are
ultimately creative work, the ideas I want to look at apply to them as well.

Schedules and Commitments

Creative types (e.g. writers and coders) often avoid schedules like the plague.
Yet I would agree you need both schedules and commitments (i.e. deadlines).
These push you to perform and ship real work. The more often you ship, publish,
release, so on, the more experience you gain and the better you become as a
professional creative. You need that feedback from your audience, client or
end-user, and you can only gain that by releasing your work to them.

Often you need external motivation to get something out there. Otherwise
you may engage endlessly in either procrastination or polishing something that
is already ready. Consistent commitments (like my own weekly journal post) help
you build that habit of shipping regularly. I would argue that regular shipping
is what differentiates a true professional creative and a wannabe. So embrace
those schedules and commitments!

Good Workflows and Environments Help You Get into the Flow

Creative output is the greatest when you are in the flow of things. Output
becomes natural, and you become more productive. However distractions can
easily pop you out of flow. If your tools, workflow or work environment
become the reason for distractions, then you will have a rough time creating.

Investing in a good workflow–tools and process that make you effective–pays
large dividends. In my case I figured out that Markdown and a good text editor,
makes me the most productive when writing. The ultimate reason for my creating
Rookeries is to create a better workflow for me when I work on websites.

Also finding the right environment to work improves creative output.
Environment includes both the physical and mental space. Hence putting on
the right music gets me into the flow than listening to the ambient noise of
an open office. (Actually I have a whole rant on why open office spaces are
the worst for creative work but that will be for another time.) Unfortunately
I do not currently have the luxury of adapting my work environment too much,
but if you have that option you should take it.

Stay Healthy

Staying healthy is one area that I often neglect to think about as a creative.
I get too caught up in the work, to remember to care of myself as well as I
ought to. The truth is that you can not consistently crank out great work when
you are sick, tired, unfocused, under the influence, or distracted by other
issues. Even if you try to push through say a cold while doing coding, you
generally find the results less than satifactory after the fact.

Physical fitness is important since you are human and you have a physical
component. That is why regular exercise, healthy food, regular rest, etc.
help with creative productivity. If you are not healthy, you will not have the
good enough energy levels for creative work.

Also as a human creative, you need to work on your mental and spirtual fitness
as well. Very few creatives can work outside of a supportive environment. I
could not imagine being productive without the support of my family, friends,
and colleagues. Also the less worries you have, the easier it will be to focus
on creative work.

Summary

I will summarize simply saying that if you want to maintain a creative
profession (writing, art, music, programming, etc.), you need to stick to
schedules and commitments to ship work regularly. Investing in a good
environment to work in will pay huge dividends. And stay healthy so that you
can continue to do the work you love for many happy years to come.

Getting Started with Writing a Technical ebook

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The early release of my ebook Juggling JSON with jq comes out tomorrow! However this post is more about the process of writing the book itself.

Getting started on an technical ebook, (such as Juggling JSON with jq), requires a bit of upfront setup. On the ebook side, I decided to go the route of writing the book in Markdown, and generating the various formats using Sphinx. While I feel most comfortable using Markdown, and yet Sphinx uses reStructedText by default. So I had to coax Sphinx to accept Markdown by using a project called m2r. Generating the PDF version of the ebook took a bit to get working. Sphinx uses LaTeX to generate PDFs, and LaTeX while powerful can be clunky to work with. I wrapped everything up with an invoke script, and now I can quickly generating new versions of ebook in the various formats I want to support.

Something unique to writing technical books, is the need to have actual working examples. You can learn by reading, but working through exercises and examples re-enforces that learning. In the case of Unjumbling JSON with jq, I needed an example REST API that readers play with. I searched for some nice open APIs, but nothing seemed very compelling. Many of the open APIs require some form of user registration and non-trivial authentication method that would complicate the examples in the book. So I setup a simple demo API for the book. Thankfully with Docker and Flask, that isn’t a particularly daunting task. (Dockerizing most of my webapps definitely made my live easier overall.)

Finally using Gumroad made marketing and selling the book a lot more approachable. Getting everything setup for e-commerce is a daunting job, if you plan on doing it yourself. Thankfully for ebooks, and similar digital products, Gumroad solves most of the problems one can encounter. I definitely recommend using them if you are planning to do something similar.

Book Announcement: Unjumbling JSON with jq

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jq is an amazing tool for querying and manipulating JSON in command-line, that I learned about from one of my good colleagues, Eric Olsen. And I feel that jq deserves a good book describing how to use this tool. Hence I am writing a book called Unjumbling JSON with jq on the topic.

As mentioned in a previous post, I originally planned on writing a single book on both jq and httpie. I divided the original book in two, because there is only a small overlap between the two. I wanted to show examples of grabbing a REST API response via httpie, and parsing the JSON output with jq. However basic querying a REST API is something that could be covered in a short section. By writing the books separately, I will be able to release them faster, and the books will be much more focused.

