Creativity is an expression
of your deepest truth.
Sometimes you are scared of it.
Sometimes you are proud of it.
But always let it live through you –
until on the other
side you meet your own greatness.
Maja S. Todorovic
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Have you ever read your words for a couple of times and thought “Oh my God, this is really bad, this really sucks!” ? Well it happens to every writer from time to time – that his own thoughts seem strange to him, like he’s faking his own writing!
The truth is, many of us struggle to represent themselves as who they are. They’ll rather follow the trends on social media, rambling about safe topics and not expressing their real opinions. Why? We all have that ingrained need to be liked, loved, accepted – if possible by everybody.
And that my friend it’s simply Sisyphean venture. Many do try to ‘fake till they make’ – build a readership and ‘when the time is right’, they’ll start to write what they really think and feel. Well, there is a slight problem with this approach: If you only follow the crowd, your words are just another minuscule drop in the ocean of the sameness.
I do believe that we as writers have a responsibility to say and write our mind – being that in science, history, poetry or religion. Expressing our opinions in bold, courageous way is not easy, but that’s how change happens. That’s how we open doors to new opportunities, and connect with people we never new existed.
People will care about your words if they can sense your honesty and belief behind them.
And here today, let me share with you what I think is (also in my own case) 4 main reasons we sometimes feel like we deceived our own writing:
You have probably noticed that brave writers, with strong words and opinions – just don’t give a damn what other people think of them. They don’t apologize for who they are.
They own their opinions and perspective as a part of their own identity. So neither should you hide yourself behind nicely packed words with silky ribbon. Being bold in your writing is being able to take a stand and give yourself permission to share your story.
At the beginning of writing this blog, I was scared – what on earth a geophysicist has so important to say about poetry? But maybe there’s the catch – it offers completely different point of view from someone who studied English literature or creative writing. And as the blog began to grow so did my confidence to more openly share my opinions, intimate stories, struggles. Because that’s what writers do. You never know how your writing will reach and touch someone else.
I know, world can be a cruel place. When you are completely open in your writing, everything you are becomes naked and so fragile to every negative comment, rejection, criticism… But this is the part of being a real writer. No matter how many slaps in your face you get, you are still there, showing up, continuing your work and firmly standing behind your words. Don’t be afraid to write about what you feel, what you experienced – it is real to you.
At the beginning of writing this blog I also clang towards safe, general topics. Yet with time, I also felt a need to share more personal experiences I got through poetry and I can tell you it is really liberating. As the act of writing is so fulfilling, so it is being able to show everyone how that wonderful, simple craft or art – you can call it whatever you like, is an amazing tool available to everyone. Everyone! And this blog simply transformed itself into a mission to make that more approachable and understandable to people. And I share some of my painful experiences where poetry directed me to the path of healing. I am vulnerable in my writing but it also has a purpose that’s much stronger and bigger than my fear of being hurt.
Not good enough. That is the sentence we repeat like mantra and I believe is the greatest enemy to creativity. As writers we sometimes put so high standards in front of us, that we cloud our reasonable judgment – in times we don’t even see how we are putting the bars higher and higher.
There’s no such thing as perfect writing. There is honest writing, fueled with emotion, passion, purpose and belief. That’s what you should strive for.
You can recognize that this topic is repeating in many of my posts, because I know how it is important to know why you write. Your writing should seek to contribute, offer different perspective, encourage, inspire, support, analyze / synthesize information or simply to entertain.
Once you become clear with that, you can easily translate vision into a writing goal – then you produce meaningful work.
Do you feel like fake sometimes in your own work? What are your thoughts on this topic? Please share in the comments below.
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Many of you who have been following my blog for some time know that I participated in the NaPoWriMo 2016 and it was a great experience. Some of the benefits I have described here.
At this moment, particularly in the last couple of weeks I haven’t been satisfied with my writing practice and I think it’s time to stir up things: in the next 31 days, in the coming December I intent to write 31 day long poem. Sounds strange? 🙂 Well, what I actually want to do is to write ONE poem for 31 days. The goal is to add at least three stanzas each day. And why not 30 poems for 30 days as usually challenges go? In this way, I think I will practice more my focus and attention, because as the time progresses I will have to each time read my poem from the beginning in order to continue it. So after couple of days, it will really require to keep up my concentration and follow the thinking pattern.
The second thing is, I want to use this writing experiment as a sort of an emotional tracker, to see how that reflects on my writing every day and are there any fluctuations, especially during holidays.
