The Voice Within
A blog by Mary McDowall
I recently attended the kick-off event for a Writers’ Circle at The Purple Ink Cafe led by our own Kathy Kane. One of the very first things she said was “If you are here, you are a writer.”
I found this oddly comforting. I am a writer. This is not how I would have described myself before. But I do write. I write this blog. I write when I create new courses, website content and even new creativity tools. I am a writer. I don’t need to be a great writer, or even a good writer to write. It is the practice of writing that creates good writers. And the Writers’ Circle is an opportunity to hone this skill in a creative and supportive space with other writers. I found that as I wrote, I could tap into my unconscious thoughts, and ideas began to magically appear. I was fascinated by how my brain effortlessly transformed my thoughts into hand actions that formed symbols on the page. Symbols that convey meaning to a reader and bring my ideas to life. Before this experience, to call myself a writer felt like a stretch, perhaps even pretentious. But by calling myself a writer, I am not comparing myself to the great authors. I’m celebrating the courage and the patience of creating a habit and building a writing practice to bare my creative spirit. It is about trusting a process; a process so seemingly ordinary in our society that it is often taken for granted. Writing is a truly wonderful outlet for creative expression. One that I long denied myself because I didn’t think of myself as a writer. What a wonderful gift to be able to call oneself a writer. What a wonderful experience being part of a writing circle. Are you a writer? It’s not too late to sign up if you would like to join the Writers’ Circle at The Purple Ink Cafe. Click here for the details. I hope to see you there.
7 Comments
Kathy
7/19/2016 01:37:17 pm
Thanks, Mary. I love it when a piece of writing flows out of one my groups. All we need to do is to start!
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Mary
7/24/2016 03:21:29 pm
So true Kathy. The power of a writing group is something not to be under estimated. Thanks for offering yours.
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7/22/2016 04:43:22 pm
Loved this post, Mary. I think we often derail our creative process by being reluctant to claim that "I am a/an ...." This is inspiration for me--perhaps a complementary blog post coming up! Kathy's Writers' Circle is such a great place to explore writing as a process, isn't it?
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Mary
7/24/2016 03:24:25 pm
Thank you Donna. I'm learning to feel the freedom of "I am ..." statements. I used to think they were limiting. Now I see that they can be a way to open up all kinds of new possibilities.
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2/7/2017 07:34:47 pm
I am strengthened as I look in this picture and I am amazed on the things that are written here. I will read more post that are connected in this post and I am sure that It will help me and it will help me gain many befits about this. A reading to share indeed. We are all writers
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Mary
2/8/2017 09:06:12 am
Thanks for reading! We are all writers. Leave a Reply. |
About MaryI share how I see the world through everyday topics that connect me to my creativity - my challenge with clutter, master minds, ideas, strategies and process - mostly though the lens of my kaizen training. Let's ConnectCategories
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