Everyone should be an artist. We should all create something at some point in our lives. Be it writing fiction or poetry, drawing, painting, singing or playing an instrument. We should all create. It’s therapeutic!

I will not bother my gentle readers with detailed scientific studies proving the medicinal efficacy of art. Instead, I will offer myself as a case study. 

Why I write fiction

I often like experimenting with different styles and genres of writing. As long as something is considered “writing”, I’ll try it out. The last three posts on this blog were one such experiment. 

I was trying to create the literary version of “shorts” or “short videos”. 

I think that the joyful culture of reading is undergoing a speedy death. The catabolic catalyst is the quick demise of patience as a virtue. If people can no longer be patient enough to watch a 5-minute video, how can they be patient enough to read a 1000-word article? 

So, what remedy did I come up with? “Literary shorts”, as I like to call them. 

I decided to write short bursts of fiction. Not only to cure myself but to help my gentle readers stay in love with reading words (not just hearing them). 

There is a peculiar orgasmic wave that overcomes a writer after completing a work of fiction, however short it may be. The quality of the work is even less relevant. As long as it is fiction, in your own words, however long it may be, it suffices to reach this climax. 

I challenge my gentle readers to all join me in this therapeutic journey. Why not? Write, oh reader, write away your boredom and pain. 

How about drawing/painting?

I’ve heard it has the same therapeutic effect. I am in the process of giving the visual arts a crack. It works best if you paint outdoors, so I’m told. 

Next weekend, I am going on a safari (the joys of living in Africa) with my paintbrushes and paint. It is only a few miles from the city. If any of the paintings are good enough, I promise to share them with you. Lately, I’ve been thinking: I am giving AI too much of my visual work. I prefer doing everything myself.

Till then, gentle reader, wish me luck. I hope you enjoyed this “literary short”.