Workspaces: Max Bodyagin - Writer, Blogger, Podcaster, and Media Consultant

Hello! My name is Max Bodyagin, and I am a writer. Besides writing, I’m also a blogger, podcaster, and media consultant.

What projects are you proud of?

For many years, I have been running the blog iDiot Daily, covering movies, books, and intriguing socio-cultural trends. I occasionally record the podcast "Radio Motyga Jam" (available on rpod and podFM). However, my main focus in recent years has been my novel "The Dream Machine," which you can find on its official website, where readers can support me directly with a small contribution for reading :-)

Is it really possible to earn money from writing?

Not so much in Russia :-) Writing novels nowadays is more of an expensive hobby. That’s why I earn by consulting entrepreneurs and politicians on PR and government relations, managing media campaigns in mass media, the blogosphere, and social networks. I have led several media outlets, worked as an assistant to some State Duma deputies, and handled a wide range of media tasks—from editing glossy magazines to shaping regional political party strategies, from official newspapers to morning radio shows. So my resume is quite colorful, like a sunny spring day in a Bashkir village.

I usually juggle multiple diverse projects and occasionally get involved in election campaigns, typically opposing the ruling party and its candidates, often under challenging conditions. But my life goal is to eventually leave these morally ambiguous income sources behind and focus entirely on creativity. Perhaps I’ll even direct a major feature film someday. Currently, I’m using the summer lull to feverishly work on a new novel and prepare a personal growth course titled "The Book as a Path to Self," dedicated to narrative self-therapy techniques and clarifying life goals. This will be a practical writing mastery course for those who’ve always wanted to write a book but hesitated.

Does your work influence how you organize your workspace?

Absolutely. I don’t have a fixed workspace :-) About seven or eight years ago, I set a rule for myself: "My office is wherever my smartphone works." Recently, I adopted a stray dog of a vague breed called "Russian Unfortunate," which significantly impacted my work schedule. When you walk a dog, you can’t do anything else. So, I gained a couple of precious hours of blissful solitude in the park to deeply ponder everything necessary. I either dictate my thoughts into my Blackberry’s built-in voice recorder or jot them down in my smartphone’s notes app. By the time I get home, I already have new plot twists, blog post ideas, and project milestones ready. Sometimes, I even record podcasts during dog walks, as that’s the only time available for this activity.

Does a writer’s lifestyle differ significantly?

I sleep little and oddly. Generally, if I’m not traveling, my day looks like this: I wake up between 4 and 5 a.m. and work on my novel until 8 or 9 a.m., then take Chizhik to the park. After returning, I feed him and my two cats, have breakfast, check social media and news headlines, jot down notes, and then nap. I wake up around noon and review my Moleskine notebook, Blackberry notes, and flagged emails. Sometimes I smoke a hookah, sometimes not. Then I work until 8 p.m. on projects that bring income.

I typically have three to four flexible meetings during the day; the rest I handle virtually—mostly via Facebook* and email, occasionally Skype. In the evening, I walk the dog again, this time with my beloved girlfriend. Currently, a doctor has temporarily paused my training due to injury, but normally I practice reality-based martial arts three times a week from 9 to 11 p.m. Then I meditate a bit—though not on a strict schedule, just whenever I find a free moment. Before bed, I enjoy a couple of beers while watching a series or film, which I usually review on my blog the next day. I usually sleep around 1 a.m. and wake up at 5 a.m. to repeat the cycle. I have no weekends or holidays because I live life on my own terms.

It might seem I lead a somewhat indulgent lifestyle, but that’s just how it is. I work a lot and fast, and rest in a unique way by switching between different activities, so I manage a lot. I consciously note when my mind starts to dull and, to distract from work problems, play blues music or paint with ink or watercolor. Sometimes I do physical exercises, cook something, or meditate.

What hardware do you use?

My current work arsenal includes battle-tested devices: a 13-inch MacBook Pro (late 2011, macOS 10.8.4), Olympus DS-30 voice recorder, a red plain Moleskine for work, a black squared Moleskine for notes on the book in progress, a Blackberry Torch 9800 smartphone, and a second-generation iPad.

My girlfriend’s desk has a no-name PC running Windows XP, which I use solely for podcast editing. I really like the first version of Adobe Audition installed there—it’s the only Windows program I’ve used consistently for years. I usually record podcasts on the voice recorder or a cheap Chinese microphone costing about $2, which works perfectly with Adobe Audition :-)

For writing, I use a black Pentel Document Pen and a blue uni-ball micro deluxe waterproof pen. Their ink doesn’t freeze in winter, fade, or run when wet.

Are you an Apple fan?

Strictly speaking, I’m not a fan of any particular device or platform. I’ve tried many: Windows XP, Windows 7, Linux (Suse, Mandriva, Ubuntu, Joli OS), and various mobile gadgets—from Palm Tungsten and Psion to iPhone 4S. It just so happens that, as a beginner, I keep returning to macOS. I bought my first iBook G4 around 2006 and only parted with it a year ago.

