The life of Brian

Most people start new projects and resolutions in January. We all want to start the year off on the right foot. It seems I’ve pushed up the calendar and have made November my month to try new things. I wrote last week in my post, Pulling an all-nighter, about signing up for NaNoWriMo. My goal will be to write 1,500 words each day and finish my novel. Besides the writing program, I’ve noticed my bid to try new things has extended to other things too.

For examples, my blogging friend Vicki ran her response last week to a simple six question prompt. She picked it up from Melanie McGauran and Peter Springer and tagged me to participate. I usually skip these kind of things. Keeping with the spirit of the month, though, I thought I’d give it a try.

Let’s see how this goes:

How did you come up with your blog name? 

Oh, I put a lot of thought into my blog name. I had my blog site created, wrote several posts, and was ready to publish, and I still needed a name. I was overwhelmed with all the possible choices:

• I wanted something short and pithy. Yea, I broke that rule.
• I wanted something memorable. Yea, that one too.
• Finally, I wanted something with a little pizzazz. Oh, brother, what was I thinking? Who did I think I was? A used car salesman? Who knows.

In any event, my name ideas were all over the place. Here’s a few that I tried out: Bit by bit with Brian; Blogging with Brian; The Life of Brian (leveraging the Monty Python movie); and a few others. None of them felt right.

Finally, in the heat of the moment, I chose Writing From the Heart With Brian.

I came home from a particularly tough day at work and was frustrated. I felt my creativity was being stifled. I wanted to write something that didn’t need a corporate review to be published. I wanted to be as creative and zany as I wanted to be. More than anything, I wanted something that was authentic. If I wanted to write something funny, I wanted to post it without the CEO or VP at work looking over my shoulder. If I wanted to turnaround and write a heart-wrenching story about my mother leaving the Amish church or my father and my relationship, I wanted to write and post it without a second’s hesitation.

I wanted to be honest with my feelings. I wanted to put an issue on the table, start writing, and see how I felt about it. I wanted the chance to write from, well, the heart. Yes, my blog name is long. And even confusing, but it’s perfect for me.

If your blog was a person (fiction or real), who would it be?

Oh the choices! Vicki brought up Snoopy and I absolutely love him. Who doesn’t? What an awesome dog.

I’ve never really thought of this question, but it’s a good one, because it puts a face to the many different feelings and emotions that I try to create with my blog.

When I think of my blog, I think of many people. Here’s a few off the top of my head:

• Snoopy. Man’s best friend. Lovable, Joe Cool.
• Dr. Sidney Freeman. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. An occasional character on the television show M.A.S.H., Freeman was a psychiatrist who was summoned in cases of mental health problems. I loved his genial manner and wise-cracking advice: “Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice: Pull down your pants and slide on the ice.” My hope is that my blog does the same thing. I hope it tells an interesting story, faces challenges head-on, maybe offers a laugh or two; and makes the reader feel better than when they started.
• Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Fight the good fight. It’s been awhile since I’ve watched this movie. I’d like to think that my blog is like Jimmy Stewart standing up to fight for decency and honesty and that a single person can make a difference.
• Positive thinkers. All things are possible. When I was a kid, I stumbled across an interview with Norman Vincent Peale. He was a preacher and author best known for promoting the idea of positive thinking. I was a kid and understood half of what he said. However, I remember walking away feeling good about myself and life.
• Mitch Albom. The ultimate story teller. Albom became widely known for writing Tuesday’s with Morrie, his touching story of getting reacquainted with his dying professor. He’s also written 11 best selling novels. I’ve long been a fan of Albom. Yes, I love his books, but I’ve been a bigger fan of his work as a sports columnist. He’s long found a way to write about trends and issues, making you care by telling the story through one person’s perspective. He’s one of my all-time favorite writers.
• Charles Kuralt and Leo Buscaglia. Stories with heart. Kuralt was an American television, newspaper and radio journalist and author. He is most widely known for his long career with CBS and his “On the Road” series. Buscaglia was an American speaker and professor who promoted the concept of humanity’s need for others and daily hugs. They have little in common but they had the gift of great storytelling. I would include others like them, such as Oprah Winfrey, Charles Osgood, Bruce Springsteen, Paul Harvey, and Denzel Washington.
• Robin Williams. Let’s laugh together. I don’t consider myself a comedy writer. When I generate humor with my writing, it’s more of a guffaw then a roll in the aisle laugh. I love that about my writing, but I still try to mimic William’s concern for others. He was never mean. If he made fun of someone, they were in on joke.

