I can trace the origins of my writing journey back to childhood.
When I was a child, like many other children I kept a diary but after a while I became a little bored with that and moved on to writing stories. I loved to dream myself into writing different characters and their adventures. I enjoyed writing at school too. Once there was a competition sent out to schools from Cadburys for pupils to write a story of the cocoa bean. I was very surprised when I won – proud of my certificate and I enjoyed the chocolate prize!
Since that time my writing has evolved in various ways but it’s never ceased. As an adult I have been largely involved in writing about and researching health and healing, and for some time now I’ve been interested in writing and wellbeing. I notice recently that all of a sudden it appears more and more in many areas of life.
I turned on the radio the other day and there was a programme by someone talking about health and wellbeing connected to writing. This wasn’t the first I’ve heard recently about the benefits of writing on the radio, or of course online. Writing is increasingly becoming more well-known these days as a health benefit.
Many people will know of Julia Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way: A Course in Discovering and Recovering your Creative Self” which advocates the joy and wonder of writing down one’s thoughts, particularly on waking. I read this book way back in 1995 and got so far into the exercises, then stopped for various reasons. At the time I was busy with children including a toddler so preferred to be active, gardening, chopping wood, making bread, walking the dog on the moors where we lived and generally not needing to write in that way, or so I thought.
A few years later, I went to university to study social anthropology, which kept me motivated and inspired with writing all that I was learning. It was great going to university in my forties, a challenge, a new identity, and fun to be around other mature students (although we were few then) and a vibrant university life. Although unfortunately I wasn’t able to join the social life as I was a single parent with a long commute whose home-educated daughter often joined me in my studies! Yes, she came to lectures when suitable; I guess it wouldn’t be allowed now for health and safety reasons, but nobody objected at the time. That experience is a story I’d like to write about one day as she never attended school. Academically, she ended up getting a first at a top university. Maybe her great love of academia, studying and the desire for knowledge stemmed from those days! She is also a very self-assured, competent woman in all she does despite many people in those days saying she would miss out on social life.
As I have already mentioned, I’ve always written off and on in different ways. As a complementary health practitioner I loved getting to know people and write case studies; as a Tai Chi and Chi Kung student I kept a journal as part of my teacher training; I would write any insights after meditation.
Recently, I came across one of my journals. It was revealing in how I was feeling at that time, and how my life journey was evolving and changing. I don’t think it is necessary to go back and read writing from the past, but it is interesting to see how you have arrived at the present moment. I don’t usually look back at my writing though, it simply feels good to get my thoughts, emotions, feelings out onto the page. It can give me a sense of letting go of unnecessary thoughts, experience again the joy of a certain moment in time or simply understanding more of oneself or a particular issue in life. I’m a great lover of writing lists too!
I expanded my writing knowledge by first attending short writing courses, followed by a two-year postgraduate diploma in creative writing which led me into an MFA in Creative Writing. It was while I was on this course and writing my novel that I decided to study and dedicate myself to writing for wellbeing interspersed with memoir and fiction writing. I’m pleased to say I passed the course too, with merit!
I really embrace the whole concept of writing for wellbeing, it has certainly helped me along the way. Hence, the study and work that I do now is to join with other writers in encouraging and assisting others to share in this beautiful and profound craft. And I still love to conjure up stories from life. Hoping to have my first book published this year, I am already thinking of the next one.