It’s true.
It’s one of those things that we all know but only a few brave souls admit.
Writing sucks.
It’s not even natural. I mean, if we were meant to do it, surely it would come naturally, like walking and talking, right? But no, we have to be seated for hours, trained, moulded and forced… to write.
And for what?
Well, that’s just it. It’s for a lot.
On a basic level, it’s to communicate effectively. To manage in a world full of writing. But it goes deeper.
Writing is an art form. And art does come to us naturally. Think cave paintings, dances around fires, the beating of drums and stories. Stories that never ended and were passed from generation to generation, wrapping their listeners in awe and wonder as they tried to make sense of the universe they were a part of. Stories that were eventually lost or changed beyond recognition because there was no way to preserve them, other than the spoken word.
Now think of writing. It may be that your experience of learning to write was one of sitting at a desk, forced to be still, quiet, and practice your letters until they were correct. You may have been punished and ridiculed as you stuttered your way through assignments and re-hashed accounts of your weekend news that never seemed as impressive as the person next to you. You may have been given writing as a punishment, as you wrote a hundred times: “I will study for my spelling test.”
That breaks my heart. And that does suck.
Because for me, it was those things, but it was so much more. I come from a family of writers. My parents met as journalists, and my grandfather was the editor of a prestigious newspaper and a published author. Both of my parents continued to write until the end, and both breathed and lived for reading and literature in general. Our house had a library. A literal room filled with shelves of books and we each had our own personal stash of favourite books too.
For me, watching my dad typing on his old typewriter (I’m giving my age away!!) was witnessing pure magic. His fingers were so strong, and so fast that they were a blur. How did he manage to put what was in his head, into the keys, and onto the paper? How did he do it so quickly and perfectly? To him it probably wasn’t perfect. To my child’s mind, it was the greatest thing I had ever seen.
Surrounded by books, writing and wonder, I began trying my hand at writing my own books as soon as I could write. My first story was about a chicken and it was met with praise and adulation. I copied it a few times so that a few people could have a copy. I remember the feelings of pride, and of worry that it wasn’t good enough. But I also remember the drive to do it again.
And again.
And again.
I lapped up opportunities to write for school. I was a regular contributor to the school newsletter and found other ways to exercise my love of writing. Poetry, songs, letters, essays, stories, factual accounts, you name it. That was me.
So why am I telling you all of this? Because writing sucks, but it doesn’t have to. Writing is art, and as an art form, it is a beautiful and passionate way to express yourself. Writers put into words what others feel in their hearts but cannot articulate. Writers notate that which culture would have lost. Writers make words dance and play and tease in our minds and pull at our heartstrings until we cannot help but to live in the world they have created for us. Writers take us on journeys that can leave us changed forever.
What a shame it would be if writing was left for the classroom only. Where it is mundane and grey. Where there is very little opportunity for it to be allowed to fly. Let’s give it wings. Let’s look at some ways we can help children, adults…. even you…. love writing.1. Books. Lots of books. At home, at work and at school. You can even keep a stash of books in the car for times when you need to wait somewhere.2. Read aloud. From as soon as they can understand, babies love to be read to. Show them the pictures and make books super fun by using your voice, movement and facial expressions. You will make literature come alive for them in a way that will last forever.3. Art. Beautify your environment with art of all kinds. Paintings, drawings, embroidery, anything that appeals to you. 4. Drawing and painting. Drawing leads to writing and painting also helps with creativity and left to rightmotions, which helps with writing. It also helps to cross the midline and that helps children to develop both sides of their brains. (writing uses both sides, as it both logical and creative.)5. Gentle correction. Use gentle correction to help writers gain confidence while also improving their craft. Remember that they have most likely shown you their best effort, so do correct, but be soft and caring.6. Stationery. It may seem silly, but giving a writer pretty stationery can really encourage writing. 7. A place to write. Hand-in-hand with stationery is a dedicated space to work. It may be a desk or a TV tray, depending on your resources, but have a dedicated space to play and write and create.8. Time. When we are bored, we have space in our consciousness to create. Allow time for creation. No TV, no radio, no other distractions. Just time. 9. Concrete to abstract. For small children, it is the use of concrete apparatus, like sand, play dough etc to make concrete forms of letters before going on to write them in a 2D format. For all of us, it is also writing about real life experiences. So the tangible experience goes from concrete to abstract and the memory is immortalised in the written rendition of the event. Had a delicious ice lolly at the park? Stick some grass and the lolly stick onto the page with the writing and drawing about the day. (You get my drift)
There is so, so much more that goes into making a writer, and I am no expert, but I do know that to create a writer means to create someone who loves words. Having a culture of literature and a gentle, warm, accepting environment will allow any future writer to feel excited to take risks as they grow and develop and work on their skills. Life is a game and writing is one too. Play and laugh.. and WRITE!
