It is often said that art is an expression of your thoughts and your beliefs. Much of an artist’s true nature is revealed in the way he/she carves his/her piece of art. By “Art”, I mean any form of art, be it writing, painting, photography, dancing or any other form of art. It is just another form of freedom to express yourself and your innermost desires. Also, it is an escape into a world of your imagination. Apart from this the satisfaction and joy that you receive after creating something is inexpressible. For me, writing is such a form of art which appeals me the most. To understand the nuts and bolts of writing much better, I pursued a three months creative writing course and apart from the joy of writing, the learnings I received from this course were endless. Some of the major lessons that writing has taught me are as given below:
- Trust your creativity: Have you ever observed a child who is not creative? I haven’t atleast. Every child is born creative. The problem lies in being creative as you grow up because as we mature we start to stigmatise mistakes. We fear being wrong and stop questioning. However, a child is always inquisitive and never wonders whether his idea is right or wrong. Thus we start questioning our creative instincts as we grow up. While practicing writing, I realised that “You can write only if you trust your creative skills. You can master the art of writing only if you want to learn. It will take you years but start.”
- Enjoy your writing: At times you experience a struggle while putting your ideas to words. Thoughts like, “I can’t write, whatever I am writing is crap,” etc starts boggling your mind. At that time, you need to realise that it’s just your inner demons (that’s what I name them) which are trying to stop you. It’s just our ego which is trying to stop us because when we sit to write, we tend to wear the crown of being a writer. Just consider yourself as a simple story teller and write whatever that comes to your mind. Love your art, however mediocre it may be. Remember you are learning and at least trying. Just enjoy your writing and be proud of it. Don’t let your imaginary fears bother you. Have a healthy self esteem for your art and enjoy it.
- Be unprejudiced: This is one of the most important lessons that writing has taught me. Be unprejudiced. Shun the stereotypical attitude towards the world. Often, we tend to form an opinion about people, region, things or some beliefs. But writing taught me that one should never let a single story frame your opinion. Let your mind explore all shades and all colours of opinion. Widen your horizon. Get to know different people and different perspectives.
- Be simple and be powerful: Often while writing we tend to show off our knowledge of English language by adorning our writings with big words. Contrary to this, if we use simple English it is more effective. If you ever read the book, “The Blue Bedspread” by Raj Kamal Jha, you will be surprised with simplicity of the prose. The book won laurels worldwide and it was the author’s first book. Simple writing helps to deliver the idea more effectively. Just like for a beautiful life simplicity is important similarly for beautiful writing simplicity is magical.
- Open your eyes: Most of us have eyes, but see nothing. We are so busy in our tasks that we fail to observe the beautiful tapestry of life. Through writing, I have become a keen observer. It made me observe nature, the fun and frolic of the children playing in the streets, the slums and beggars by the road whom we pass by keeping our eyes shut, and the world around. It has taught me to “Observe life the way a child looks at life”.
- Practice for perfection: One thing that I learnt during my writing course is that there is no skill on this earth which you cannot master if you practice. “Practice makes man perfect” is an old saying. However, I never focussed on it before. So, write, write, and write. One day you will master it.
- Take criticism: It’s human nature that we detest criticism. And, whether one writes or creates any piece of art, you are bound to develop some sort of attachment to your work. However, to attain perfection it is important to be detached from your work. For example, I used to cringe whenever my teacher found fault with my write-ups. However, later I realized it is very important to take criticism seriously and not personally. Then only one can learn and succeed. Though it’s hard to accept criticism, but we can work on it for our improvement.
Concluding, for all those who wonder why I write, I would like to quote Sylvia Plath, who says, “You ask me, why I spend my life writing? Do I find entertainment? Is it worthwhile? Above all, does it pay? If not, then, is there a reason? I write only because there is a voice within me. That will not be still.”
The journey enriches the goal!! You are enjoying your work and that is very important.. hope to see you at greater heights..
Lastly, there are two things we learnt or acquired from your work. its ‘Positivity’ and ‘Encouragement’..
Thanks.. Keep writing.. keep sharing.. 🙂
Well written sona..:)..keep writing..:)
Very good. Keep writing. All the best.
Thankyou so much 🙂