I plan on selling early drafts of the ebook on August 10th. Buyers of the ebook will get regular versions of the evolving drafts of the ebook, and a free upgrade to the final version of the book. I want to release the early drafts to get early reader feedback. In addition readers of the book will have access to the REST API that accompanies the book.

You can order the early version of Unjumbling JSON with jq from here].

Just to Write

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I feel as if this blog were a summer residence of sorts.  I do not live on it.  I do visit often or as often as I’d like to.  And when I do I first must dust the cobwebs, and vacuum the dust before I can do what I really want to.  What I really want to do is write.  Write and write with near abandon.  Just the shear joy of writing makes if worthwhile to write.  Just like this post.  This post is a creation of spontaneity and a love of the art.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.

Unfortunately, today like many days are filled with non-writing tasks.  Clearing the decks, organizing the mess of everyday, healing myself of this *ahem* nasty cold.  But how I yearn to write just like in the old days.  A keyboard on a strong wooden table, in sunlight or the light of a desktop lamp.  I know… what can I say… I am if not a romantic.

That is all.  I just wanted to share this with my readers.  That and the realization that I should spend less time dealing with the chores I am not interested with.  And spend more time doing things more beneficial to all.

I am also lucky to have met someone, who has helping me challenge my thoughts of what I do.  And to pursue the passions that I have.  I think I shall have to do just that.  One of those things is write more and worry less.  You can’t please everyone with your writing.  And you never will.  The moral of the story is to write about things important to you.  Enjoy the journey and do not worry if you please others.  I shall have to do just that.

Ash Wednesday

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Today is Ash Wednesday.  What a day it was.  Started off with a dentist, ended up with me walking through slush in the driving wet snow.  Not exactly the funnest of days.  But I guess appropriate for the beginning of Lent.

I’ve decided that this Lent, I will work on resolving a nagging deep personal issue.  I will not go into the details, but it is a serious issue that needs resolving.  Along the way, I also want to dedicate more of my time and works to the Lord.  After He gave me all my gifts, my life and everything.  It is only fair I do something in return.

I plan on doing a lot of writing and editing of writing, inspired by Catholic faith.  I think this will not only be a good direction for my spiritual development, but also my personal too.  Considering that I am an editor of the Alexandrian and a writer it just makes sense.  And also the amazing comments from my readers… I feel like I should do this:

So my plan is to spend my free time each day writing a part of my novel, or working on the next issue of the Alexandrian, or working on expanding the magazine.  Hopefully by Easter, I will have a quite collection of work that I can offer up.  And for the benefit of my readers and friends.

Catholic Writing Reprint: Learning to Love God

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Author’s note:  This short story is reprinted from the Fall 2010 edition of The Alexandrian.  It concerns about an epiphany I’ve personally experienced and that has deepened my faith.  The original publication can be found here: http://thealexandrian.org/journal/learning-to-love-god

Learning to Love God

Dorian Pula

I decided to take a short break from cleaning in the kitchen. I dried the plate in my hands, put it away on the shelf and hung the moist dish cloth over my shoulder. I wandered out of the kitchen and into the living room. The hardwood floor heated by the summer sunlight warmed my bare feet. The floor creaked every few steps I took.

The house stood empty, still and silent. The ticking of the wall clock filled the living room. I stopped a metre or so from the grey piano in the living room. A flimsy picture rested against the piano’s music stand. The picture portrayed Christ as a king wearing a regal cloak and crown of red and gold against a background of golden rays. I stared at the picture and wondered how different artists portrayed Jesus in different ways. Sometimes He looked welcoming and friendly, sometimes powerful and regal, and sometimes hurt and bloodied.

In my own mind I portrayed God as a loving but stern Creator. I envisioned Him sitting on some throne in the heavens, great white beard flowing and commanding the universe with a stern look and pointed finger. I thought how foolish it would be for His creation to go against His commandments. How foolish it would be to upset someone who could make you unexist as easily He made you exist. Not that this thought ever stopped me from doing foolish things against His will.

Still I tried to follow the two most important commandments that Jesus taught. I understood the love thy neighbour part. I learned to accept, respect and even love others. One can learn to love humanity even with its flawed attempts at happiness, love and peace. But how does one love God? After all I always envisioned God the Father, sitting from a far, looking fatherly but more or less abstracted from the day-to-day affairs of the world.

As I stood there and stared at the picture I wondered if I could ask God that question. I did not expect any real answers. After all in my mind God, not only felt distant but that also He had better things to do than to answer my idle questions. But decided to try anyways. And so I prayed for wisdom.

The air became unbearably hot, dry and dusty. The walls closed in forming a narrow street in ancient Palestine. An angry mob surrounded me wearing cloaks, tunics and sandals. The mob jeered at a convicted man half-escorted, half-manhandled by rough Roman legionnaires. I felt safe as my cloak hid my identity and let me merge in with the crowed.

