Thursday, June 10, 2010

Teacher

I found something today that I honestly thought had gone by way of the Dodo. It's something I wrote on the 17/6/1997 it's simply called, "Teacher." It's short and sweet and I think quite poignant. I'm not sure why I wrote it, but it was on my very first PC which died years ago. I actually found a hard copy and I'm so glad I did. Here is Teacher.

Teacher

The greatest teacher of wisdom is Pain

The finest teacher for learning is experience

The ugliest teacher is lust

The prettiest teacher is joy

The hardest teacher to understand is life

The strangest teacher is yourself.

Kev copyright 1997

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Are Writers Broken?

Believe me, I'm not being flippant when I ask this, plus I will clarify the question. It's more an observation really I suppose, I know from personal experience that I heal when I write. You see I had a rough time as a kid and carried around my fair share of pain, yes I was broken and in need of repair. Writing did this for me, it allowed me to go to places in my head that I'd never been to before. It allowed me to explore areas that I would never have gone to otherwise. When you write fiction you can go where others fear to tread. You have the ability to explore the dark side of yourself and others, it's that part that is hidden away shunning the light of day.

I find it incredibly exhilarating to come up with story lines that make people say."Where the hell did that come from?" You draw on your own pain, you write from your very soul or what's left of it, and because you have been there, you know how to touch others with your words. I see it also with other writers, you only have to talk to them to know we are all coming from the same place. Most writers are extremely sensitive and wonderfully supportive, we are emotional and love music. I can't function without a tune running through my head. I especially love to write to music as do most writers I know. All the years I have been writing have also been years of healing for me. The one thing I worry about is that if I heal, will I lose my edge will my writing not be as powerful? If I suddenly start to love everything in sight will my words turn to flowers? Now that's a scary thought. I think for my own sanity I must stay a little broken, besides being normal is a little too weird, even for me.

So are writers broken? Are you a broken writer, or one that's healing like myself?