“ I wanna write but…….”
And the reasons are plenty to fill the blank.
Ruskin Bond once wrote in his memoir, saying, “….I did not survive as a freelance writer for over forty years simply by lying on the grass and counting ladybirds. if the grass is to mean anything, a time comes when you have to get up, brush the lady birds from your shirt and trousers, and proceed to your desk to write, type or word-process all those ideas you get while sitting out there doing nothing.”
All the writers can relate to it. There are different type of writers who wish different conditions to write. There are writers who wait for the inspiration. There are writers who always talk about writing but doesn’t write. There are also many writers who complain on lack of tools with them during the time they ‘ve their inspiration.
Pen and paper. Writers should always carry their tools with them. Thanks to the advent of technology, many apps can serve as writing notes on a smartphone. Even there are voice recording notes that can convert speech to text to jot down the thoughts and serve the purpose. All these acts can be substituted to conventional writing but, as Stephen king says, “To write is human, to edit is divine.” No writer can escape from the act of editing, as the process of writing do not gets finished just by jotting down. Writing a good piece includes lot of revisions, updates, striking down all those thousands of words to write few hundred words.
And all these acts starts with the first act called, “Writing!”
“I write when I feel like writing.”
That’s one more statement all wannabe writers says. Writing is no more different than playing guitar or learning tennis, if we keep doing it everyday, we keep getting better and better. Perfection cannot be expected at one go. Anne Lamott in her TED Talk says,
“Writers tell stories that come through them one day at a time, little by little.”
Watch Anne Lamott sharing her idea on life and writing. It’s worth watching to laugh a little and to learn what’s in us
There are people who jot down a lot but doesn’t give much time to do the aftermath: revisiting and polishing the writing.
Why can’t we keep on writing without ever looking at it back?
Ruskin Bond to the rescue, the author says, “During my idle moments I receive many good thoughts(and some that are not so good), but these thoughts have to be translated into intelligible and readable language if they are to convey anything to others. And that’s where the hard but pleasurable work comes in. The composing, the revising, the rewriting.”
To convey anything to others, composing, revising & rewriting is the least thing every writer should do.
Writing can be a hobby, profession, passion and a lot more. The first simple rule is, whoever can read can also write. To able to write effectively is not a inborn talent or any trait pertaining to limited crowd. If you keep writing, you’ll keep writing better.
Author Harimohan Paruvu once said, “Everyone wants to write. That’s the problem! Everyone wants to write but hardly they sit to write.”
All the writers!, make sure you give yourself time to write rather than time to talk about writing itself.
Writing is a way of life as, all writers say, “I live through my writing, just as my writing lives through me.”
Keep writing.
