I never knew writing was such a lonely journey until I left my full-time lecturing work in 2018, started a blog in 2019, and turned a book idea into a draft manuscript in 2020.
Each one of these endeavors had just me in them, front and center — no one else.
In short, I only had me, myself, and I for company!
That’s how I came to realize, by the end of 2020 (Covid, by the way, was no help), that writing is inherently a solo, and therefore extremely lonely, undertaking. Like reading, swimming, or meditating.
I struggled for a long time writing by myself. While there were many writing courses, how-to articles, blogs, podcasts, online forums, as well as writing guides on the web, in libraries, and in bookstores to keep me occupied, they somehow left me feeling all the more alone (even though they did teach me tons about the writing life).
There was no one to read what I wrote or give me advice and pointers. Nor a pat on the shoulder for my efforts.
If there was a lonelier venture in this world than writing, I wouldn’t know it!
My First Attempt To Form A Writers Club
I slogged it out by myself for a while but it got harder.
By 2022, I realised I badly needed company. More to know I’m not alone than anything else. I needed to know there were others who loved the craft of writing, desired to dabble in it for fun or for a living, but who also felt the solitude that invariably comes with it. And who therefore were looking to connect with other writers too.
So I began seriously to seek out kindred spirits.
In February 2022, I took up a Spoken Word Poetry writing course as part of my search.
As Covid was still a threat, the course was done fully online. Well, I thought, better online than nothing. At the very least, I might link up with fellow poets. Surely there would be someone in the class besides me looking to connect right?
Wrong!
Despite reaching out to a few folks in the course to connect, and even openly putting down my contact details in the main chat function for everyone to know how they can contact me, no one responded.
My first attempt to form a writers club ended up in failure.
So I crawled back into my lonely shell to hibernate the rest of the year, licking my wounds in defeat.
My Second Attempt To Form A Writers Club
In April 2023 I plucked up the courage to try again, this time signing up for a Creative Non-Fiction (CNF) Writing Course that was also conducted fully online.
Unlike the six-week poetry course, this one not only lasted eight weeks, but it had a Part Two that also lasted eight weeks. Making this a whopping four-month-long adventure! Plenty more time for me and my coursemates to get to know one another and to see if there was any interest in forming a writers club later.
Thankfully this time, I found a few who were keen. And voila, now, a year later, we have celebrated at the start of this month our first anniversary as a full-fledged writers club.
What’s really interesting about our writers club however has been our diversity.
There are four men and two women, which upends the notion that a typical writers club would comprise mainly women.
Our ages range from early 30s to late 60s, and we have a mix of ethnicities and countries of origin.
Occupation-wise we have quite an eclectic spectrum too. One former politician. An ex-banker and fundraiser. Another an accountant by training. And two young gentlemen who work full-time in the tech industry, one of whom handles marketing.
And me, of course, the default chieftain who writes and teaches on the side.
From the start, I got the six of us together and helped organize monthly meetings. I also administer and maintain our WhatsApp chat group, as well as curate writing resources to share with everyone whenever I can.
So far we have met faithfully every month since August 2023 to write, read, and discuss what we wrote. We also chat regularly about books and writing projects. Once, we even had a published author grace the occasion to share her wisdom and tips!
Not bad for a motley crew like ours yeah?!
Here’s To More Anniversaries!
The idea to write this anniversary piece came from one of our members who suggested we each write something to explain how the ragtag bunch of us got together, and why we think we lasted as long as we did.
From my standpoint, what appears to be the secret to our “longevity” this past year was the fact that at least half of the club kept up with the schedule of meeting monthly, mostly in person.
We also make very few demands on one another in terms of writing. We chose instead to simply be available and supportive of whatever writing projects each one had, rather than regularly critiquing writing pieces (though of course we still do so occasionally).
The overall mood has generally been convivial. We genuinely want the best for everyone’s writing, no matter what stage our writing is at.
Given that many writing clubs don’t last or can barely take off (as evidenced by my first attempt), I think this one-year milestone of my writing club is definitely worth celebrating! When I learn of how mismatched expectations, personality conflicts, and differences in individual writing pace and progression over time are some reasons such clubs peter out quickly, I simply give thanks that ours has survived a year.
Of course, one year isn’t a long time in the greater scheme of things. And who’s to say our paths may not eventually move each of us into different spaces and writing seasons that will make the club obsolete as each writer’s needs change?
But I believe in celebrating small wins, for such simple accomplishments can foster hope and confidence for more wins to come.
So for now at least, here’s to everyone in my CNF Writers Club (that’s our name by the way)!
May we be around (God willing) a year from now, two years from now, ad infinitum!