And the third things is, that this is a kind of ‘gift of writing’ (my birthday falls on 31st December 😉 ) – and use it as an opportunity to challenge myself to improve and observe my writing habits.
Poem post will be updated regularly every day and I will also use #31daypoem hashtag, so it’s easier to follow. If you also want to improve your writing and form a better writing habit, please join me in this fun experiment, share this information and invite friends who you think could really benefit from this exercise. Use the same hashtag so it can be easy to track down.
Once the experiment ends, beside the ’31 day long’ poem as a result, I will share my impressions and how that have impacted my writing in general.
Publishing other regular posts will go as scheduled.
So, how about you, have you participated in any similar writing experiment? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
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Count your words by
the strength of emotions they
evoke, not by
numbers.
Maja S. Todorovic
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Did you know that the roughly estimate of number of blogs on the Internet is over 150 million?
And no doubt we as writers do want to find new, interesting ways to attract readers and popularize content. To cut through all that noise of useless information, spam, adverts…it comes especially hard for poetry blogs, since traditionally we are more accustomed to read poetry in books and magazines. But more and more social media networks like Instagram are taking place and becoming a great resource for finding fresh and inspirational poetry – and you do want to take advantage of that.
Today I want to share with you some actionable ways that I have observed to work (especially for some popular poetry blogs here on the wordpress.com platform) and you can easily apply in your blogging scheme to attract more readers. But first of all, be aware that it takes time and persistence. Many of the high visited and read blogs are ‘in business’ for years and their success didn’t happen over night.
Focus of the blog: do you post only poetry or do you blog also about personal stuff, writing tips, non-fiction articles, ext? Analyze your stats and see which of your posts are most visited and popular. It will give you a clue to what kind of topics are your readers most attracted. If they are not poetry related, than you might need to readjust your focus that dominant part of your writing is poetry. Initially you might lose some of the subscribers, but always keep in mind why do you blog and who you would like to read your blog. Shape your writing according to that.
I do believe that the intricate purpose in every blogging attempt is connection and sharing. Link with other bloggers with similar affinities.
That can go by:
One of the biggest features in blogging in last couple of years is that this the era of engagement and there you should pour most of your energy. Engage your readers and with your readers in any form – it’s the key to attracting more traffic.
Poetry is about beauty of language and words – we should never forget that. For traditional blogging format, I still believe that accent should be on the background and space that allow words to pop up. But blogging trends are changing and you might want to stir up things by pairing your words with adequate visuals which can contribute to your poetry to become even more appealing to the reader.
As I mentioned, Instagram is fostering some great poetry networks and communities. Share your work in the form of engaging photos, videos and you are opening the doors to completely new type of readership.
Google loves fresh, unique and interesting content so update your blog frequently. People will have more reasons to come back, read and share your poetry.
Allpoetry.com and poemhunter.com are useful resources for you to publish poetry especially as a newbie blogger and poet. You can get very good feedback for your writing and increase exposure of your work.
This I find especially important if you want to connect with other poets in the blogosphere as sharing your experience can impact and give additional inspiration to other poets when it comes to submitting their work.
Poetry offers unique experience so your writing will attract unique readers. Most of the tips given here are proven to work, but at the bottom of the line there are no strict rules what grows one blogs – especially when it comes to poetry.
Be yourself and enjoy your creative process – these are the two most important merits. From that space of trustful and peaceful enjoyment , your work will find most intriguing ways to captivate your readers.
Do you have any interesting strategy for attracting more readers to your poetry blog? Please share in the comments below.
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The Japanese
have a wonderful tradition
of admiring to
something that isn’t perfect, called wabi-sabi
and it has become my mantra
each time I look at your scowling eyes,
two dark rampageous
hawks rearing
to feast on my insecurities,
my habit to kneel at your monstrous ego;
Your mouth, enraged volcano
throwing missiles of sharp, burning words
at my bowed, tired head:
wabi-sabi, wabi-sabi,
nobody’s perfect – you for
misuse of uncontrolled power
and me for unused, powerless control.
I’m yet to learn, we are equal – that’s
the perfection you blindly refuse to see.
Maja S. Todorovic
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Make a pact with yourself that you will write
every day – not because you don’t know how to write,
but simply for learning to love and enjoy your words – no matter
how distant, fake or fade
in the beginning they may stray.
