Apparently I'm giving some people a complex with my blogging... well, all those of you who are "lurking" out there, I spoke to my Dad today [no use asking Ma, she confuses me with my Mashi], and he confirmed that I was born with a pen in my hand - it made the delivery somewhat difficult as you can imagine. Furthermore, he affirmed, as soon as I had had my first feed, I wailed for some paper, and wrote my first two poems immediately - they were called "Light at the end of the tunnel" and "Into the Light".
Of course, I don't remember any of this, but I trust Dad, especially his memory. He can still rattle off the valencies of all the elements, chemical formulae of all compounds and can explain processes like polymerization and hydrogenation effortlessly. If he says so, then it must be so. He went on to add that in the first six months of life I wrote so much poetry that they didn't know where to put the tomes. Finally, they had them bound and stacked them inside the box bed which, unfortunately, didn't survive the weight and collapsed. He hesitated to add what finally happened to them but upon being probed he revealed that they went the way of all waste paper - to the kabadiwala. Clearly, they either had enough faith in my capabilities as a writer to know that I would continue to produce amazing stuff or they did not think of it as valuable enough to burden the new box bed.
All right, I agree that this is a bit over the top...
Anyway, here are two lovely subversive writing exercises which help to scrub out those channels of communication and magically transform the pen into a WRITING implement.
The first is called the FreeWriting Exercise. Seems quite simple, but don't be fooled. It needs commitment and dedication. What you need to do is "freewrite" for five minutes every day. Simple? Aha, got you there. Here's the catch: You have to write without worrying about spellings, grammar, punctuation, syntax, meanings. Switch off your mobile, shut down your laptop, disconnect the doorbell, and make a solemn promise that for those five minutes you will only write - without taking your pen off the paper - even if a bomb drops five feet away. Put down every thought, feeling, word that comes into your head in exactly the order in which it comes. DO NOT STOP to read what you have written. After five minutes [set the timer] STOP and put away what you wrote. That's right, DO NOT read it - for at least two weeks. Finally, fixing a time helps - that way you do get down to it every day. I used to get my form tutees to do this first thing every morning, and boy, did they enjoy it after the first few days. However, some of you may have erratic lifestyles - so perhaps you could fix it for the morning time, just after your first cup of coffee, tea, micky-dudu, or whatever else... I know, I know, we are not at our brightest early in the morning - but that's the beauty of it - NO ONE GETS TO READ THIS. Keep it under lock and key and NEVER, EVER, allow anyone else to read it. [This makes sense in many different ways - because usually we are scared to put down something on paper - or on the Internet - because then it is in print forever and ever and someone may get to read it - oh, the GAZE. Also, it spares one the embarrassment of being revealed to others as a complete idiot - once I wrote the name of the chap I was obsessing about approximately 106 times in one morning's freewriting episode. You could take a leaf out of James Joyce's book... and I say this at the risk of being lynched... he made a career out of FreeWriting and fooled the public - but this is my personal opinion.]
If the objectives of all these "rules" are not clear, feel free to ask. However, the general objective of the exercise is to free you from the notion that everything you write must come out beautiful, perfect and Cathy-like [hah!].
The second exercise, which you can attempt any time after two weeks of FreeWriting [but do not stop the FreeWriting] is called Panning for Gold in the Closet [yeah, Shelja, we do it in writing too, imagine that!]. So, here's what you need to do. Unless you're obsessive-compulsive like me, when you open your closet, you will definitely find clothes that you haven't worn in years, right? Either they are too loose and you're keeping them for those times [in case you put on weight]; or, they are too tight to fit into right now but you mean to hit the gym any day now. They could also be the wrong colour [I know, why do friends lovingly buy you colours that you just don't see yourself wearing] and you're waiting for the day you have the courage to sport that shocking pink. Then, of course, there's the lot that is too worn out to wear but you're hanging on to for sentimental reasons.
Take all these clothes out and no, don't give them away or barter them for steel plates you don't need. You need to think of at least five reasons to hold on to them. Not literally, of course, but in a literary way.
In case you don't have this excessive wardrobe, look for something similar. As I confessed, I don't, so the first time I did this exercise I used my shoes [yup, I used to have enough pairs to rival Imelda Marcos - at one point of time I counted 76 pairs, some of which I had worn less than once]. I decided to create an exhibition out of them. Each pair of shoes got a history, a title, and a description. I also described how I would set up the exhibition and how much I would charge people for letting them view it.
In case you draw a blank at the clothes or the shoe closet, try the fridge. You may find some stuff which could be used for biology experiments.
What this exercise will do for you is allow you to reminisce about the associations with [useless] objects that you have held on to for a long time. Now you need to zero in on the EMOTIONS evoked by these associations and memories. Sharpen those pencils, refill the pen, or simply boot up the laptop... for what you're going to do with these emotions is write your next [bedazzling] literary piece.
So, all set? There are no rules for this part at all - try poetry, fiction, non-fiction, any genre will do - except "Be Specific". Instead of "I felt weird" you could write "I was filled with anger, sorrow, nostalgia, sadness, immense joy, exhilaration, etc." Instead of "I got into the car" you could write "I slid into the boot of the 1985-model shiny red Maruti 800 and curled my legs to get them out of the way of the slamming boot door". Instead of "My dress tore" you could write "My brand new purple-blue khadi kurta got caught on the jack as I stepped out of the boot and suddenly there was a jagged tear down the side which looked like a racing viper in the desert". Feel free to go over the top with the similes and metaphors. If a week later you don't relate to it, you can always revisit it and tone it down. EVEN on the Internet.
Finally, post it on your blog or send it to good ol' friends like me who love to read interesting stuff. It feels marvellous when someone leaves a comment or writes back saying... well, anything, even a smiley brings on the glow!
