2022: My Writer’s Year in Review
They say life and studies are different. In studies, the lessons come first and the tests later. In life, the tests come first and exams later. So, 2021 was the test and the lessons came through 2022, for me, the writer — author, and poet.
Never a slave of time:
I removed deadlines from my itinerary. That reduced pressure, and in turn made me enjoy my writing more. I wrote more when I removed the pressure of deadlines.
Except, when there are bursts of creativity, I never slept, and put myself under pressure, so that I don’t miss the purple patch. And my friends, that worked. If you follow my blogs and what you would see in the print, I am sure that you will agree that I am evolving as a writer — for the better.
On the same count, I removed my publishing deadlines too. In my team, we are voluntary associates. This means that we need to love our work and find the time and space to do it. For my editors, creative advisors, and artists, I have stopped asking the questions — when can you finish? It is counter-intuitive on the surface, but it is intuitive if I count on the trust and capability that I have in my collaborators — which brings me to the next lesson in my evolution.
Collaborations are part of evolution:
I have realized the full power of ‘voluntary association.’ The chemistry, trust, and love for co-creation are the foundations of these voluntary associations. I have not seen some of my collaborators in person, but that has not come in the way. We have found common ground at a personal and emotional level, which has aided the creative collaboration further.
My dream of becoming an ekphrasis poet, where compositions are inspired by works of art came true with a sustained and evolving collaboration with Sarah Polyakov. From contemporary romance to Celtic History and Greek Mythology, I have discovered a new dimension in me as an ekphrasis poet.
I always write solo poetry — for I hate to compete or be compared. But my poetry reviews are my ways to enter a few people’s hearts — especially those of the poets I review. Priya Patel, whose poem I reviewed, soon became a collaborator. We go toe-on-toe, verse-for-verse like partners in tango, writing on-the-fly verses. We have written collaborative reviews. Priya is an eminent poet, specializing in melancholic romance, but she is also prolific and versatile.
My existing partnership with Shwetahitesh went through a hiatus as she went through some personal challenges and changes, and lo and behold, she took on the mantle of the editor of ‘Bachelor’s Wife and Other Stories.’ Her guidance has spawned two more stories in the manuscript making it more compelling and complete. Her fact-checks and creative counterpoints will shape the manuscript into a better version. Shweta and I became co-poets when our poetry collection ‘Verses of this Universe’ was published by Highbrowscribespub. Her poems are profound and soul-touching.
Last but not least. My cousin and editor, Thaila Satheesh is working with me on the storyline for the book ‘The Rainbow Bridge’. Since it is also auto-biographical, she is in a great position to advise on the plot, characters, and language.
More reading, better writing:
I read more books and wrote book reviews. Reading the works of Frank Kafka, Leo Tolstoy, RK Narayan, Ramesh Tiwari, John Boyne, and Jhumpa Lahiri — contrasting styles and genres have influenced my fiction writing. The book reviews have helped me to reflect on the books from multiple perspectives. Here is my book review link.
Reading is the experience of receiving the words into one’s mind and then reconstructing words through one’s imagination and introspection. As I grew as a reader, I realized that there is something called a Reader’s Point of View. There are two filters all the time. The author’s POV and the reader’s. The book likes in between. So who I am as a reader will influence my POV and my understanding of the text and finally the author’s POV.
I became part of a Whatsapp group called ‘We Gobbled the Books’, and that led me to understand the reader’s collective views ( as against my sole perspective). We even played a game called ‘Secret Santa’ on Christmas Eve, where we played Santa and gifted books to each other.
Experimenting enhances (writing) experience:
I shall admit something here. I read two books ‘The Writing of Fiction’ by Edith Wharton, and ‘Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Brown and King. I felt good and some of the learnings have percolated into my writing and editing.
I experimented with my poetry reviews. Here is the link.
I stuck to my template of the poem reviews, which has served me well. I wrote four-poem reviews. The reviews were longer alright, but they became more vivid and versatile.
I broke my cardinal rule of poetry reviews: Never focus on the poet. Focus on the poem. But the poem is the poet, and the poet is the poem (well, at most times). I started ‘poet tributes’ while reviewing only their poem(s). I cover four poets in 2022 and will do a similar number in 2023. ( I still feel that it is an experiment and may not continue as a regular feature if I feel like it.)
