On Writing

Sometimes, at a moment's notice, I feel compelled to put my thoughts into comprehensible words. The sudden rush to spill my heart out is often indescribable. No sooner had the inspiration come than the idea fizzled out like an overnight open can of Coke.

This writing compulsion is usually accompanied by a caffeine jolt into my system, or better yet, following an episode of emotional upheaval. Infuriated by the unfair treatment inflicted on a loved one, or the empathy shared through a heartwrenching story, I get all misty-eyed and take it upon myself to spread the words around.

It is a known fact that I love to write. But as a budding writer, I always question the quality of my writings as they are not as earth-shattering and beguiling as some that I have come across.

Then again, I reconcile this hasty notion with the fact that I'm still an avid learner and that writing is as much a craft as it is a passion.

A troubling thought brewed in my head when I realise that a writer must engage in a wholesome regiment of reading if he or she is to succeed in this competitive field. Read widely and hungrily, a truism sounds off.

You see, I wouldn't coin myself as a "voracious reader" as I am, to put it mildly, a slow reader to begin with. Alright, I'm downright lazy when it comes to reading books. I'd rather read online articles than to ensconce myself on a sofa with a heavy literature material.

Books that keep me glued are considered easy readings to some expert readers out there. And of course, there is the chick lit genre and ahem, some romance novels that rivet my full and undivided attention.

Oddly enough, I'm more intrigued with words and more words. I love for instance, the seemingly unending number of adjectives that could go into describing a house. This weird fascination explains why I'm a self-professed dictionary-phile, as opposed to your regular Joe (or Jane) reader magnifique.

Alongside my quirky fixation is the equally bizarre interest in both sentence formation and structure. I love the way beautifully-structured sentences glide effortlessly in a story. They capture my vivid imagination and elicit an emotional reaction that see me hanging on every single word.

In turn, this probably accounts for my slowpaced reading style which induces me to re-read a few 'interesting' sentences over and over again. OCD, you say?

As such, in a personal bid to improve my writing style and widen my reading exposure, I've found myself buying more books this year than I have ever owned for the last, say, eight years.

In the end, it is never enough to depend only on your so-called writing forte, you also have to hone the right and appropriate skills.

Here are, in random order, some blogger-writers that I am enthralled with: Jawikistani, Elviza, Eliza (yup, another one!), Idlan, Venny and Kenny Mah (hmm, seems I'm more partial to female writers). Any other recommendations?