How Writing Makes You Feel?
I attended a workshop for writers this past Saturday and answering the question, “How does writing make you feel?” was the first writing exercise.
I looked at the blank lines of the paper in front of me, my pen clutched in my fingers, poised to write – what? I looked around the room and saw some writers busy scratching marks onto their paper. Others, like myself, sat and contemplated for a few seconds or even minutes.
Let me clarify a couple of things. On the best of days I struggle to come up with an answer to this question. Secondly, writing as an exercise, in a room full of people, intimidates me for some reason and I wondered how I could best describe my feelings about writing that afternoon. Once we finished the timed writing exercise we were asked to pick out one word that summed up our feelings. One word from the scribbles on my page – what one word summed it up?
I have had several days to reflect on my answer and one word to describe the feelings. Conflicted comes to mind since my feelings about writing vary, sometimes within a day. Sometimes the blank page stares back at me, daring me to mar its pristine condition with black marks strung together to make words. At these times other things call me away and procrastination about writing takes priority.
Other times I can not wait to dump racing thoughts from my mind. Ideas tumble over each other, begging for release and my fingers fly across the keys faster than I can put pen to paper.
The other word that comes to mind, now that I have had time to digest information and wrack my brain for the feelings writing gives me would be capture. I have this desire, this interest, this passion to capture stories and ideas. At times I capture the stories of older generations. Some days it is my family stories and the experiences we have had such as life in Northern Saskatchewan in the mid 1970’s. Sometimes I grab for the ideas that these stories generate and they become fodder for fiction stories based on some reality of family life.
Capturing stories helps preserve them for future generations. It helps me learn lessons gleaned from the experiences and insight of my ancestors. These stories may help someone else. Therefore, whether I am writing the stories or telling them, the feeling is one of an urgency to share them with others.
If you are a writer, how does writing make you feel? What words capture these feelings? If you are a reader, how do the stories make you feel?
Posted: March 6th, 2017 under goals, Storytelling.