There is an ongoing writing competition that is going on, which is called "Write India" and this is sponsored and run by Times of India. While some may have reservations to accept this as the best platform to test and hone your writing skills, many have been taking part in this competition for the past few months with the hope that they will get recognized by the top writers of english literature.
It is into its second season and the craze for this competition has been good.
Each month a passage is revealed by the author of the month with certain rules, and list of winners(usually top 10) is announced after 45 days of the contest's last date. Many people await it with wide eyes, checking for their names! The announcement happens quickly over twitter. I have seen many tweeple getting frustrated and some vowing to not write again, but I beg to differ.
Some people I have interacted with have even went to the extent to demean the platform and said that it only favours a select group of people based on their region or other irrelevant things. This made me think.
Writing is something that takes a lot out of someone's life and energy. To think of a good plot, develop that plot into a story, map out the characters and their details, create logical links between the characters, and then write the actual story(or even a short story) means a lot. To write a proper short story(maximum of 3000 words in this case) is much more difficult than writing a large story.
I believe that this is a platform which not only makes us put our best foot forward into the world of writing, but also teaches us how to respect the hard work of others, the judges and how to keep up the spirits in case we don't get selected among the winners. This spirit is most important and needed the most in the long run because as we keep writing, we need to keep a level headed approach towards the result. We need to first ask ourselves: Are we enjoying our work? Are we enjoying the process of writing a story or a book? If yes, then nothing should really dampen the spirit.
Instead of blaming the judges or authors of showing partiality and getting disheartened, why not take heart from the lost chance and try to better next time?
This "Write India" is a rare opportunity where we can compete on a national level directly without going through the regional levels. It is like playing in the ranji trophy directly without playing the state level competitions! You may not succeed initially, but it gives you a lot to learn and look forward to.
That's been my way of writing and I hope most people agree with me.
Wishing all the writers out there all the best!
With love.. Anil
It is into its second season and the craze for this competition has been good.
Each month a passage is revealed by the author of the month with certain rules, and list of winners(usually top 10) is announced after 45 days of the contest's last date. Many people await it with wide eyes, checking for their names! The announcement happens quickly over twitter. I have seen many tweeple getting frustrated and some vowing to not write again, but I beg to differ.
Some people I have interacted with have even went to the extent to demean the platform and said that it only favours a select group of people based on their region or other irrelevant things. This made me think.
Writing is something that takes a lot out of someone's life and energy. To think of a good plot, develop that plot into a story, map out the characters and their details, create logical links between the characters, and then write the actual story(or even a short story) means a lot. To write a proper short story(maximum of 3000 words in this case) is much more difficult than writing a large story.
I believe that this is a platform which not only makes us put our best foot forward into the world of writing, but also teaches us how to respect the hard work of others, the judges and how to keep up the spirits in case we don't get selected among the winners. This spirit is most important and needed the most in the long run because as we keep writing, we need to keep a level headed approach towards the result. We need to first ask ourselves: Are we enjoying our work? Are we enjoying the process of writing a story or a book? If yes, then nothing should really dampen the spirit.
Instead of blaming the judges or authors of showing partiality and getting disheartened, why not take heart from the lost chance and try to better next time?
This "Write India" is a rare opportunity where we can compete on a national level directly without going through the regional levels. It is like playing in the ranji trophy directly without playing the state level competitions! You may not succeed initially, but it gives you a lot to learn and look forward to.
That's been my way of writing and I hope most people agree with me.
Wishing all the writers out there all the best!
With love.. Anil
