Editorial Newsletter | On Reading & Writing
Illuminating the Path to Better Writing Through Voracious Reading
The journey towards self-betterment never ends
Dear Writers,
June 2021 has ended, and we are officially into the 2nd half of the year. Many writers of ILLUMINATION continue to bang away at their writing goals for the year by writing daily. I salute your persistent efforts.
Saluting is not enough. The editors in ILLUMINATION want to be part of your journey. We stay true to our mission, and our publication’s statistics for June demonstrates that: -
- 973,304 minutes read for June 2021.
- 609,209 views for June 2021.
- A sea of stories successfully selected for further distribution.
For this editorial newsletter, we want to focus on helping you sharpen your pen. I have thought long and hard about it because I seek it myself.
How do I become better at my craft?
The same answers kept coming back. They are: -
- Read more.
- Write more.
Okay, that is simple in principle and not that easy in execution. As such, and to save time, I would like to extract great reads from Illumination across various topics to your direct attention.
My focus in this editorial is better #writing through voracious #reading.
Writing On Environment.
I want to start with garbage in the oceans.
With plastics and other materials being discarded into rivers once they reach the shoreline, the ocean gyres then pull them in. This accumulation over decades is now what we see as the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch”, the “Pacific Trash Vortex” or our planet’s floating “eighth continent”. Take your pick on the name, but this disaster is real, with research showing the rate of plastic pollution in this zone increasing and spreading to other stretches of water.
Miles is eloquent, and he is right. Many of us do not give a damn about some far-flung location beyond our line of sight. What has garbage in the ocean got to do with us?
My takeaway is simple.
Our garbage flows to rivers which flows to oceans. Fish consumes them, and we fish them for white meat.
In brief, we are eating our own trash. Appalling, is that not?
Our Relationship With Time.
We Have Become Our Own Time-Killer.
Time is our most valuable asset, yet we don’t always treat it as such. If you are anything like the average global Social Media user, you spend around 2.5 hours on Social Media every day… We’re dealing with a different scenario when you only consume content that is not enriching your life.
- Gracia Kleijnen, I Gained 2+ Hours of My Day Back by Deleting TikTok and Instagram From My iPhone
I agree with Garcia 100%. Time is my most valuable asset because I cannot buy more with money, and it sprints ruthlessly into the future. I wrote an entire article detailing my thoughts here.
The thing is, social media is a vacuum cleaner on our time. Unless and until we become aware of our time spent and working to realize our goals and ambitions, killing our precious time happens all the time.
Not a good idea.
A Story On Self-Healing.
I want to focus your attention on a writer who fills life with gratitude. I am touched by her writing.
I turned 50 this month and also celebrated my 20th wedding anniversary. Both occasions called up deep gratitude for my life, my partnership, and new opportunities for growth and adventure. One of the ways that I’m showing appreciation for reaching this age is by capturing things that have moved and inspired me through each month in the coming year.
- Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer, 5 Things That Inspired Me This June
I am not going to spill the beans on the 5 things she wrote. Go read it!
In a world filled with negativity and bad news, her writing is a breath of fresh air.
Picking On A Fellow Editor!
An Editor’s Pick? Picking on a fellow editor? Both ways, you are right.
My favorite story this week comes from Maria. She writes about her procrastination to write.
Do we procrastinate because we don’t have any set ideas on the topic?
I don’t think so, certainly not in my case.
I don’t happen to believe too much in laziness, and in this instance, I had lots to write about, but I found myself at odds with what I had written.
Maybe I was just not inspired.
Procrastination is not always about laziness. We need to give ourselves a wide berth, especially when we are uninspired.
Summary
I hope you enjoyed this editorial newsletter on #writing and #reading.
I wish to thank all writers contributing to the success of Illumination and it is our honor to contribute to yours.
All the best to your writing endeavors!
Happy Writing, People.
Aldric
Dr Mehmet Yildiz Liam Ireland Maria Rattray Terry L. Cooper Carol Price Britni Pepper Dew Langrial Tree Langdon Josh Balerite Acol Agnes Laurens Claire Kelly Dr Preeti Singh The Maverick Files Karen Madej Noorain Hassan, BMS Geetika Sethi Esther George
As a content contributor, I write my observations from daily life and my business exposure. Because our life experience is the bedrock of our unique perspectives.