I watched silently as the convicted man limped down the street toward to his execution. His figure bent under the heavy wood beam fastened to his arms. His torn and blood splattered clothes hung loosely over his torn, disfigured, swollen and bruised body. One of the soldiers pushed the man forward, causing him to fall on his knee in front of me. I recognized the man as the Lord when turned His face towards me. The black crown of thorns cut into the Lord’s swollen forehead and dark blood dripped down the creases of His face. As He laboured to stand up, I imagined my own body turning into the symphony of pain and torment that He endured. I recoiled at the sight of the gruesome, blood stained and tortured Lord. Horror filled me as I realized that some His wounds were in fact my own sins.

I looked at the Lord with pleading eyes. Why did you choose this? Why does the King of the Universe who defined the very laws of existence choose this fate? Why take this pain, cruelty and humbling from a wretched race who rejects You time and time again? Why this? There must best be some other way.

Because I love you, I respect you and honour your will even when you reject Mine. The Lord responded with a serene look that was out of place.

This is madness! Only a madman would do this. I shouted at the Lord in my mind.

Or a man madly in love. The Lord replied and first century Jerusalem melted back into the comfort of 21st century Toronto.

The house stood empty, still and silent. The ticking of the wall clock filled the living room. A hot burning tear streamed down my cheek. The comforting aura of technology and human ingenuity gently prodded me back into reality. I continued to stare at the picture. But I felt different. My heart overflowed with warmth, joy and gratitude. I wiped another tear that started growing in my eyes. Now I understood that God wasn’t some remote deity who merely watched His creation from afar. Instead God is so madly in love with His creation, He let His creation kill His only Son. And by His death and resurrection He redeemed and saved His creation, unworthy as we all are of this mad love.


There is Writing… And There is Writing

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I enjoy writing, I really do.  If I did not I would not spend my time blogging and writing novels. Heck I even like writing documentation in my code at work. The written word is nothing I fear nor loathe. However there is some writing I could do without. Or rather, prefer not to do.

One such type of writing is writing e-mails to clients or business correspondence. Not that I can not communicate effectively. Rather I dislike the whole political tip-toeing on does. Formalness and diplomatic speak is something I do out of necessity.

Another type of writing I never cared about is essay writing. Yes, yes I can give argue a point and give evidence. But in high school, teachers want you to use their silly hamburger paragraphs and their thesis and conclusion setup. I mean for real? Read a real essay and see how real writers argue their points. You argue the point quickly to the point, without going on and on and on about boring redundant evidence. Just to make a point. Not to mention page length expectations. Make your point and use as much or as little as you need. Do you wonder why journalism instructors have to first unteach all the folly of high school.

So why the rant? I had to do both recently. But helping my brother work on his essays, just brings back less than fond memories of high school English. I liked the reading, but the only English class I enoyed was the one with the cute attractive teacher. I don’t blame her, because she had to teach a curriculum set out by a merry band of bureaucrats. And most of the class was not imaginative enough to write anything half decent. But irritated me to no end.

Fortunately most of my writing nowadays consists of technical work, blogging and novel writing. So once I finish helping my brother I can get back to writing my novel.

Odds and Ends and Everything in Between

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When one ought to go sleep, but instead insists on staying up to finish one more thing… than one is an workaholic.  But who am I kidding here?  My excuse is really that I’ve realized that this week is a crucial crunch week.  And that once things are done, I can take things a bit easier.

So why am I posting this instead of finishing off my odds and ends?  And getting some sleep?  I want to start some good habits that I want to carry out through the new year and beyond.  One of them is writing everyday, and moving forward on my long overdue tasks.  Hence this is today’s blog entry.  I apologize if it sounds like filler but it isn’t.  Anyways, now I really need to finish work and get some sleep.  Good night and good day!

Daily Writing

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I’ve done a lot of thinking today.  About what to do next in life, and what will be the next big thing.  I feel that I should seriously back into writing in a big way.  Managing all the projects that I’d like to do will be challenging.  But I think I should try and dedicate one day of my week for a particular project.

But one thing I will do, is do some daily writing.  I should be able to manage, cause after all I am posting this even though it has been an off day.

Totally Unknown Writers Festival 2010

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On Wednesday evening, I went to the 17th Annual Totally Unknown Writers Festival. As always organized by the great folks from Life Rattle Radio and originally founded by two of my professional writing professors, Guy Allen and Arnie Achtman. As with every year, great stories written and read by talented authors from around Toronto.

I hoped to read this year, but I’ll get ready for next year’s festival. I did meet up with some of my old classmates from university. And I was able to catch up with them and Guy. If you want to hear great stories of life experiences from the GTA, I highly recommend coming out to the festival.