Writing is a function of one’s state of mind:
From ecstasy to depression, the state of my mind swung like a pendulum. How could I deal with my writing plans if I was dealing with some business or personal issue?
I found and deployed some coping techniques. I took breaks from writing liberally letting my mind wander and return. Sometimes, it was a long walk, sometimes Netflix, cuddling and personal time with my wife — the breaks were away from my Mac and workstation.
I resorted to Pranayama and meditation and returned to running. They helped me in keeping afloat during those bouts of distress.
The last one was a lasting one. I tried creative representations of my work, enabling me to get back my creative juices. It also helped my social media presence going.
The writing support techniques are something I have tried for the first time this year, and I find them important to keep my state of mind writing-ready.
Life lessons as non-fiction pieces:
There are pieces of stories that appear as little events in our lives. As a writer, I find it hard to place them in my highly structured blog. My place for writing them, which I found extremely rewarding, is Biz Nation 360. It is a wonderful content-sharing community, with open minds and listening years. Here is the link for my non-fiction contributions.
https://www.bizcatalyst360.com/author/ashoksubramanian/
My contribution has slowed down during the last quarter of this year. But going into 2023, I shall look for more regular contributions and participating in community discussions.
My publications in 2022:
Lastly, I did have some success to get some of my manuscripts by print.
Verses of the Universe:
Book link: https://mybook.to/Versesotv
Verses of this Universe — Poetarrati Volume 3’ is a collection of contemporary poems written by Shweta Hitesh Joshi and Ashok Subramanian. 61 poems, compiled under five headings, explore, celebrate and question the human inside — the head and the heart, and outside — the society, humanity, and nature. A unique experiment of ‘Picture poetry’ called the ‘Ekphrasis Journey’ brings out the collaboration between the poet and artists Sridhar, Divya, and Anirudh. The book has been carefully edited by Thailambal Satheesh, an English scholar, teacher, and editor. Most poems are written in the ‘free verse’ style. The contrasting styles and substance of the poets indulge the reader on a journey of myriad emotions, while at the same time, appealing to the heart and the mind with the questions of these times.
The book was originally published in India by Highbrow Scribes Publications. Amazon Kindle and Worldwide publications are by Ponder Publications.
River’s Heaven:
Link: https://mybook.to/riversheaven
‘River’s Heaven: Poems of Self-discovery and Introspection’ is the fourth part of the Poetarrati Series, written and compiled by poet Ashok Subramanian. River’s Heaven traces his journey in the years 2021 and the early part of 2022, which marked the period of COVID, and the loss of his dear ones. The events put him on a path of inward search, and some of the poems reflect the pain and questions he asked himself. As much as it is about his life and times, it also reflects one’s purpose of existence — both physical and metaphysical. The sixty-three poems are presented under five topics that reflect this journey of self-discovery and introspection.
Ponder 2021:
Link: https://mybook.to/ponder2021
Ponder 2021 is a compilation of poetry reviews written by Ashok Subramanian on his medium.com blog. Published as part of the ‘Ponder’ Series, the poetry reviews explore contemporary poetry and bring deeper insights to the poets and readers.
This book presents 13 reviews of 28 poems composed by 20 poets across the world. The reviews present a fine cocktail of imagination and introspection for the connoisseurs of contemporary poetry.
Anthologies:
One of my poems got published in Chennai Poetry Circle’s Efflorescence 2022. A couple of short stories got published in ‘The Vernals’, a short story collection by Highbrowscribespub.
And … that’s a wrap
Since April 2020, this journey as a poet, writer, and reviewer has taken turns and evolved more than I could ever imagine. But as they say, life goes on.
‘I am happy for where I am. I am happy to take those little steps that would form my journey of next year. Someday, I will look back at these writings, and reflect on them with a smile. No regrets, only gratitude.’
I thank my readers, my collaborators and patrons, my friends and family, and finally the Almighty for a great journey and what I look forward to in 2023.
~Ashok Subramanian, Dec. 28, 2022, Chennai, India.
