Who's With Me? by Jane Clamp

I had an interesting experience during a piano lesson I was giving recently. The lady concerned is a Christian and we both get more out of our time together than improved playing. This week, she was struggling with a rather beautiful piece by Chopin, nicknamed the Raindrop Prelude. It’s quite a challenge on many levels and, after having a bash at it, she exclaimed, “You’d never know I’d practised this!”

I thought for a while and then responded: “It seems to me like you’re not accessing the piece. You’re playing it but it makes no sense. You’ve lost the music in the “doing.” It’s like you’re trying to open a door but only managing to rattle the handle.”

Her face lit up. I had described how she was feeling and it helped. Together we worked on some of the harder passages until she said, “I’m in!”

When you’re writing, do you sometimes feel you can’t “get in”? That you’re bogged down in grammar and words and spellings and how you’re “supposed” to do it? Factor in the plot, the characters, the genre, the style – never mind the market, the readership, the publisher! There can be a lot of handle-rattling, and not a lot of getting to where you want to be.

Now, here’s the thing. My pupil had me next to her as she played. There was a sense of togetherness, a “two heads are better than one;” especially when one of the heads knew what it was doing! So, how about getting yourself a writing buddy? Someone who, perhaps, is a little further along than you; someone who understands the difficulties and challenges but has experience of overcoming some of them? Someone who, metaphorically, says, “Try turning the handle this way…”

A writing buddy can be more than a door-opener. They can be an explainer of technique, perhaps. Or they can usefully question some of your plot, character and setting choices. “Why is he called Gregory?” “Why is it set in Newton-in-the-Willows?” “Why is it significant that she’s allergic to her cat?” The way you answer could illumine the way forward into the next section.

Your writing buddy is your fiercest critic and your staunchest ally. They will be the ones who tell you something you’ve written is ridiculous, and you will accept it because they mean it kindly and are the only ones who will dare to tell you. Plus, you trust them completely, don’t you?

He or she will be the one who breaks the isolation by a phone call or a message. The one who helps bear the burden of writing as well as shares your joys and successes when they come. The one who cheers you on, and on, and on.

So, who has a writing buddy already?

Who wants to be one?

Who wants to have one?

Who’s with me?

Jane Clamp is ACW Groups' Coordinator. Her first book, Too Soon, is due to be published in August 2018 by SPCK. She is currently completing her second novel.