As usual, the latest Fundsforwriters newsletters mirrors what I’ve been thinking (and advocating).
For starters, Hope’s editorial on ‘web site savvy’ echoes what I’ve lately been pushing new writers to do. An online presence, I feel, can make all the difference to turning you from a ‘newbie’ to a writer taking your career seriously. In the last few months, I’ve helped several new writers set up websites or website-lookalikes on blogs such as WordPress, which look more professional than free sites like Tripod (plus, no ads).
An online home for your work makes it easier for you to be found. It is one of the best ways to stand out from the crowd of a zillion pen wielding people who call themselves ‘writers’. What better way to show an editor across the world what you have accomplished. If you’re just starting out and collecting your first clips, just show that you can write. As many writers will testify, having a website or a blog often brings work in. Paying work.
Then, the latest Small Markets newsletter editorial talks about journaling and how we worry about our most private thoughts being read by other people, causing unintended hurt or pain. I first started recording my day when I was eight and the notebooks have piled up since then. It is a constant worry, yes, about how words written in a moment of passion, anger or through tears will be read by someone who may cut through the feelings and only see the alphabets. I think of all the teenage angst, the grumbles about family, the ranting about how misunderstood one felt – all these years later, I can look back on those moments and laugh at how stupid it was. Can I say the same about my family?
To circumvent the problem, I tried online journaling. I tried diaries in Word, secured by a flimsy password. None of these felt as close as a paper journal, one that I could carry with me while I was travelling or re-read during one of those ’stock-taking’ moments (I sometimes make ‘at a later date’ entries in old diaries, setting the score right). The Word diaries are the safest, by far. Unless I share the password, the words they hold will stay secure. Plus, I can be assured that spell-check will keep it somewhat impeccable.
And yes, I am afraid of putting everything to paper. Writing in code helps, but code may not make sense at a later date. So, it’s a struggle between being true to your feelings and your writing or risking the possibility of hurting someone.
You would think that with a paper journal, several blogs and the opportunity to have an online diary would be enough to “dip into that dark well” for me. Not so.
Next year, in addition to all these, I plan (after reading about a similar venture by Anne Lamott) to keep a diary of my child’s first year. I also want to consciously catalogue my first year as a parent. That’s a lot of journaling to do.
Bring it on.
