Who’s afraid of writing?
Whether it’s being faced with an essay or funding application, making a start on that elusive first novel or even just drafting a thorny email, writing has struck fear into all of our hearts at one time or another. And when we feel that fear, what happens? We procrastinate, we overthink, we doubt ourselves and we don’t deliver our best work. And that’s a problem, because no matter what our work is, or how we like to express ourselves, we all inevitably have to rely on the written word from time-to-time.
To help us work through some of these ideas, and explore how we can break down barriers and blocks we might experience when expressing ourselves through writing, we were joined by teacher, mentor and writer Briony Goffin. Known for her vivid writing style, Briony has published widely, as well as delivering TEDx talks on creative writing and leading workshops for diverse organisations from HM Prison Service to Hay Festival and everything in-between.
Briony led the group in an engaging and content-rich presentation, sharing some of her insider top-tips to creating effective and compelling written work by balancing the ‘personal’ with the ‘professional’.
Here are my main reflections and interpretations from the event:
1. When it comes to writing, ‘done’ is better than ‘perfect’
Or as Briony phrased it on the day ‘the first draft is always perfect, because all it has to do is exist’. If, like me, you’re a bit of a perfectionist, it can be easy – and tempting – to delay committing words to the page just because we want everything to be immediately brilliant. But writing is a process of revision and augmentation where absolutely nobody gets it spot-on first time. It was liberating to start thinking about writing as something that can be refined and perfected until we feel it properly expresses our intentions. For me, this helps take some of the fear and intimidation of the ‘blank page’ away.
the first draft is always perfect, because all it has to do is exist
2. We are our most interesting subject
In her presentation, Briony shared three key points for successful writing, one of which was:
if you want your writing to be universally appealing, you have to be prepared to get really, really personal
When we write, there can be a tendency to think we have to do lots and lots of research first, taking on information to inform our subject matter. Whilst research is important, especially in academic writing, it can also be a barrier to actually getting the writing done, and in fact over-researching your subject is really just another delaying tactic! Briony stressed the importance of focussing our writing on the subject matter that we are closest to and know the most about. Doing this will help your writing feel more authentic and engaging. It also builds more trust with the reader, because you are writing from first-hand experience.
3. But, good writing also ‘supercharges’ reality
Briony explained that, in writing, ‘fiction is more compelling than fact’, and compared this playful provocation to using camera filters to turn up the contrast and saturation on a photograph. Sometimes the image – however factually accurate – fails to capture the brilliance, beauty and intrigue of reality. So the writer’s job is to dial up the filter and ensure that the secondary representation does justice to the lived experience. Whilst this is especially pertinent in creative writing, it also struck me that this is a really important process when trying to convey a concept or an idea to the reader of other types of writing, such as reports or even funding or job applications. By nature, the audience for your written work won’t be ‘in the room’ with you – but really great writing can make them feel that they’ve seen what you’ve seen first-hand. The next time I have to write a report or an application, I’m definitely going to pay attention to how ‘alive’ the words feel to a third party and connect with my inner ‘Instagram Influencer’.
Find out more about Briony
If you’d like to find out more about Briony and her work, or have been inspired to put your writing skills to the test in real time, Briony leads creative writing workshops at Chapter Arts. Find out more.
Our next Creative Cuppa
We’d love to see you at our next Creative Cuppa, ‘Who’s afraid of changing careers?’, on Thursday 6 April at The Gate, Cardiff. Find out more and book.
Creative Cuppa is an informal opportunity for Cardiff’s freelance and creative workforce to come together for connection, collaboration and caffeine. They are designed to facilitate sharing and reflection, and support personal and professional network building for individuals.
