Recently, I’ve felt as though I have lost the ability to write poetry. My attempts to sit and write a poem have ended in complete failure. It is an awful feeling. You feel wrung out, like an old wet rag. Your ideas fail you. All of your creative energy ceases to flow, and you’re left with nothing but the residue. It is in these frequent creative droughts that negative thoughts arise. I say things to myself like my writing fucking sucks and I am a terrible human being. I manage to convince myself that I will never write anything even remotely enjoyable ever again, for as long as I live.
As creatives, we often talk about writer’s block. But we don’t talk about how worthless it can make us feel. It is one of the worst feelings ever. I posted on my Instagram poetry account for the first time in three weeks today. I only posted because I’ve decided to partake in Escapril, as a way of forcing myself to write poetry.
But I believe I’ve found the antidote.
All creative work flows from your mind. It flows. Overthinking the creative process seems akin to shooting yourself in the foot. If you overthink anything that you’re creating, the piece itself will possess no artistic merit. One cannot approach art and consider every aspect while creating it. That is why we edit and draft our work. You can make a complete fucking mess the first time around. It can be an absolute catastrophe. Whether it is a piece of writing, a piece of art, a song, a film, a video, any creative medium. Just make a mess. A huge mess.
Then return to it. See it from a perspective outside of the creative mode you found yourself in while at work. What you read is never unedited. The author scrutinises their work, then they hand it to their editor. The editor cleans up the mess that the author made. They turn it into something readable and enjoyable. Something with artistic merit. Same with poetry. I won’t send this post off to an editor, but I will go over it myself. I want to ensure quality.
I believe that’s my answer to being unable to write, or create anything at all. Just pour your heart out the first time around – even if it is gibberish. Then go back over it and shape it into something great.
Iestyn Tudor 