Maja S. Todorovic
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Holidays…you like them and you hate them in the same time, right? I don’t know about you, but for me – every holiday I enjoy some additional spare time I have if I manage to take short travel or read a good book. But sometimes, it can get hard and hectic to fulfill all family duties that are expected of you, do the errands, cleaning, cooking…and guess what – little or no time for writing. As we are entering a ‘red zone’ of holiday celebrations, there are some smart ways you can employ even in the midst of chaos and steal few minutes for your poem writing. Still, being busy with everything else can leave us feeling empty and tired – all you want is sleep and quietness.
Today I want to encourage you even if you are buried over your head with holiday preparations, travel plans and ext. to use that atmosphere creatively and festive, holiday spirit transform into an inspiration for writing.
Here are my top 7 seven writing ideas:
1.If you have some unresolved issues about upcoming holidays, use that as an opportunity to more explore in your writing. What are your current plans – would like to change them? Are you excited or nervous? How would you rather spent your holiday time? You can write a poem, story, or just as an idea for free writing or journaling. This can also serve as a casual warm up writing sessions for something more concrete you have in mind to write.
2.Imagine you are a travel writer set on a new adventure, traveling to a place you always wanted to visit. Where are you going? Who is traveling with you? What are you most excited about? Describe every detail, people, atmosphere, landscapes…For more creative insights on this subject you can also have a look at this creativity exercise and deepen your writing practice further.
3.Try to evoke some dear and meaningful childhood memory you have in relation to holidays. Portray those feelings in a poem that will honor that happiness and excitement you experienced as a child.
4.Remember some funny moment or joke during family gathering. What was funny about it? Did you have a good laugh? Or you disliked it? Use it as trigger to further inspire your writing.
5.Pretend you are a hosting a festive party for your favorite holiday. Everyone is there, your family and friends…everything goes well until something unexpectedly happens. Guests are confused and don’t know how to react to latest developments..
6.What is your favorite holiday? Describe it without actually naming it, but through the usage of your senses: how does it smell, is it cold or warm? Is it noisy, are you alone? Are you traveling? Employ your senses to the most intricate details and let your imagination takes you from there.
7.You are just about to go to the airport (for your holiday vacation), when your old school friend, you haven’t seen in ages appears at your door. What do you do? You engage in conversation, you invite them in, you are pleasantly surprised or something else happens?
Use these prompts not only to ignite your writing but challenge yourself to examine some of those feelings you might be having about holidays, family relationships and ext. Let your imagination go wild and no matter how chaotic your holidays get, squeeze in some time for writing to release any tension you might have and give yourself a chance to relax.
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Poetry articulates your hidden parts:
sensitive but beautiful,
vulnerable but brave.
Poetry reveals your long forgotten treasures
strengths to move you forward
intimacy to keep you warm.
Poetry heals your deeply buried scars
allowing you to travel far,
to new worlds, to moments ajar.
Maja S: Todorovic
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It used to be called the White city, my hometown.
And it really was white. I remember, how through my
window I could see where two rivers merge with
sky in the most beautiful lightness…
Yesterday I came to the White city.
Of its entire glorious glow there are only pigeons trying to fly,
not having wings to lift themselves above the grey net
of dark clouds made of sorrows and unlived dreams.
People walk and talk, just as they used to,
but instead of smile they wear masks:
Mask 1: “Good morning boss!”
Mask 2: “I’ll pick up the groceries, dear!”
Mask 3: “What a great game tonight!”
Now, White city is full of labyrinths.
For each room you have to put the right mask.
It helps you navigate.
If you put the wrong one,
streets just swallow you.
The streets…once a safe place to be.
I used to play on the streets of my white city…
Just how many knee cuts they have absorbed!
I’d liked when concrete caressed me on my head.
Streets are now landslides of children cry, abandon lovers,
cars that start only on your yelling.
Skyscrapers don’t exist any more.
Shoe boxes have replaced them.
In public transport,
we have to climb on each other’s heads
in order to move…And that’s the only way for you to know
in which labyrinth room you are.
There are no windows,
and why would you need them?
Sulfur and nitrogen have replaced fresh air.
Is ever light going to return to the White city?
I don’t know. I would like to.
Maybe some new generations
will help rivers merge again with sky
in the most beautiful lightness.
Maja S. Todorovic
Note: This is a poem, published as a part of The Disappearing project by Red Room Company. It was written as my impression of visiting my hometown after longer absence. Beograd I was born in and used to know, really doesn’t exist anymore. Sadly, but true.
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Business in Rhyme 