Santosh Bakaya
So, friends, what have you been doing with your pen and notebook the past week? Jotting down things that caught your fancy, or merely doodling, mindlessly? Don’t consider the writing process a burden. It is not.
Don’t forget that we are in a perpetual state of curiosity, looking around, exploring, discovering, and evolving every moment. If we head in a new direction, we will come across many surprises. As the honeyed dawn cradles you in its arms, do your eyes turn towards the twittering birds, the buoyant butterflies, fluttering from flower to flower, or do they turn inwards?
There are many new pathways in life, many virgin terrains, unexplored pathways, and leisurely walks on freshly fallen snow. Every step is a discovery.
Becoming a Writer was published in 1934. The insights that Dorothea Brande provides in this book are very empowering. She tells us that writing is a craft that can be learned, asserting that it is not exclusive to those born with it. Yes, you don’t need a formal degree to become a writer. You should have an undying passion for the written word, such a passion that you want to scribble something or the other every day. Consistency is very important.
“All that is necessary to break the spell of inertia and frustration is this: Act as if it were impossible to fail.”
So, learn to explore and learn new things along the way. If you seriously want to become a writer, stick to a writing routine, making it a part of your life’s fabric.
I have been reiterating that reading is very important for everyone. Even if you read a story for the tenth time, you will find something new in the story.
I am sure all of you must have read this Tolstoy story. What Men Live By [1885]
He wrote this story in his fifties. I read it for the first time in the tenth grade. Then I read it again, and found many new things every time I read it.
All his stories are timeless and have a universal appeal. In the dystopian world where we are killing and hating each other, this famous short story becomes relevant. Love is indeed the greatest force in our lives, but people love to hate. I keep going back to this story time and again, and learning a few new things every time.
Read all the great short stories of the world, pick up new things, read between the lines, decipher the multiple nuances, and let your imagination go berserk.
Keep that spark of curiosity alive. Every story will tell you something about characterisation, plot, or turn of phrase, and metaphors and similes.
The day is not far when you will write a story, with your own words, your imagination, and creativity.
But, mind you, keep it original.
The author is an academician, poet, essayist, novelist, and TEDx speaker, with more than twenty published books to her credit.