What software do you use?

On my Mac, I use the native Safari browser, Pages and Numbers for office tasks, Xee for photo viewing, Pixelmator and Snapseed for photo editing, Ecoute for music, and VLC for movies. I also enjoy video editing with iMovie. But the main program for me is Scrivener—a brilliant all-in-one writing tool. I even read a book in English on how to use it most effectively. I keep a personal diary in DayOne and a journal for blog posts and podcasts in MacJournal.

I back up important data in Dropbox and store some documents in Box, which I’ve used for five or six years. However, after Google Reader shut down and other controversial events online, my trust in cloud services has waned, so I try to duplicate vital files on an external hard drive.

I have two email accounts: a personal one linked to the standard Mail.app and a work account handled via Sparrow, which I really like. I process over a hundred emails daily. My email also stores backups of important texts and photos. I check personal mail immediately, while Sparrow is opened morning and evening. Notifications from VKontakte, which I use solely as another mailbox, also arrive there :-)

For unimportant notes, saving interesting articles, and miscellaneous stuff, I use Springpad. For ideas forming the basis of books and scripts, I rely on Evernote and Simplenote. Simplenote is my favorite among these, with many apps across platforms (on Mac, I use Notational Velocity). I’ve struggled with Evernote for a long time, mostly out of habit. For setting the right mood with images and quotes, I use Tumblr as a public internet notebook.

I used to actively use Adium, connected to ICQ, Jabber, Skype, etc., but lately all such conversations have migrated to Facebook*, so I haven’t used any messengers for over a year. There’s no need. If you let messengers and VK take over, your life becomes one endless reply to the dumb question "What are you doing?"

How do you use gadgets?

Everything related to PIM—schedules, tasks, quick notes, and contacts—is stored on my password-protected Blackberry Torch, which syncs with the same Gmail account tied to my Mac’s calendar and mail. I love my Blackberry. Its native tools are so convenient that I don’t consider using anything else. My personal mail also arrives there. Thanks to Blackberry, I can, for example, review a journalist’s voiceover text on the bus en route to a meeting, make and send corrections, write and distribute a press release on the same topic, and give notes to the editor upon arrival at the studio. I can type a 5,000-character article on the Blackberry keyboard almost as easily as on my Mac. Moreover, the 16GB memory card and Bluetooth headphones turn my Blackberry into an excellent music player :-) Twitter and Facebook* clients there are so handy that I had to disable them to reduce dependency. Of course, iPhone is better for entertainment, but Blackberry is my workhorse. I also use Blackberry for photo archiving—shooting and immediately emailing photos to my Mac or iPad, where I edit them in Snapseed before organizing folders in Box or uploading to Flickr. Someday I might switch smartphones, but I haven’t figured out to what yet.

You mentioned Moleskine. Why paper?

Why Moleskine? Because I was gifted a whole bunch :-) Moleskine is my second most important tool. I draw mind maps for every project, mapping relationships between people and tasks, which lets me recall a project’s status at a glance within a minute. I’m also a visual thinker and often make hand-drawn notes to avoid forgetting things.

To summarize: tactical tasks—Blackberry with email; strategic planning—Moleskine; long texts, diaries, and info storage—MacBook; podcasts—voice recorder and Adobe Audition. On my iPad, I read RSS feeds, comics, and social news, listen to favorite jazz radio, and keep document backups handy for meetings. On Kindle—I read books. Essential accessories include Apple’s BT keyboard and no-name Bluetooth headphones.

Is there a dream setup?

The dream setup is an elusive concept for me. Maybe I’d buy a Blackberry Q10. Perhaps add more RAM and a large monitor, but I always forget. Alas, my current lifestyle doesn’t answer the simple question "Why?" I already have the best laptop, phone, tablet, notebook, and e-reader. The point isn’t chasing elusive happiness but using 110% of what I have to constantly create new sounds, texts, and images. I wrote about a quarter of my previous novel on various mobile devices, and it didn’t suffer for it :-)

A writer’s life is like catching a golden fish by hand in complete darkness. Catch it—and nothing else matters; miss it—and it matters even less. Devices just help dry clothes and hair during breaks between plunges into that daunting darkness :-)

*Meta Platforms Inc. and its social networks Facebook and Instagram are banned in Russia.

Discover the latest news and current events in Career Opportunities and Education Jobs as of 10-04-2022. The article titled " Workspaces: Max Bodyagin - Writer, Blogger, Podcaster, and Media Consultant " provides you with the most relevant and reliable information in the Career Opportunities and Education Jobs field. Each news piece is thoroughly analyzed to deliver valuable insights to our readers.

The information in " Workspaces: Max Bodyagin - Writer, Blogger, Podcaster, and Media Consultant " helps you make better-informed decisions within the Career Opportunities and Education Jobs category. Our news articles are continuously updated and adhere to journalistic standards.