Week 4 Review: Mindset

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One item from the class announcement for February 11 that caught my attention was advice about mindset. I think this caught my attention because of how often we forget the truth of it. You always have yourself to talk to, and your own mind isn't going to stop itself. It is so easy to become critical of yourself or to constantly think negative thoughts. But soon, you accept the critiques as being indicative of yourself, and that's when self-confidence, self-image, and mental health begin to decline. Negative thoughts breed negative perspectives. But if you can remember to be kind to yourself, you can create a positive self-image. Dr. Gottman says healthy relationships need 5 positive comments for every negative one. If a relationship needs this ratio, then surely your internal thoughts needs this too.

Feedback Focus

Of the three strategies I practiced, I had only ever tried the reading out-loud strategy prior. I typically would only employ it when there was an interruptive noise nearby. I hadn't ever really tried it to keep focus in any other situation. However, after using it for the sake of paying attention, I easily found it to be my favorite strategy of the three. It requires more active brain usage, so I didn't ever find myself distracted at all. One downside, though, is that it's much harder to use when in public or around others. Frankly, I think it would be obnoxious to use in public. But for me personally, I rarely read in public places anyways. This method also is a double-edged sword. I definitely read at a slower rate through this technique, but I did find it easier to catch and retain most, if not all, of the details.

My next favorite tip was the copy-and-delete technique. This is something completely new to me. I sometimes will annotate my readings, but I really liked the concept of getting rid of the original material in the process. I think it forces me to better flesh out my ideas because the references are no longer there to provide context. I also see this much more beneficial with longer passages.  It's definitely a technique I could see myself using with material I'm not too interested in. But to be honest, it would take a lot of training to get myself to use this.

And that brings me to the timer method (aka my least favorite of the three). Why do I dislike this method of reading? I don't read. I focus way too much on how much time is left. It puts an unnecessary pressure on me, and as a result, I read (and retain) a significantly less amount of the material. I've never set a timer, per se, but I have given myself a specific amount of time to read. And just like I did with the timer, I kept looking at my phone to see how much time I had left to read. I could see this working for some people. Maybe if they don't like reading, a timer can give the perspective of how little time they are actually dedicating. I don't know, but I do know this is not a method I could use.

The best way I've found that makes me focus on reading is utilizing in-text benchmarks, such as the beginning of a new chapter. I should make a note, however. I do not mean giving myself a select number of pages to read. Then I'm busy thinking about how many pages are left (similar to the timer issue). I mean using those visual benchmarks. So I tell myself that I'll check my phone or get a snack when I hit the next chapter. It gives me a motivation that doesn't really provide anything that could distract me. It has nothing to do with time, so I don't care about a clock. I can use this method anywhere around anyone. It acts as a reward system that I react positively to.

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Image: Cactus Reading, via Pixabay

Week 4 Story Planning: The Healing Name of Ra

Most of my story will follow the original story. I will begin the story by establishing the fact that Ra has more than one name. Then I will introduce the antagonist of the story, Isis. I think I want to expand a bit on her backstory other than wanting to hold power equal to that of Ra's. Older stories sometimes lack character motivation, so I think this would be a great opportunity to add to the story. 

Next, I will want to introduce the character who will become ill due to Isis. I will want to establish a daily routine for this character and show how Isis will interfere with that routine. Do I want to keep a serpent? I could change it up a bit as it doesn't really matter. Maybe I'll choose whatever animal the god I end up using is most associated with. This could help me because that god would then probably trust that animal, and it would provide a reason that god would interact with the animal. This will allow me to change up how the attack plays out and not rely on an invisible creature.

Ra had company at the time of the attack, so I probably want to keep this aspect to provide writer's convenience. From here, I will need to decide who the chosen god will ask for. Ra called upon his children. Maybe I will use one of Ra's children, and then I can have the offspring call upon Ra in my story. This also might give a bit of an emotional tie to provide the motivation to Ra to reveal his name. 

However, as I type this, I question to myself why Ra wouldn't be able to heal his child. So maybe the selected god asks for Ra, but his company is Isis who then takes the god hostage. I could set up some reason Isis is aware and can help (with Ra's name revealed), but write it so that it doesn't seem like Isis is behind everything (though she is).

From here, I would then deal with the struggle of Ra keeping or revealing his name. Maybe he will try lesser things to see if it satisfies the unknown perpetrator. Now I need to decide if he will succeed through a clever idea that doesn't require his hidden name, if he will give up his name to save his child, or if he will forgo revealing his name and let his child perish. I think I should sleep on this decision and see what seems like the best direction after reflection.

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Author's Note: I took the story The Secret Name of Ra and imagined it slightly different. The original story sees Ra become ill due to Isis' actions that were motivated by her desire to know the secret name. Ultimately, Ra revealed the name to Isis and became whole again. For my version, I wondered if Ra would reveal his name if it were instead another god in great pain. Would he be selfish and keep his name to himself, thus dooming the ill god to death? Or would Ra act out of mercy? I also changed the name of the story to better reflect the power of Ra's name.

Bibliography: The Secret Name of Ra, by Donald Mackenzie

Image: The Egyptian Goddess Isis, via Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Ancient Egypt, Part B

Something I like about the stories of part B is that it contains longer stories broken up into parts. As a writing strategy, I might want to tell one story separated into different parts. This kind of storytelling is very common in tales of great heroes who have to complete tasks so I might choose a hero and chronicle his journey of tasks.

Another story writing technique that is used, and is used in other stories, is essentially pitting two people (frequently, siblings in more ancient stories) against each other. There's something gripping about seeing a family working against each other. Obviously, the conflict must be strong and warranted. And just because the story is told from the perspective of one particular person doesn't mean the other is without justification. Ultimately, the conflict is resolved, and the family is at peace again.

In the Book of Thoth, it seems like Nefer-ka-ptah became possessed by the Book. These are usually fun stories because the character doesn't really have ultimate control over his being, though it is as a result of his own will. In addition, the knowledge imparted was ultimately regretted by the maker of said knowledge. Maybe a story I write could include the downfall of Thoth due to the book he wrote getting in the hands of Nefer-ka-ptah.

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Bibliography: Egyptian Myth and Legend, by Donald Mackenzie

Image: Thoth, via Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Ancient Egypt, Part A

Like most creation stories I've read, this reading begins by going explaining how every being comes into existence. I also note the similarities between various religious stories. The story "The Secret Name of Ra" speaks of a great flood. The Egyptian mythology, as well as the Bible both, were created in the roughly the same region. This makes me wonder if both accounts were inspired by the same event, just with different explanations.

A storytelling technique I noticed in "The Secret Name of Ra" is that the focus of the story is never revealed. Isis persues Ra's secret name, and she does find out what it is. However, it is never stated. This exact scenario actually reminds me of the show Doctor Who. Only the Doctor knows his true name, and like Ra's, his name is thought to hold great power in and of itself.

Overall, these stories follow the same formula as most other religions. I do, however, like to look at the contrast between polytheistic religions, such as this one, and monotheistic religions. It seems monotheistic religions focus heavily on the inhabitants of the creation, most likely because there aren't other deities from which stories may arise.

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Bibliography: Egyptian Myth and Legend, by Donald Mackenzie

Image: Sun God Ra, via Wikimedia Commons