Category: Aspiring Writers - Page 2 - Mala Naidoo’s Book World

What’s In a Name?

Have you ever stopped to ask people you meet along the corridors of life, ‘what does your name mean?’ Or ‘Are you named after a family member?’

Have you ever entertained thoughts of changing your name because it hindered you in some way or are you the proud bearer of your name?

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So what’s in a name?

A thinking, vibrant being

A giving, caring individual

A hard-working, self-sacrificing soul

A woman, a mother, a wife, a daughter

A man, a father, a husband, a son

A loving grandparent

An innocent child, given a name with love and pride

Identity

A name might have meaning behind it based on family history, heritage or culture.

Who are we to judge the person, behind a name, the name we’ve never heard before?

Such is the individual’s dilemma that some face, that we face, regardless whether the name is ethnic or western in origin.

What is judged in a name that has no western origin?

* English proficiency in speaking and writing

* Concerns regarding professionalism

* Does the person have an accent?

* Does the name bearer understand and apply the rigours of social etiquette in the place and company they find themselves in?

* Is the person intelligent?

* Does the person understand the law of their chosen homeland?

* Does the person read intellectual and philosophical texts?

* Is the person educated?

*Is the person one to be feared or mistrusted?

*Where was the person educated?

* Where does the person live?

* What’s that postcode again?

What voice does the ethnic name bearer want to be heard?

I am me.

Get to know me.

Talk to me.

Try to understand me.

I would like to get to know you and understand you.

I live in a home with civilised values.

I might have the same goals you have.

I have a history.

I respect your history.

Please don’t judge me before you know me.

I don’t judge you, I seek to understand.

I am an ethnic individual, by whose definition I might ask?

I really don’t want another moniker.

My name means rosary/meditation beads/garland of flowers.

My name is a loving gesture from my beloved parents—first name, and ancestral last name.

Hello.

What’s your name?

What does your name mean? How does it define you as you see yourself and your worth, which we all have, to share in this world?

This makes me feel that I came into this world to write my name upon the face of life with big letters.~ Khalil Gibran (1883-1931) Lebanese-American Artist, poet and writer

A name pronounced is the recognition of the individual to whom it belongs. He who can pronounce my name aright, he can call me, and is entitled to my love and service ~ Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American naturalist, poet and philosopher.

Be yourself, everyone else is already taken ~Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) Irish playwright, essayist, and poet

Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life!… Leave me my Name…

A moving scene from the character, John Proctor, in the drama The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, brilliantly portrayed by Daniel-Day-Lewis in the film adaptation of the play.

Perfection in Imperfection

Celebrate diversity, celebrate the cultural origins of names. Value for the individual should come from what one upholds, defends, or admits, to enhance the human condition.

Was there a time in your life when you wanted to change your name to extend the opportunities that might have been available to you if your name had no particular ethnic or western origin?

Please comment in the box below, a history shared opens the pathway to understanding, tolerance and acceptance for a world we can boldly, safely and respectfully traverse.

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Authenticity

We want to believe.

We crave loyalty.

We need assurance.

We are human after all.

In creating characters in fictional tales, those that resonate with the reader are the characters who are either perceived as most authentic in their expressions of truth or deception. Literature mirrors the fabric of humanity highlighting concerns on the human condition creating understanding and connections with the reader. Readers want to identify with characters in the books they read to keep hopes and aspirations alive.

In conversation, the following were identified as underpinning the expression of authenticity

# motives,
# relationships
# sincerity

What does it truly mean to be an authentic person?
Fifteen character components that I identify as essential in this quest for personal authenticity or that which you create in your characters could include:

being true to yourself first before you can be true to others
going it alone even if you are the only person in the room holding a different view
saying you can’t do it anymore or that you need assistance
risking friendship by saying you feel used or need to be heard.
being proud of one’s origins, culture and values
acknowledging the presence of others
being comfortable in your own skin
being truly happy for others in all they accomplish
embracing diversity/ withholding judgment on race, culture, religion, sexual orientation, disability, political affiliation, socio- economic standing
greeting with a smile that extends from the soul to the eyes to the mouth
upholding the truth as it is
not allowing fear to govern choices
protecting vulnerability rather than exploiting it.
reaching out to those in need even if you don’t have enough for yourself
striving to be the best version of yourself.

How Difficult is it to be Authentic?

It does not require one to renounce worldly aspirations nor live like a saint or hermit.
Being authentic is simply being you, not a carbon print of someone else or living up to the expectations of others.

If you are always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be- Maya Angelou

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.- Ralph Waldo Emerson

There is nothing more rare, nor more beautiful, than a woman being unapologetically herself; comfortable in her perfect imperfection. To me, that is the essence of true beauty.- Dr. Steve Maraboli

Should your brave new world of being true to yourself be feared?

