Everyday Canvas

Courage: In Life and Writing

“Either life entails courage or it ceases to be life,” said E. M.Forster. Does a nasty happening spur me to love life more or does it make me feel like giving up?

In the face of what happened in Orlando, early Sunday morning, I feel sad and sickened, but in no way shall I give up on life or on the goodness of the people in general. If anything, such a horrible event brings out the best in everyone, well, at least in every person who is a decent human being.

The same kind of courage can be applied to writing. No matter how much we wish to write well, we can’t afford to compare our writing to others and feel like less of a writer. Our writing, at its core and through its nature, surfaces from who we are as people. For that reason alone, no matter how good or bad we write, we won’t be like any other brilliant author, or for that fact, any other writer because being unique is being one of a kind.

To become a good writer or an exceptional one, however, we need to find that uniqueness within ourselves. This we can achieve by mining what is there already inside of us. This, too, takes the same kind of courage E. M. Forster is talking about, which is some painful and tiresome work. It takes courage putting our most personal and strongest beliefs on a page and open it up to others’ criticism, misunderstanding, and if we are lucky, appreciation.

In other words, we have to put our hearts on the line in a delicate yet insightful way. That is, we have to be ourselves, which is the most courageous we can be.