Tomorrow Starts Today
I’m Ryker Young. Welcome to my online presence.
I’ve done art all my life—drawing, painting, writing songs, and playing music. Now I write.
All these activities are just vehicles for the process. Ways of experiencing the unfolding of ideas into the world.
“Between thought and expression lies a lifetime.” – Lou Reed
An online presence is a new thing for me, so I really wanted to start this with a bang. Be impressive.
I could quote lots of stuff and make out I know all about art—but the truth is: I’m a beginner. An absolute beginner. It’s always beginning.
Things are often connected in incomprehensible ways, and finding ways to notice these connections is what artistic expression is all about.
I could mention influences, ideologies, and protocols… But I couldn’t pin anything down. Every time I turn around, it all changes.
I’m no expert. All I can do is show you. Reveal the workings, be honest, see what happens.
So let’s start with some magic…
Monkey Magic
The Fancy Monkey Mantra
This is where the Fancy Monkey mantra comes from: “With our thoughts we make the world.”
The story is a metaphor for the journey of life, highlighting the importance of perseverance in a world fraught with difficulty.
This idea first appeared in childhood, through the TV show Monkey Magic. You can watch the
A Transcript from the Opening Monologue of the Show
In the worlds before Monkey, primal chaos reigned.
Heaven sought order.
But the phoenix can fly only when its feathers are grown.
The four worlds formed again and yet again,
As endless aeons wheeled and passed.
Time and the pure essences of Heaven,
the moisture of the Earth,
the powers of the sun and the moon
All worked upon a certain rock, old as creation.
And it became magically fertile.
That first egg was named “Thought”.
Tathagata Buddha, the Father Buddha, said,
“With our thoughts, we make the world.”
Elemental forces caused the egg to hatch.
From it then came a stone monkey.
The nature of Monkey was irrepressible!
The Structure
This space is for taking on writing projects and following their creative process—from first flickers to final expression.
It’s about noticing what works and what doesn’t. Exploring different paths to a finished piece. Documenting the detours, the breakthroughs, and the quiet recalibrations.
Sometimes polished, sometimes raw.
There’ll be other sections too:
Shi-Sho – A space for exploring ideas related to writing: themes, questions, anything that won’t leave me alone.
The Churn – A record of influences: books, music, videos, conversations. What’s shaping the work behind the scenes.
Inception - The Big Bang
Let’s begin with a project:
Right Left Write, Queensland Writers Centre’s monthly flash fiction competition.
Each month from February to November, they announce a new genre prompt or theme.
This month’s prompt:
“One Room Story.”
A whole tale, bound to a single space.
I want to document the writing process as it evolves.
Limit edits.
Preserve the crude nature.
Track the creative process—for fun and for knowledge.
Early Morning Sparks
Well, it’s about 4am.
I’ve let some ideas onto paper.
All very loose. Just letting it out.
In laundromat, sparks behind the dryer.
A spider in the corner.
It’s dark outside.
Cars, police, cabs keep moving.
Friday night. Late.
Why is she there then?
Washing machines turn transparent.
Suds are washing galaxies.
The space between the machines.
Very vague.
But I want to follow this—even if it makes little sense.
Why not?
I’m working today.
We’ll see what comes up.
What is It?
思晶 (Shishō) is a coined Japanese-inspired term that blends two kanji:
- 思 (shi) – meaning thought, idea, or contemplation
- 晶 (shō) – meaning crystal, sparkle, or clarity Together, Shishō evokes the image of a thought crystal—a poetic metaphor for ideas that have been refined, refracted, and made luminous through introspection. It suggests a mythic object or concept: something born from deep mental churn, now gleaming with clarity and resonance.
Conclusion: First Light
This post marks the beginning of a process. A place to trace the arc from thought to form, from instinct to expression. Here, I’ll follow writing projects as they evolve, stumble, and die. I’ll share what resonates, what resists, and what reshapes the work.
There’ll be regular sections like Shi-Sho and The Churn, but the structure will remain flexible—responsive to the rhythm of each piece.
This blog is for documenting, connecting, and composting influence. It’s not magic. It’s work. And it’s underway.
Hasta Manana – Spanish for
‘Until Tomorrow’. But I mean it more like –
‘Until there are no more tomorrows’.