Only if you lose – your way – yourself – in a sea of manipulation and deception. The character, Meryl in Across Time and Space undergoes a steep learning curve to emerge as…I leave you to find out…and the sequel will reveal more.
When you are surrounded by authentic people, you feel the positive vibration around you. This energy allows you to flourish. Separating the wheat from the chaff comes with life experience as you glide towards the true, the real you.

Here’s to creating enhanced versions of ourselves and the characters we create

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Energising Creative Thought

Here are a few practical suggestions to a question posed this week which is a significant and very real concern:

‘How to centre yourself and clear your thoughts before writing?’

The time of day when your energy levels are high and you are rested is a good time to sit down to gather your thoughts.

Have a plan for what you hope to achieve for that particular writing session- is it a paragraph, a chapter or some research on a new idea? I have a skeleton plan of what I would like to create in my chapters- this is done through dot points which help to structure my thoughts that I build upon as I write.

Keep a journal on random thoughts that emerge each day.

If gathering your thoughts hits a roadblock, try this exercise:

Look around the room you are in – what object catches your eye, write a brief description of that object using as many sensory images as you can come up with – visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile.
Consider why you might have been drawn to that object – Colour? Shape? Associated memory? Who was the person who might have given you the object or where and when it became yours?
Write a paragraph on the size, shape, colour, ownership and memory associated with the object.
Record your thoughts, in your phone or other recording device, by speaking about the object first, then write them down as you hear it on your recording adding on the ideas as you go.

If this does not spark your creative energy, pick up a book, turn to any page and read the first line – stop – absorb – now write down what you think might happen next.

A quiet space, undisturbed, gives voice to your thoughts to pick up the pen or tap on your keyboard, a quiet space will lead to thoughts being centred where the noise of a crowded space might distract creative thought. This also depends on whether you can work with complete stillness, as I do, you might find a bustling coffee shop, as the protagonist, Meryl, in my novel, Across Time and Space, does suitable to creative thought if undisturbed by intrusive newcomers like the infamous, ‘roving professor’.

Once you find the space that is conducive to creative thought, tune into your inner clock, establish a rhythm to clear and centre your thoughts. If this does not happen in one sitting, go back later, or the next day – persistence and consistency is the key.

The most potent muse of all is our inner child –Stephen Nachmanovitch

Happy Writing!

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Is Commitment on Your Agenda?

Across Time and Space explores commitment in relationships in romance, friendship and family relationships. Whether or not it leads to the commitment of, ‘I do’ – commitment is a primal need in relationships for one to feel valued. The protagonist in Across Time and Space has been in a relationship for a length of time, a comfortable, complacency envelopes the relationship creating restlessness that becomes the catalyst for unimagined challenges.

This begs the question, does commitment mean unstinting devotion and loyalty akin to ‘til death do us part?’ The answers are vast and varied depending on the values one has embraced or formed.

Being raised in a time and place which instilled that a promise of commitment meant fulfilment of that promise on a nominated, ceremonial day which comes with its own merits and flaws. This might be considered ‘old world’ or fit for ‘Cinderella and her Prince Charming’, yet the expectation is that couples will unite or commit in a way they deem appropriate to both of them. Yes, the operative word is both – not ‘one’ making a decision, on a whim, that life’s path has beckoned a change for ‘one’ without consideration for how this might impact on the other half of both. Such is the life of the protagonist in Across Time and Space and her partner – good people in their own right who buckle under the fear of commitment, fear for the loss that might be incurred in all that has yet to be achieved in life.

This leads me to why should commitment be feared as the end to individuality and relinquishing of one’s dreams? Commitment should encompass all spheres of one’s life in relationships: singular and joint dreams, commitment to professional ideals and commitment to going off on a whim if its one’s choice to do so by acknowledging that both need to be aware of such changes. Meryl, in Across Time and Space will clarify the choices she makes to catch the star of her destiny that she feared might never be realised in her lifetime.

Commitment can have its dark and dangerous side when passion overrides reason. This brings to mind Catherine and Heathcliffe in Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights where both are inextricably and destructively hemmed to each other. Stepping outside literature as we turn on our televisions to the reality of the evening news or an online article on domestic violence which results from unhealthy commitment which is power and control. Supposed commitment, commitment without reason creates a dark, terrible and often tragic situation.

Commitment in family relationships be it as mother, father, grandparent, carer or extended family member should be based on trust, approval, open communication and support from love shared to promote good mental health.

Love, respect and freedom of choices are a right that should not be debated, it’s a basic human right – a human right that should acknowledge commitment to respectful consideration through communication before heading off alone into the sunset.

Commitment to values includes commitment to the values of place, the place we call home – the country- the city- the street- our backyards. It is often those who cannot commit on a personal level who cannot commit to democracy, justice and a fair go.

Reason should always caution passion, dreams should be lived for peace and joy to reign for both halves in any relationship and for all in our choice of place that we call home.

What’s your take on commitment to all things in life? I would love to know your thoughts.

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