Vignettes

by R.S.Karunaratne

All about 'Freewriting'

Nowadays very few young people want to become writers. If you ask them why they do not want to be writers, they have stock answers:

"What's the use of being a writer?"
"Writing doesn't pay"
"I just can't write"
"Writing is hell!"

You cannot blame these young men and women because they have been conditioned by society not to write! For instance, in the fifties and sixties young people exchanged love letters, a harmless way of giving vent to their desires. But today the lovers send SMS, a short and sweet way of expressing love digitally.

Similarly, essay writing was compulsory for English learners. In schools and private tutories students were taught how to write compositions before writing full-length essays.

Teachers used to read out good essays in class and students were encouraged to send their contributions to newspapers.

In fact, my first contribution to a newspaper was a school essay entitled "An imaginary trip to the moon". It was published in the "Times of Ceylon" in 1959. For me it was a red letter day in my life. I was thrilled to see my name in print. My English tutor - T. Max Perera - encouraged me and other students to write essays regularly.

Unfortunately, today's children are not encouraged to write. Instead they follow computer courses which require minimal writing. Meanwhile some teachers brazenly advertise that they teach English without writing! So those who do not wish to write at all can follow such courses.

Many students complain that although they wanted to be writers, their words do not get on paper. In the developed countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Australia. There are writing schools where they teach the art of writing. However, I have not heard of such a school in Sri Lanka.

Those who have followed courses in these schools know how to start writing. The first step they suggest is "Freewriting" which is a tried and tested method of getting your words on paper.

To do a freewriting exercise the student has to force himself to write without stopping for ten minutes. The purpose is not to produce excellent writing. The student may sometimes write a heap of words which mean nothing. The goal is to keep the student writing whatever he wishes.

Once a medical student who joined a writing course wrote: "I know nothing about writing because I am going to be a doctor. I know the grip on my pen is too tight. I can appreciate good writing but I just can't write. How do I know whether anyone would read what I write?"

When he was about to give up, the teacher encouraged him to write more. After a few more slight hiccups, the medico was seen writing without stopping. I am sure he would have become an excellent writer if he had continued the exercise.

Freewriting helps the beginner to get over the root psychological or existential difficulty in writing. The difficulty is finding words and putting them on paper. At the beginning, we have to undergo many a hardship.

We may have to waste our energy crossing out words, phrases and sometimes whole paragraphs while looking for more suitable words in the Roget's Thesaurus. All good writers undergo such agonizes only to enjoy the fruits of their efforts in the future.

Freewriting is a useful way of getting rid of anger and unpleasant feelings. You simply unburden yourself on a sheet of paper and derive much needed relief. Say you are madly in love with somebody. But you cannot express your love to the other person for some reason. Why don't you express your feelings in writing and read it later to find how foolish you had been!

New ideas simply come flying to one who keeps on writing on a regular basis. If you do not bother to write, ideas will fly away! At the beginning your writing may not be highly readable or powerful.

But through constant practice you can become an excellent writer.

Writing is definitely a big challenge. It is like trying to force a venomous snake into a bottle! Writing well, means you have overpowered the snake! Good writers know the power of words that can hit back or scratch you if they are not properly controlled. Now force yourself to write and be in control of the venomous snake!