My last post was in January and it seems this will be the first in 7 month. (Yikes!) I used to blog on weekly basis but I guess my commitment to datelines stop me from doing so. This post will let you know who I admire as a writer and what made me a writer. Let’s get on.

I’ve been trained back when to write project reports and thesis. And I just like to describe it as ‘mental torture’. But time goes by (apparently when you get older, haha!), being able to analyze an artwork using the aesthetic and fundamental of arts & designs, it did contribute to me after all. To begin, I was never good in my English writing but somehow, more people adore reading what I wrote in my blog, and I just realize that it’s not about my writing or my lintang pukang grammar, it’s what i wrote and the content that’s matter the most.

From Territory Magazine, to small newspaper publication, web portals and recently, few articles for a local art magazine, I manage to learn a lot to improve my skills and made it as a career. You get few hundred bucks for 400-800 words of writing, is actually good side income. Surprisingly, I was never from a writing background, and I only know two people in my family have excellent writing skills, who are my sisters, Aniqah and Abby. Their room sometimes can be a mini library with full of text books, novels and magazine,s while my drawers and racks in my room are full of Devilbots, Keroro toys, Transformers action figures and some design magazines and art books. Well, take it a good side, I normally have my tea or coffee to accompany me. Thank God I quit smoking long ago.  A little bit of Bossa Nova like Absurd Gilberto, Incognito or Buddha Bar would definitely contribute the mood ;-)

I must admit, I begin writing seriously due to the influence of watching Sex And The City, (yes, guilty in charge). Watching Carrie Bradshaw’s character (played by Jessica Parker) not only inspired me, but a lot out there to write. I then became more aware in listening or watching excellent written script in any TV shows, from Candace Bushnell who wrote Sex And The City, Nanny (ahakhaha..Stop it! Fran Drescher & Peter Marc Jacobson are both amazing writers) to the famous and award-wining comedy, 30 Rock. I found that Tina Fey, who I admire from Saturday Night Life (SNL), is one hell of a genius writer/actress. The other, yet always gave a lot of impact to me is the late Yasmin Ahmad (al-Fatihah). Her TVC and films truly capture the essence of our culture with promising emotion, affection and life.  She moved me, and they all moved me. God bless them all.

I do have circles of friends who are renown writers, like Dina Zaman, Zubin Muhammad and others. Dina’s book ‘I Am Muslim’ is one of most reality-in-life-worth reading with full of humor. Imagine laughing at 3 o’clock in the morning reading this book, I found it delighting. I think not everyone can be a good writer. Teong Hin (PGL Film Director) introduced me to Tash Aw when he bought ‘The Harmony Silk Factory‘ for my 27th Birthday. My last reading is ‘Don’t Be Sad‘ by Aaidh ibn Abdullah al-Qarni, a book given by my former employer, Niran Noor from Brand & Marketing, MDeC. This book moved me in many ways too.

I found a new obsession in reading lately, and it’s about Rumi. I heard of Rumi for quite sometimes, but never really care to focus on his works, and the only book I have was from Omar Khayyam who sometimes I thought his writings made me hair-wired. I think and feel when I read Rumi, he manage to carry my mind to a different dimension (not another). His poetry and quotes cleanses my soul, with full of calmness and made me to become more absorbent to what surrounds and inspire me.

(illustration of Rumi will be update soon)

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there.
“This is love: to fly toward a secret sky, to cause a hundred veils to fall each moment. First to let go of life. Finally, to take a step without feet.”
- Rumi

‘Finally, to take a step without feet’, now that’s deep. When you read that, such powerful words win over statements with 10 paragraph. A writer who simplify things yet gives a full impact in our mind is what I adore. There’s no more of reading “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”, no more Malcolm Gladwell ‘Tipping Point’, just Rumi, or at least, Paul Arden because he still pretty much my mentor and he’s like Rumi too, only that he focus more on Creative Communication. To this very date, I found myself struggle to become a good writer because it gave me constant pressure because I have to do at my best, but I also forgot, that writing gives an opportunity to explore our mind to think differently. I think it’s beauty to be able to write, and the reward? Getting people’s acknowledgments and credits. It makes people to feel better. It has definitely broaden my mind more, it’s like an exercise for me to come up with an objective, to identify problem, the causes and suggesting solutions. It enable me to explore and do researches, learning new things, meeting and interviewing new and wonderful people and create friendship between other individual. Though sometimes getting into format and being systematic is good, but I thought being freestyle is much better

Yasmin told me and told us, how do we inspire people? It’s through charisma and passion.

We all, must open ourselves to read, but don’t let ourselves think by gaining knowledge, we can constantly attack people or use it as a weapon to put other people’s self esteem away. I forbid myself from doing that and I hope in many years to come, I will not be that group of people who are cynical, sarcastic and arrogant because they think they are much better because they have accessibility to knowledge. I don’t dream of writing a book, because my writing had already reach everyone who want to understand life though design communication and I’m glad to share that with the world.

“To praise the sun is to praise your own eyes.” – Rumi.

p/s: Yes, this post was written directly from WordPress, not Microsoft Word :-)

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