By the way, it's a great way to get the "trace your steps" homework done :)!
Of course, I don't remember any of this, but I trust Dad, especially his memory. He can still rattle off the valencies of all the elements, chemical formulae of all compounds and can explain processes like polymerization and hydrogenation effortlessly. If he says so, then it must be so. He went on to add that in the first six months of life I wrote so much poetry that they didn't know where to put the tomes. Finally, they had them bound and stacked them inside the box bed which, unfortunately, didn't survive the weight and collapsed. He hesitated to add what finally happened to them but upon being probed he revealed that they went the way of all waste paper - to the kabadiwala. Clearly, they either had enough faith in my capabilities as a writer to know that I would continue to produce amazing stuff or they did not think of it as valuable enough to burden the new box bed.
All right, I agree that this is a bit over the top...
Anyway, here are two lovely subversive writing exercises which help to scrub out those channels of communication and magically transform the pen into a WRITING implement.
The first is called the FreeWriting Exercise. Seems quite simple, but don't be fooled. It needs commitment and dedication. What you need to do is "freewrite" for five minutes every day. Simple? Aha, got you there. Here's the catch: You have to write without worrying about spellings, grammar, punctuation, syntax, meanings. Switch off your mobile, shut down your laptop, disconnect the doorbell, and make a solemn promise that for those five minutes you will only write - without taking your pen off the paper - even if a bomb drops five feet away. Put down every thought, feeling, word that comes into your head in exactly the order in which it comes. DO NOT STOP to read what you have written. After five minutes [set the timer] STOP and put away what you wrote. That's right, DO NOT read it - for at least two weeks. Finally, fixing a time helps - that way you do get down to it every day. I used to get my form tutees to do this first thing every morning, and boy, did they enjoy it after the first few days. However, some of you may have erratic lifestyles - so perhaps you could fix it for the morning time, just after your first cup of coffee, tea, micky-dudu, or whatever else... I know, I know, we are not at our brightest early in the morning - but that's the beauty of it - NO ONE GETS TO READ THIS. Keep it under lock and key and NEVER, EVER, allow anyone else to read it. [This makes sense in many different ways - because usually we are scared to put down something on paper - or on the Internet - because then it is in print forever and ever and someone may get to read it - oh, the GAZE. Also, it spares one the embarrassment of being revealed to others as a complete idiot - once I wrote the name of the chap I was obsessing about approximately 106 times in one morning's freewriting episode. You could take a leaf out of James Joyce's book... and I say this at the risk of being lynched... he made a career out of FreeWriting and fooled the public - but this is my personal opinion.]
If the objectives of all these "rules" are not clear, feel free to ask. However, the general objective of the exercise is to free you from the notion that everything you write must come out beautiful, perfect and Cathy-like [hah!].
The second exercise, which you can attempt any time after two weeks of FreeWriting [but do not stop the FreeWriting] is called Panning for Gold in the Closet [yeah, Shelja, we do it in writing too, imagine that!]. So, here's what you need to do. Unless you're obsessive-compulsive like me, when you open your closet, you will definitely find clothes that you haven't worn in years, right? Either they are too loose and you're keeping them for those times [in case you put on weight]; or, they are too tight to fit into right now but you mean to hit the gym any day now. They could also be the wrong colour [I know, why do friends lovingly buy you colours that you just don't see yourself wearing] and you're waiting for the day you have the courage to sport that shocking pink. Then, of course, there's the lot that is too worn out to wear but you're hanging on to for sentimental reasons.
Take all these clothes out and no, don't give them away or barter them for steel plates you don't need. You need to think of at least five reasons to hold on to them. Not literally, of course, but in a literary way.
In case you don't have this excessive wardrobe, look for something similar. As I confessed, I don't, so the first time I did this exercise I used my shoes [yup, I used to have enough pairs to rival Imelda Marcos - at one point of time I counted 76 pairs, some of which I had worn less than once]. I decided to create an exhibition out of them. Each pair of shoes got a history, a title, and a description. I also described how I would set up the exhibition and how much I would charge people for letting them view it.
In case you draw a blank at the clothes or the shoe closet, try the fridge. You may find some stuff which could be used for biology experiments.
What this exercise will do for you is allow you to reminisce about the associations with [useless] objects that you have held on to for a long time. Now you need to zero in on the EMOTIONS evoked by these associations and memories. Sharpen those pencils, refill the pen, or simply boot up the laptop... for what you're going to do with these emotions is write your next [bedazzling] literary piece.
So, all set? There are no rules for this part at all - try poetry, fiction, non-fiction, any genre will do - except "Be Specific". Instead of "I felt weird" you could write "I was filled with anger, sorrow, nostalgia, sadness, immense joy, exhilaration, etc." Instead of "I got into the car" you could write "I slid into the boot of the 1985-model shiny red Maruti 800 and curled my legs to get them out of the way of the slamming boot door". Instead of "My dress tore" you could write "My brand new purple-blue khadi kurta got caught on the jack as I stepped out of the boot and suddenly there was a jagged tear down the side which looked like a racing viper in the desert". Feel free to go over the top with the similes and metaphors. If a week later you don't relate to it, you can always revisit it and tone it down. EVEN on the Internet.
Finally, post it on your blog or send it to good ol' friends like me who love to read interesting stuff. It feels marvellous when someone leaves a comment or writes back saying... well, anything, even a smiley brings on the glow!
By the way, it's a great way to get the "trace your steps" homework done :)!
Get ready to receive a lot of my "stream-of- consciousness"!
ReplyDeleteGreat blog...Needed this and I am sure it will help me finish my course soon....Thanks!!!
ReplyDelete