It’s time for you to wake up and take your place in the universe.
Deep down, you know that you’ve been, are being, and will continue to be robbed. Colonizers have taken your ancestors, your land, your language, your identity, your songs, your stories, and so much more.
In other words, they have robbed you of the context which shapes your history and replaced it with propaganda as content.
As a result, you might have become inspired to be a novelist only to be told that writing doesn’t make you a whole lot of money without being told why.
You might have majored in English or gotten an MFA degree in creative writing only to have endured traumatizing workshops* or be told that you can’t write certain kinds of fiction.
Maybe you’ve even applied for an internship or full-time in publishing as a means to monetize your skills and knowledge only to be met with outrageous experience requirements, a salary that doesn’t provide a living wage**, and burnout.
Better yet, you might have garnered the attention of a literary agent or editor with your pages only to have them rejected on the basis of its lack of marketability or for being too [insert adjective here].
* Don’t believe that workshops can be traumatizing? Read about Beth Nguyen’s experience in Lit Hub.
** Check out this article on Electric Lit by Bethany Ball or this article in Book Riot by Arvyn Cerezo, if you haven’t.
An overwhelming 72.5% of people in publishing for Lee and Low’s Diversity Baseline survey identify as white.
If you don’t find that odd or alarming, then you’re not paying attention.
What I’m about to say next might be something you don’t want to hear.
For so long in your writing journey, you’ve probably read tons of craft books , attended many workshops, and had many writing teachers all in the hopes of finding that one, simple, magic-wand-wave fix.
But I’m here to tell you right now that there is no magic fix.
Because the game has been rigged against you from the very beginning.
And if any of this resonates with you, then you are in the right place.
In childhood, you’re were likely made to believe that writing wouldn’t make you a lot of money so that you’d work for someone else instead of yourself.
In school, you’re were likely forced to study the works of dead, white, European men so that you would only promote Westernism and colonialism.
In adulthood, you’re were likely made to feel grateful for having a job in publishing (any job, really) so that you’d stay silent, exhausted, confused, complacent, and constantly begging for scraps.
And while trying to get published, you’re were likely made to feel like you had to choose between between staying true to your story or making a profit.
Enough. Is. Enough.
You can continue to do exactly what you’ve been doing, and I won’t stop you. Reading all the craft books, going to all the conferences, honing your craft, paying that rent—Whichever path you choose, your life is yours.
But I don’t think you will achieve the growth and success that you seek if you do not recontextualize your creative writing education and reclaim your storytelling heritage.
You will probably make some money writing, but will still feel jaded.
You will probably go to workshops, but will still feel silenced.
You will probably continue paying rent, but will still feel dissatisfied.
You will probably land an agent or book deal, but will likely feel bitter.
However, if this is not where you want to end up, then here’s what I think you need to foster a meaningful, decolonial writing practice.
These are the six values that inform my writing and coaching practice, and they just so happen to be seen in Secular Buddhism. There are likely more, but I believe that at least having these six foster a mindful, context-based, holistic, decolonial writing practice.
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Ehipassiko (Curiosity)
Creative writing education that is equitable and empowering starts with nurturing a healthy curiosity for other perspectives. For example, storytelling modes and practices outside of Western ideological frameworks don’t get as much attention in academia and the publishing industry, but they are just as valid and worthy in writing practice. To that end, it is so important to “come and see” certain methodologies for ourselves to see if they’re a good fit.
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Sati (Cognizance)
Where most writers struggle is in their desire to not be in the present moment. They want to have written or want to write at some later date. Or, they ignore how they’re feeling and push beyond their limits. In order to maintain integrity with one’s self and the world around us, we must know ourselves deeply and be as connected as we can to the present moment. We must know where we have come from so that we can see where we are and know where we’re going.
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Mettā (Compassion)
As a Secular Buddhist, I understand that I must have compassion for myself and others during all stages of the writing process. I also know that everyone is on their own path to enlightenment, and the greatest gift that I can give to the writers is the autonomy and self-direction to find their own voice and tell their own stories in their own way. Writing can be a difficult path with no guarantees, full of ups and downs just as life is.
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Anicca (Creativity)
Human beings are creators. We are tellers of tales, masters of crafts, and breakers of chains. We are so much more than cogs in capitalist and corporate machines, and we deserve to express ourselves fully in any way, shape, or form that our stories take rather than be rigid and permanent. Similarly, our work deserves to meet its own needs rather than only someone else’s bottom line. Creativity is a means of expansiveness within others and ourselves.
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Sangha (Community)
No writer exists in isolation. They and their stories are part of a greater conversation about them and their work, and they must be given safe spaces to explore themselves and their work. Therefore, whether it’s through facilitating group coaching programs or working with clients one-on-one, I will provide safe, communal spaces for them because the writing road can be fraught with all sorts of perils—internal and external. As the saying goes, pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.
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Nirvana (Calm)
When I talk about nirvana, I’m not talking about the musical band of the same name. The word itself means “blown out,” as though an oil lamp or a candle has been extinguished. This sense of calm is the state that bodhisattvas try to achieve in their practice. In essence, when a writer achieves the same state, they let go of their greed, sensuality, aversion, hate, ignorance, delusion, and anything else that keeps them involved in the cycle of suffering. It is the point of true liberation.
These Secular Buddhist values inform everything I do as an author, book coach, and entrepreneur.
They are also the values that I instill in my clients.
If you choose to work with me, I won’t just tell you what to do.
I want to provide you with the context needed to help you become the absolute best storyteller that you can be.
Through anti-racist pedagogy, equitable feedback methods, and mindfulness principles, I’m here to help you tell your story in the best way that I can.
Because you deserve to make money for yourself, to see yourself in the stories you love to read and write, to help other people tell stories in your community, and to write the story you want without sacrificing your values, identity and style.
