Through my writing slump I’m discovering a new way to write. And now I’m inspired to wreck my 200wad posts.

Have you read Wreck This Journal by Keri Smith? It’s not exactly a book or a novel that you read, but a book with lots of subversive activities prompting you to wreck the book itself in increasingly fun and creative ways. This is the synopsis from Goodreads:

For anyone who’s ever wished to, but had trouble starting, keeping, or finishing a journal or sketchbook comes Wreck This Journal, an illustrated book that features a subversive collection of prompts, asking readers to muster up their best mistake- and mess-making abilities to fill the pages of the book (and destroy them). Acclaimed illustrator Keri Smith encourages journalers to engage in “destructive” acts-poking holes through pages, adding photos and defacing them, painting with coffee, and more-in order to experience the true creative process. Readers discover a new way of art and journal making-and new ways to escape the fear of the blank page and fully engage in the creative process.

I loved it. Because I’m often on the other side - keeping pristine journal books but never using them or writing them, sometimes out of fear of tainting them. But Wreck This Journal rebels against that and actively encourages you to destroy itself instead. How refreshing! And how rebellious!

So why am I talking about this? It’s a strange convergence because just yesterday I was doing this writing game called “Find My Writing Glasses” where I look around the house for 10 random phrases on things like food packaging, boxes, old books, etc, and piece them together like some forced poetry. 

Doing that felt familiar and it made me recall Wreck This Journal. There were some activities in the book that also prompt one to go outside to find stuff to do to the pages. For example: “Cover this page with circles you find” or “Place this page facedown on the ground and kick it around for a while”. (Like, whaaaaat?! ?)

So that got me thinking… what if we applied the same subversive spirit of “wrecking the journal” in digital form? What would that look like? How might we do that on our 200wad posts? How does one ‘wreck’ a 200wad post? ?

I might have done one already yesterday with “Find My Writing Glasses”… what other wrecks can I do with my 200wad post?! Excited to brainstorm and start!

……

Side-note: I’m not sure how much I can still call this a writing slump since I’m still writing, and actually starting to have fun and feel more inventive with my daily writing. I supposed you could say I’m in a slump in terms of writing the ‘old’ way. Even as I’m writing this, when I try to think of serious topics to write about, I still hit this wall. But when I divert that energy to subverting this wall by being a trickster - cheeky, inventive, rebellious - I leave the wall behind into new, greener pastures. With purple cows on them. 

Green pastures and purple cows sure sound way more fun than climbing over walls, if you ask me.