Start a 30 Day Writing Challenge Today

Given the fiasco that was 2020 with the whole lockdown and toilet roll shenanigans, I believe that 2021 would be a year to create a positive restart to our mental wellbeing for a lot of us. The old cliché saying of "new year, new me" hits differently this time around and I believe that a lot of us are finally getting off the couch to create a form of self worth for 2021, well at least me anyway.

Growing up, I never been the creative type. I have always dedicated myself to video games or other tasks deemed "pointless" by society. I was under the impression that I am not a creative person and I believe that a lot of us can relate.

For January 2021, I wanted a fresh kick-start to the year to challenge my inner creativity. I came across articles talking about writing challenges. This was a simple 30 day bullet point list that provided a general consensus to write about. Like a majority of "productivity" challenges, they are often tedious and very boring. They contained days where you could only write 4 bullet points and that was it. This was not the creative challenge that I was seeking.

After many hours of browsing Pinterest and other pin-board applications. I came across a 30 day writing challenge that focuses mainly on fictional character development. As the days progress, the challenge takes you on a journey from describing your protagonist to having your character face many different obstacles. Not only does this challenge your inner creativity, but it gives you the freedom to control your thoughts. You may even feel empathy for your character when they are facing a difficult time. The world is truly your oyster.

As an example, the character that I have written about is a boy called Wilfred. I have based him somewhat on my own experience growing up and my own personal dreams and aspirations. I realised that writing about my own experience in somebody else's shoes has helped me to come to terms with the memories that I would often beat myself up for. We can create a terrible journey for our character, feel deeply sympathetic and then turn their life around through a means of miraculous events, bringing them joy and happiness. Writing about my personal experiences from a third person narrative has helped me appreciate and be grateful for the events that have occurred in the past. This has influenced the negative thoughts I had initially with my own experience and helped create a sense of gratefulness for the person that I am today. That's the beauty of fictional writing.

I would challenge anyone to complete a writing challenge. It will bring you a sense of wonder, always questioning "what's next", "how do I get to this point?". You will surprise yourself with your own creativity that you didn't know was there. It may even lead you continue writing further and inspire you to start a blog like this.

To summarise, I have experienced the following:

• Writing about our own experience in someone else's shoes, creating empathy

• Full control over the story, both positive and negative

• The personal satisfaction of achieving something

• Inspiration to continue writing

• Surprised at how creative you actually are

The writing challenge can be found at: https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/30_day_writing_challenge.en.html

Thank you.

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