In the end I come back to a simple idea: if my blog was a person, I would want it to be a close friend. Someone you couldn’t wait to chat back and forth with over coffee or a beer. It would be someone who’s there through thick and thin.

What helps you create new content if you feel like you need some inspiration?

I’m constantly in search of blog topics. I love thinking about topics and figuring out how to bring out my unique perspective. I’ve found that anything can make a great a blog. The highest highs and even the lowest lows — they all have the makings of a great blog.

But the best way to spur inspiration on demand? Oh, that’s simple. Go somewhere with a notebook. It doesn’t have to be anywhere busy, just out of your norm. My favorite place lately has been to go to a Wegman’s food court and just brainstorm. Oh, the ideas come.

The Wegman’s worker wiping down a nearby table looks like a poor man’s Paul McCartney. That’s a story. The pizza I ordered tastes fine, but I’d really want a New York or Chicago style pizza. Yes, that’s a story too — All the places I want to travel.

I find that getting away spurs the “what if” questions and scenarios. The more it’s a game, the more fun it is.

Is there anyone you would like to collaborate with?

When I was a young reporter, I was asked to cover a highway opening for a section of road that was 30 years in the making and desperately needed by the community. Of course, I was having one of those days. Everything was coming due. I rushed back to the office and wrote up two other stories. Finally I had to work on the main story.

My brain was mush. I got the gist of the story, but I needed help with my lede. I was on the one yard line, but the clock was ticking and I needed help getting over the goal line. I was exhausted and turned to my friend and coworker who sat next to me. She looked over what I had written and the two of us finished the story.

I can’t find the clip anymore. It’s stored somewhere deep in my basement. Somehow we compared the construction project to the debut of Barbie, the space race, and Woodstock. Yea, it was an amazing lede.

When I think about collaborating with other writers, I think about that story. Vicki and Wynne asked me last year if I wanted to help out with The Heart of the Matter. They might not be feeding me lede suggestions, but they’ve been great about encouraging me. Here’s to great friends and collaborations wherever and whenever they happen.

Image by Pixabay.

Is there anything more you wish you had or would like to learn as a blogger?

I’m like most bloggers. I wish I had a better understanding of web code. I also wish I knew more about some of the technical gobbledygook. (My word for all that technical mumbo-jumbo that I should really know, but don’t.)

I care about the design and usability too. For example, I know I should consider a redesign, but I’ve been putting it off.

Finally, I want to figure out how blogging can pay me enough to quit my day job. I would love to just blog each day. Wouldn’t that be great? I think most blogger’s dream about that at one point or another. I don’t see it happening anytime soon, but it’s still a fun dream to have.

Do you have a specific style of blogging?

I try to tell interesting stories. They usually have do with something that’s happened to me. We say goodbye for the semester to our youngest son and I write about saying goodbyes. I’ll write about things I’ve noticed or social psychology phenomenons that I appreciate. (I knew that my Sociology minor would come in handy one day.)

I’ll occasionally get frustrated with the anger and hatred I see in the news and I’ll write something mildy political.

But for the most part I stick with storytelling.

Shh, don’t share this with anyone, but many of my blogs have a common structure. I’ll start off with a introduction. Ledes are important to me. I usually spend some time on them. Once I got the reader hooked, I’ll include the nut graph, where I explain what the piece is about. Next, I’ll dive into how the story got me thinking of some other fascinating story.

You’ve seen this in my blogs, right? One thing leads into another and another. I’ll then wrap everything up with a tidy bow or morale of the story. That’s how a Brian story will often flow. Shh, be sure to keep this to yourself.

. . . .

And that’s my responses. Any surprises? I’m not that fascinating and that’s okay. I’m a guy who likes to write and get a response from others. Thanks for reading.