Self-assertion as a writer

A journey through a young writer's heart

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This past weekend I got to meet published authors at the North Cornwall Book Festival. *squee* Some of my fellow students on the Professional Writing MA and last year's alumni and me went up to a place called St. Endellion to blog about the festival. If you want to find out more about the festival, you can read all about it here.

In this post I will talk about how the festival took me a step further on the way to calling myself a writer. The last time I took you on a journey through a young writer's heart I mentioned that I wasn't quite there yet. I wasn't quite ready to call myself a writer but last weekend changed that. It was a truly inspiring weekend hearing experienced writers talk about their craft and I enjoyed every last bit of it!

I know according to our tutors we should've already been at this stage and firmly called ourselves writers just by getting on this course and being determined to learn and go through with it. Still, I didn't feel ready yet. Meeting published authors and being fortunate enough to attend a workshop on writing novels for children has given me another push towards the realisation that writing as a profession could actually work out for me. There were a few messages that I took away from the creative environment of the festival that lightened the path for me and that I'd like to share:

Stories connect us

Seeing the reaction of the children to Julia Copus' reading of her children's picture books was a joy. It was the perfect opening to the North Cornwall Book Festival for me. It showed me how a story can entertain children and adults alike. Stories can create this beautiful and magical atmosphere that connects people over generations. I sometimes forget that when I write within the confines of my room.

Finding inspiration

When I had the honour of interviewing children's book author Christopher William Hill, I also sneaked in a personal question about writing for radio. I've been interested in writing for radio ever since the creative project in the first week of the course and got great advice from a real radio dramatist. If that wasn't cool enough, I also got to attend his workshop on writing novels for children. During the workshop I found out that we both come up and work with our ideas in similar ways. (Quite a chaotic way to work, by the way. ^^) You might say that's a silly little thing and everyone works in a different way and that's fair enough. But for me it felt very reassuring that a published author uses a similar technique.

How to deal with rejection

When I attended Alison Mercer's workshop, who even reposted my blog post about it on her website, I was glad to hear that rejection happens to every writer. She further told us ambitious workshop attendees that it is important for a writer to be able to get through that rejection and soldier on. This is an advice that I will internalise to brace myself for a future in the industry.

Be passionate

The last workshop I attended was 'Drawing with Caroline Cleave'. Though it had nothing to do with writing I found it extremely inspiring to talk to the artist after the workshop. She showed me her work and her passion for it was tangible in the room. She's doing what she loves for a living and that is the big goal that I want to achieve one day.

Growing as a writer

Apart from opening up this opportunity to go on this most inspiring weekend, the course helps me grow as a writer every day. This course is brilliant for showing you new ways of writing that you never thought of or never thought you could do. It offers the right stimulus that opens up new tunnels of imagination in my mind and wakes something in me that has been unconscious or sleeping within me for a long time. I start to see the world with different eyes and see possibilities that have been clouded by a veil of fear before that.

I guess this fear has blocked me but every day being on this course takes away another chunk of the big mountain of anxieties that has been standing in my way. It's okay when your first draft sucks because you have to redraft it over and over again just like everybody else. For now you can try anything and if it's a really bad idea they'll let you know and you can try again. I feel safe in this environment where they tell you they rather have you try something new and fail than stay bubbled up inside your comfort zone. Of course, in the corporate world this is a completely different story. We are constantly reminded how cruel the industry we've chosen to work in can be but I feel we will be well prepared for that by the end of this course.

These past few weeks have helped me immensely on my way to claim the self-assertion to say that I'm writer. I'm still learning this craft and I think the learning process will never stop but I finally have the guts to say it out loud without compromise. When someone asks me what my job will be after uni, I will tell them without hesitation that I will be a writer. And there will be no discomfort or shame in my voice when I tell them. No more excuses for what I truly am! =)

PS: Let's see how long this lasts before the doubts break back in. Alas, the normal everyday of a writer's life. ;-P