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Printed from https://shop.writing.com/main/newsletters/action/archives/id/8621-Writer-Feel-Lighter.html
For Authors: November 29, 2017 Issue [#8621]

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For Authors


 This week: Writer, Feel Lighter!
  Edited by: THANKFUL SONALI Library Class! Author IconMail Icon
                             More Newsletters By This Editor  Open in new Window.

Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter

"Write it down, it'll help you deal with it."

Well, yes, it does.

Sharing a few of my personal experience with this.


Word from our sponsor

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Letter from the editor


Dear Reader,

I joined WDC soon after my mother passed away. I'd written a poem about my grief and wanted someone to share it with. Someone aside from family and friends, that is, because they might think I was addressing them directly. It was about how I wanted to cope with my grief in my own way, and didn't want anyone telling me how I should behave. WDC was the one place I could upload my poem, just like that.

I got instant reviews, and ... more than just reviews of writing ... acknowledgement of what I was going through. It comforted me, knowing I wasn't alone in the way I was handling my grief.

Since then, I have written often to cope with something that has happened to me. Once, something a friend said really hurt me. We were talking about 'the other woman' and she made a remark that I could never be 'the other woman' because I was too trustworthy. It was a compliment up until then, but she went on to imply that I wasn't attractive enough for a man to fall for.

What did I do?

I entered the Official WDC Contest that month, spilling out my hurt, plotting my revenge, purely in my head and on my screen. Lo and behold, it won me first place in that round -- a much coveted prize! My friend and I are as close as ever, she has no idea that she hurt me then, and I have put it behind me.

So -- why is writing cathartic?

I'm no expert, but I can try and put down my personal thoughts on this.

1. Writing forces you to clarify those half-whispers in your mind ... to capture them and put them in words. When they're trapped like that, ink on paper or font on screen, chances are they stop buzzing around.

For me, it's an added bonus to be entering something as highly competitive, as the WDC Official contest with my outpourings, because I have to make sure that I have crafted them well. This honing of sentences, this search for the perfect word, this need to ensure that the audience gets what I am saying helps me further in my search of peace. It becomes about the craft of writing, and the turmoil is somewhat soothed.

2. Writing helps you see other points of view. When you write, even if you're the protagonist, you have to get under the skin of the antagonist sometimes, too. This helps you balance the point of view.

3. Writing helps you share.
Putting that poem or that story in my WDC portfolio helped me reach out to others. And that's important. We're social animals, we need each other. We need to know someone is empathising, someone is lending us a comforting shoulder or a listening ear. Writing helps do that. And, since it's a sort of delayed-sharing, you can do it without interruption (unlike a face-to-face or telephonic conversation, which is more intimate and more immediate, but can also be interrupted before you have finished forming your own thought).

When I (purely hypothetically) plotted my revenge on my friend for doubting my womanly appeal, I also clarified to myself and my audience that I would never, ever actually take any steps to take that revenge. I didn't want to, I didn't need to. I just wanted to acknowledge that I had felt hurt. The fact that those who reviewed the piece recognised this in 'the character' was deeply fulfilling.

As I said, this is very personal to me. Your reasons for finding comfort in writing might be the exact opposite of what mine are, and be perfect for your needs. As long as you find comfort in writing, that's what matters.

So ...

Write On!
Owl sig by GeminiGem


Editor's Picks

By our authors!

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Nikhil's deeds come back to haunt him
by bas Author Icon

My Father's Box of Pictures Open in new Window. [E]
I took a long, emotional look at my father's boyhood home.
by Bikerider Author Icon


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by A Guest Visitor


All time favourites!

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Join the fun! We inspire reviewers through kindness and learning! Winner of eight Quills!
by Maryann Author Icon

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The Writer's Cramp Open in new Window. [13+]
Write the best poem or story in 24 hours or less and win 10K GPS!
by Sophurky Author Icon


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The WDC Angel Army Open in new Window. [ASR]
Dedicated to promoting positivity, encouragement, and support to the WDC community.
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Celebrate Writing.Com member account anniversaries with reviews.
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Word from Writing.Com

Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
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Ask & Answer

Thank you for the responses to "Putting the words in contextOpen in new Window.

Azrael Tseng Author Icon
I really enjoyed reading about the motivations behind other writers for their writing and translating work.

Monty Author Icon
I seldom comment on this News Letter but I always read them. Somewhere between the beginning and the end I usually learn something.

hbk16
A poem is a package of contemporary feelings emanating straightly from the heart.Sincerity,truth and live sensitivity render the poem touching.The use of certain heavy words is very important at the same level as the choose of the expressions which make the poetic piece a direct translator of someone deep feelings. I have appreciated a lot such issue.

Received on FACEBOOK, with the question: What does writing do?

Elianda Lee Writing is really, talking and listening to your SOUL... and that is very creative...

TheRightMargin To become immortal through our words...or just for therapy

Timi Medeiros Writing opens the eyes of the reader.

Kate Worthen Writing is what God put some of us on this Earth to do and it's a good form of expression



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