Pilot

“Do you know the lore?”, is typically what my friends and I say before explaining the context behind a story. The opening line we use to dish out the most unserious details, is now the inspiration behind my first serious writing venture.

My first memory of writing anything was in the sixth grade - a speech for an elocution contest at school. Topic in question: “With great power comes great responsibility.”  While I naturally remember very little of the speech, I distinctly recollect using big words and big ideas with a lot more confidence than comprehension. I won the first prize. I think that’s where it all started.

Sometimes things are as simple as you decide you want them to be. I decided I was going to become a writer. In fact, I decided I was already a writer. It seemed very simple to me, because all I had to do was write. Which thanks to the two English teachers who judged that elocution, I was convinced I was already brilliant at. Fortunately, they were kind enough not to disillusion me just yet, they left that up to with the real world. Which as we know is such a kind and gentle force.

“Respectfully, this is crap.”, are the exact words a particular ex-boss barked at my mortified face many years later, while reviewing a press-release I had written.

“You’re using too many commas; your ideas are all over the place and the whole thing isn’t in line with the brand’s vibe.”

I don’t give a shit about the brand’s vibe – internally.

“How can I fix it?” – Externally

“Why don’t you try writing it more like I would? Make it sound elegant and expensive, but not unattainable, you know?”

“I know.”

I put my papers down soon after.

“We don’t have a very large budget for the writing role, if I’m being honest. Our videographers and editors are taking up the largest chunk, given how digital we’re having to go these days”, said the interviewer at one of the largest magazines in the country, while offering me a salary that sounded like I was on a prank show.

The scary thing about life is that it sometimes walks over to what you decided and shits all over it. The great thing about people is that the first thing they’re taught how to do is clean up their shit. Life went on, I kept writing.

So, what is Lore? After many years of writing personally, professionally, digitally, print-ably, ambitiously, reluctantly, and successfully, I have finally decided to start writing selfishly.

Let’s take a second to think about most of the content we consume today. The largest chunk of it is funded and created to either sell us a product, service, or idea. Stimulating visuals with trending audios and eye-grabbing texts are systematically assaulting your and my senses, numbing out the little intelligence we still might hold, leaving us wondering why we’re always tired.

When I decided to start a creative venture where I could write opinion based, fact backed, humorous writing, people told me nobody wants to read anymore, because nobody really knows how to. “If it’s not in a 9:16 format, and you can’t skip it within 3 seconds, it’s bound to fail.”

As we know by now, I heed to warning very well. The next day I decided to start Lore – a website where every Sunday I intend to write of the many wonderful and bizarre things about the world we call our own. I have often thought that if in the future, historians need an accurate representation of our time, they will have to reviewing a million memes and reels in the name of literature. Lore is my attempt at writing about the stories of our time, so that maybe 100 years later some poor historian doesn’t have to look up words like “brain-rot” and “doom-scrolling”.

Every Sunday, I will attempt to take you on a journey with a piece of writing which will make you think, laugh, nod in agreement or severe disagreement, but most importantly, will try its best to give you a break from the world around you and inside your phone.

If you made it this far, thank you, and see you next Sunday!