inspiration

Here’s What I’d Tell Myself If I Had To Start Over In Writing

/ Stuart Danker / 40 Comments
Start Over Climb - Michal Matlon

A person climbing up rocky stairs on a mountain

Sometimes I feel like a sham, giving out writing advice. Maybe it’s because I haven’t achieved much through writing lately. Or maybe I’ve been relying too much on goat sacrifices rather than actual skill.

Who am I to tell people how to approach their art, am I right?

But what I can do, however, is tell my younger self what to do. And perhaps by doing so, I can inspire you to reassess your writing as well.

So today, I present you, the unsolicited writing advice I’d give myself if I had to start over with writing.

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Love Lessons I’ve Learned From Being An Asshole

/ Stuart Danker / 50 Comments

A couple sitting on the uppermost floor of apartments with bottle of whiskey between them, overlooking night cityscape

”It’s just puppy love.”

That’s what my mum said when I was all but 14 years old and going through my first heartbreak. “Don’t worry. You’ll know real love soon enough,” she said.

Then you don’t know love, I thought. I was hurting so bad that it had to be real love. My parents just forgot how it was to be a teen. That’s how I justified it.

But as it’d turn out, she was right. I would finally meet my soulmate and we’d be together for more than a decade. And only now I’m learning what true love is. Danged adults and their wisdom.

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Maybe Your Flaws Will Help You Achieve Greatness

/ Stuart Danker / 51 Comments

A cracked and broken

I wake up feeling negative every day. Not just because I force myself to wake up earlier than I want to, but also because life can feel like an unending rat race sometimes.

Maybe that’s why I do routines, mainly by working out and writing right after I wake up. Because then, no matter how my day goes, I’d at least have improved in my main priorities in life.

Yet I can’t shake the thought that I’m operating at a lower level than most people I know. Like, my friends don’t have problems standing up for themselves. They don’t have problems talking to strangers, or doing the groceries.

Me? Just the thought of having to do the groceries short-circuits my brain. Because the possibilities of things going wrong are endless.

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The Lies I Tell Myself So I Can Keep Going

/ Stuart Danker / 65 Comments

I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but I’ve been trying to keep my head above water ever since I landed my new job.

And don’t get me wrong, it’s been wonderful not having to worry about the other trivialities of life. And there’s just something about losing time that makes you treasure it more.

Then again, I’m falling back to writing this post an hour before my weekly deadline zooms by, so that’s a problem I’ve been trying to address.

During times like this, though, I’ve found a new way to keep going. Sometimes I rely on sheer willpower to get me through my day. Other times I tap into my refusal of letting the haters win.

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Whoa, My Dog Is Teaching Me The Meaning Of Life

/ Stuart Danker / 73 Comments

fbd6458f-ab6c-4bdf-8ac2-41e6e1509000

Let me introduce you to Lady, a ten-year-old cocker who’s been my buddy for a while now. Before meeting her, I often viewed dogs as simple beings that chased after balls and bothered people while they eat.

However, Lady has taught me more about life than any self-help guru ever could. She doesn’t read motivational books or have a master’s degree in psychology. Yet somehow she still manages to teach me valuable life lessons.

Here are some of them.

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