Make Writing a Little Less Solitary (Ronita Intro) (11/20/2021)

A recap of the week's writing at Atticus Review. Intro by Ronita Sinha.

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When I was in my mid-teens I wrote poems in a green hard-bound notebook. They were no more than scribblings brimming with emotion and schoolgirl effusiveness; uncut diamonds that shone only in the light of my own repeated readings. I was desperate for readership, but my efforts to gain one were thwarted time over time. Whenever cousins (easy prey, or so I thought) or friends (not easy prey at all) saw me, notebook in hand, they had homework to do, rooms to clean, music to practice. They were prepared to do anything to keep a safe distance between themselves and my writing.And so, writing became a solitary, un-shareable pursuit.As writers, we are all familiar with this longing for readership. After all, what’s the point of writing when there is no one to read and praise it. That classic conundrum — does a tree falling in a forest still make a sound if nobody is there to hear it? Well the same could be wondered about writing: if there is no one reading my written word does it still qualify as a story, a poem? I don’t know, but what I do know is that it’s natural for writers to seek validation. And to that end, we write and edit and edit and edit until the piece is ready to be born into the world as perfect as it can be. When read by people within a known circle, we usually get the desired response; that of appreciation (who has the heart to hurt a friend?), but the path to good writing winds through the wilds of genuine critical feedback. If one way to improve one's style is to read the works of the masters, then another avenue is to seek unbiased criticism, and learn how to use it to one's best advantage.The age of technology has made it easier to find and join a writer’s group. There are many to be found online and in the end, it boils down to one’s personal preference. Signing up for one such writers’ forum a few years ago, changed my whole approach to writing. Within hours, I had a body of writer/readers poring over my submitted piece, offering comments, analysis, criticism, and of course, ways to improve the work. And what did they expect in return? Nothing, save that I read their work and offered feedback. This in itself was a learning experience; being informed and influenced by another’s art.Suddenly, writing was not such a solitary exercise after all. My work was being read by a community ranging from MFA students to established (sometimes prize-winning) writers with several publications under their belt, as well as amateur writers who shared the same love of words as I did. The most important thing was that my ‘critters’ as they were fondly called, had no desire or need to please me. They didn’t know me personally. They gave it to me straight. There was ovation, yes but there was also some level of vituperation, no matter how well-meaning. All I needed was the gall to stomach it because it wasn’t easy to sit back and see one’s hard work churning through the abattoir of harsh critical verbiage.  Uncomplicated feedback such as “Hey, do you think you can use fewer adjectives?” once helped me look at my work with a fresh pair of eyes. Some of the adjectives were so close to my heart. I thought they embellished my piece exactly the way I wanted. I couldn’t just slaughter them, could I? However, I forced my ego to take a backseat and reluctantly cut a few. And I had to admit the prose immediately became crisper, more readable, and attractive. Much as I am a champion of critiques on my work, so am I one of owning my piece too. It’s a fine balance between accepting feedback and using it wisely. In the end, writers have to take ownership of their writing, and not allow it to slip away and become someone else’s. After all, my story is my story, I felt its birth pangs so who can tell it better than I? And yet, sometimes bringing in a midwife (or a few) is not such a bad idea at all.Thanks for reading. We're glad you're here.Ronita SinhaFiction Reader 

ATTICUS NEWS

Atticus Review is pleased to announce its nominations for Best of the Net, 2021.READ THE NOMINATIONS

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THIS WEEK AT ATTICUS

FICTIONTHE PIANISTby Rachel Kowalksy"But part way through, just as Mozart had gunned the motor, Solomon’s heart sputtered and stopped. Not that he died, but his spirit did, right in the middle of the music, and so he removed his hands from the keys and folded them quietly on his lap."READ ON

POETRYIF IT WERE UP TO MEby Peter Krumbach"I’d have Anna Akhmatova's bustplugged to the wall, hum the humof a rechargeable saint..."READ ON

CREATIVE NONFICTIONARCHITECTURAL UNITby JoAnn Balingit"The salt box my mother kept in her kitchen was an ink-blue cylinder like the Florida night sky on rotisserie, turning between stocky tangerine trees in the sweetened night where I lay on crab grass to scratch my sunburn."READ ON

MIXED MEDIABODYby Alisa Ungar-Sargon @_alisaus"Body" explores a woman's relationship to pregnancy and her changing physical form through dance.READ ON

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