Weekly column idea: Tall Tales from Afar

I come up with these ideas for a weekly newspaper column every couple of months but nothing really comes off of it. I should really start putting some effort into it, a bit of long term planning, developing a template and a general structure for these kinds of projects so the weekly content can go right in snugly.

This one will be called Tall Tales from Afar. It'll be about my life as a Nepali person living in my twenties in a big city in the U.S. It'll obviously deal with Nepali issues, and not be afraid to use those points as a launchpad for issues in greater depth.

Each piece would be between 800 and 1000 words. It would have a clear, predictable structure. In the first part I start with something that happened to me recently. The second paragraph would be about how it made me think of something else that's been happening or I'd been considering. The third paragraph would be a generalisation of the issue and how that's impacted not just me and other people. The fourth would be sort of a quick historical overview of how the issue has progressed. The sixth would be about how it has influenced or changed people's lives, for better or for worse, or both. The seventh would be about how I see it evolving going forward. The eighth and the final part would connect it to the larger issue, and maybe a callback to the original event and how my opinions have been evolving or might change.

Each part could be a paragraph, or more if there's a need to make something fast-paced. In the end I'd call for a response from the readers asking if they've been in a similar position and how they've reacted. There would be 'review' columns, or sections in the columns, once it gets going and the readers start responding to them. I'd talk about what the general response was and what I think about those. If I disagree with the general sentiment, I'd explain why I believe what I do, and agree that the popular response has its merits but that's not how I see things.

I'd cover a wide variety of topics. Learning English, Dashain, Loneliness in Kathmandu and the US, Of Marriageable Age, Dating, Momo, goat meat, current political issues in either countries and how they relate, coming to US as students, families moving to the US, food in Kathmandu, hiking in Kathmandu, being friends with Nepali Americans, being friends with Americans, etcetera are some topics I'd get started with. They'd cover the first three of four months well, and then I'd use the response to those topics to drill down into more specific issues. After writing so many articles regarding the issue, I'll come up with more well-thought ideas too, which I'll keep around in my journals, and take notes for future articles. It would be glorious! I just need to get started.