New Years Resolutions

I’ve given a fair amount of thought to my New Year's resolutions, spoken to friends whose opinion I value, and even run them through an AI to check their viability;

·        Create a Daily Creative Ritual (20 minutes minimum)

Not a marathon, not a vow of literary chastity — just a daily tap on the door of the muse. Writing, freewriting, outlining, tinkering with worldbuilding, reading a craft article; any of it counts. This builds my identity as a writer in a way that survives chaos, client emergencies, and low-energy days. It becomes the pulse of my long game.

·        Complete and Publish 12 Finished Pieces

Short stories, articles, horror essays, tech explainers, TTRPG supplements — whatever my creative synapses are sparking that season. A monthly rhythm is perfect for me: it gives breathing room while ensuring momentum. Twelve tangible “I made this” milestones across the year will feel like planting banners on new moons.

·        Improve Your Freelance Workflow with One Small System

My tech work is good — what drains you is the unpredictability. This resolution is about making the job carry me slightly, instead of me carrying all of it. Choose one thing to systematise:

•           An intake checklist

•           Standard troubleshooting scripts

•           A pricing sheet

•           A weekly posting schedule for your tech blog

•           A templated customer follow-up message.

·        Read 24 Books

A 2-book-a-month Fuel Injection A blend of:

•           fiction (my genre choices sharpen your author instincts)

•           craft books (I love learning this stuff, and it shows)

•           one wildcard per quarter (non-fiction, philosophy, science, whatever stirs the sediment at the bottom of the soul-jar)

I’ve already discovered how reading stabilises my writing energy. This makes it a deliberate tide.

·        Choose Some Health Habits and Make Them Sacred

Not “fix everything.” That leads to rebellion.

•           stretch every morning

•           take an evening walk

•           hydrate like a medieval monk preparing for a long sermon - learn to love water!

•           commit to sleep hygiene three nights a week

•           tech-free Sundays my body has been waving small flags lately. This is me waving back.

·        Finish one long-form project to a stable draft.

Work on The Echo Man, produce a stable draft.

·        Learn to code in Java.

Dedicate an hour a day to studying and work through all available resources at hand to learn how to program in Java and build up and strengthen my portfolio of tech knowledge.

·        Save approximately £2000 to put back into the business. (Minimum)

£2000 is approximately £40 per week (this is in addition to paying off my share of the cruise)

·        Cold quit all web surfing habits that hurt my soul

Trump is an awful person; he was an awful person yesterday, and he will be one tomorrow. Constantly picking at the scab that is the YouTube political news bubble will not change that. The web is a cesspit in places; avoid those places and go to the spas instead.

·        Spend more quality time with Mum and Luke

Spend at least two more hours a day on family time. 

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson

“We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold.”

Quick Info

Author: Hunter S. Thompson

Published: 1971 (Random House)

Genre: Gonzo Journalism / Satirical Nonfiction

Length: 204 pages

Series: Standalone

The Premise

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas follows journalist Raoul Duke (a barely disguised version of Thompson himself) and his attorney, Dr. Gonzo, as they embark on a drug-fuelled trip to Las Vegas to cover a motorcycle race. Beneath the chaos and surreal humour lies an exploration of the death of 1960s idealism and the disillusionment that followed.

It’s a feverish odyssey through the American Dream’s remains — loud, messy, and unforgettable.

My Thoughts

It’s been sitting on my TBR pile — well, more of a heap really — since before Bush and Blair were carving up the Middle East in the name of peace, justice, and cheaper prices at the pump. What drew me to it right now is that I’ve been interested in journalism, and specifically Gonzo journalism, for some time.

What Stuck With Me:

What stuck with me the most was how lucid the prose is, considering the amount of mind-altering drugs Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo consume over the course of these razor-sharp and wickedly efficient 204 pages. One could hardly expect the pair to even spell “Gonzo,” let alone define an entire genre — yet somehow, they do. The book feels like you’ve spent a long weekend in conversation with Hunter S. Thompson himself: half-drunk, half-philosophical, and entirely enthralling.

What Struck Me Most:

What struck me most was Thompson’s matter-of-fact yet nostalgic recollection of the 1960s — the sense that the world is a little less colourful now than it was in his heyday. There’s a wistful honesty beneath the madness, a feeling that he’s mourning something we never quite got to experience.

Personal Impact:

The book made me want to drink heavily and think heavy thoughts. Even though it was written before I was born, it made me pine for an era when my parents were young — for that same spirit of rebellion and absurdity. I felt a genuine kinship with Raoul, and by extension, with Hunter.

Favourite Lines

“Buy the ticket, take the ride.”

“In a closed society where everybody’s guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity.”

The Verdict

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is equal parts chaos and clarity — a heady cocktail of satire, truth, and psychotropic excess. It’s not for everyone, but for anyone curious about the wild edge of American journalism or the death throes of the 1960s dream, it’s absolutely essential.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

Recommended for: Readers who like chaos, dark humour, counterculture history, and the sound of typewriter keys echoing through a hangover.

See you in the margins,

-Rob D

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