So it begins — Sunday Thoughts 15/08/2021

Hey everyone, Pablo here!

I have to say, I find it very strange to write these words rather than saying them in front of the camera, out loud with my phone’s built-in microphone (such is the life of the small YouTuber). I’m settling nicely into that intro though, and it feels right for now.

Onto important things. Welcome to my first-ever Sunday Thoughts Newsletter! ’Tis a momentous occasion like no other.

Well. Not really.

But it does carry a certainweight for me. I have been wanting to do a newsletter for many months now, probably since I embarked on this silly little Booktube journey of mine. It is a very direct way of connecting to people, that also encapsulates all of the content I put into the unwelcoming internet void without worrying about metrics.

Hell, if you are reading this then you must have some interest in what I do, right? Let me ask that again louder. RIGHT? Okay, that’s better.

In broad strokes, I would like this newsletter to summarise the hodgepodge of often conflicting ideas that populate the vast recesses of my brain (and that’s not bragging

because if you have deep recesses, or sulci, it means your brain is getting atrophied, which is a medical no-no. Yes, that’s the correct terminology) on a weekly basis. They generally centre around reading, writing and medicine, or a conflation of the three, so I will likely stick to those for organisation’s sake.

Fair warning, I might follow that structure or I might ignore it altogether, a slave to my whims I am.

Reading📚

A year ago I started reading The Eye of The World, the first instalment in the renowned Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. Yet, through no fault of its own, it failed to capture me. I think I was not in the right mindset to tackle such a behemoth.

A year later I have restarted reading it and I am having the time of my life. I must admit a very big contributor is the upcoming Amazon adaptation (thank you to CEO entrepreneur born in 1964, Jeffrey, Jeffrey Bezos) and alas I succumbed to the hype that grips the bookish community. I am obviously not bitter about it, I am absolutely loving it.

Without getting too much into, it feels to me like a necessary return to classic fantasy. After reading books exclusively from the newest wave of fantasy (which, do not get me wrong, is doing a lot of things right) I am experiencing anti-hero, anti-trope fatigue. I was in need of a tropey, epic fantasy that transports me to a Tolkienesque-vibing world. This is it.

I will say it is still dense, and a lot of the plot is people running around and away from other more evil people. Enjoyable, but I am craving a bit of stasis.

Oh, and one other thing! I have dabbled in audiobooks here and there over the years and it has never successfully hooked me. I am now listening to the audiobook when I go out for a run and it complements the physical format really well. It is acting like the lubricant that smooths and moves the reading along.

Writing🖋

I am writing so much.

That’s it. That’s the update.

No.

A month and a half ago I set out to write a 40-thousand-word novella in four weeks. Spoiler alert, it didn’t happen. However, after nearly 7 weeks I’m up to 31k and this is officially the closest I have been to finishing a major writing project.

To say I am euphoric is an understatement.

I think a big part of it was to overcome the toxic sandpit that is the half-mark and figuring out a massive plot hole. Three more chapters and I will be finally able to write the fabled “The End”.

Medicine🚑

Nothing much is happening on this front, as one could expect during the summer break.

Thing is, I am starting fourth year.

You see, according to my university curriculum my final exams are at the end of year 4, instead of the final year. That means I have my final medical exams, the ones that define my ranking and my placement in hospitals all over the United Kingdom, the ones that decide whether I become a doctor or not…

So, yeah. I’m starting to stress.

The goal for the remaining two weeks of my break is to set up a solid revision calendar with spaced repetition and start active recalling the knowledge from this past year 3 that is starting to grow some rust on the edges.

I always find myself starting the semester with ironclad, for it to deteriorate invariable as time advances. I am however determined to change it this time (just like every single other time in the past…)

That’s it. We have reached the end of my first weekly newsletter. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank you for following what I do, and for reading this far into the chaotic ramblings that plague my head. Alright, enough pomp. See you in the next one!