By Celeste Hawkins
You have to tell the truth as a writer. You have to be accepting of who you are and where you are.
These two statements came away with me from a workshop run by Melbourne based, British born author Jon Bauer, at The Wheeler Centre.
It was highly engaging, insightful and not one of your ‘how to write’ style workshops. We we were encouraged to feel vulnerable and there was a general acceptance that we would be ‘un-masking’ ourselves in this space.We spent time looking at all the varied obstacles and hurdles, or ‘what gets in the way’, when trying to write. During this interactive forum, one of the tasks we were given was to write something ‘really shit’. The atmosphere in the room as we read each other our most dreadful works, was far more exciting and jovial than the task of reading our ‘best ever’ work. It became very clear that the act of writing, when not forced, or coerced, can seem almost effortless. Many participants remarked they preferred their dreadful pieces! Jon has a strong understanding of the important role that the sub conscious mind plays in the act of writing. He also drove home the beautiful truth about being authentic as a writer: tell the truth.
Jon Bauer is the author of Rocks in the Belly
