Dr Ratan Bhattacharjee's article in Boloji on Facebook Creativity and what he calls virtual vanity struck as quite true and hard hitting. Writing is a perilous art, you can get somewhere in it after years of hard work and persistence. It is grit and tenacity which are some of the hall marks of successful writing.
There are enough posers. Dr Bhattacharjee is right, the FB page is used to tag, and when your'e tagged it could be unwelcome. You are somewhat compelled to comment, and you make a courteous one! That is why I do not tag others, if they find it worth liking and commenting, let them do so! But at the same time your Notes page which is a blog enables you to experiment and at least put up the first draft.
I agree with Dr Bhattacharjee, you need to read, to write. Reading ignites the urge to write. But I would not agree that all writing is trashy, even on Facebook. Some people share their best work, some are clever they don't share bad stuff. If someone is sharing he or she must have the guts to share good, middling or indifferent stuff. Some of course take the safest way out, they announce the publication and give the link!
But Facebook is e-learning in the best sense, as you can learn from good writing, and network with academics, professionals, writers,researchers and students. There can be good and lasting connections, journals and magazines are announced, and one can be opportunistic enough to write for them. There is also the means to help younger people, comment on their work and help them. So all does not go in vain.
That informal e-teaching! I personally have gained a lot from a social networking sites as Facebook. True there are indifferent writers desperately seeking the proverbial pat on the back, which must have eluded them for years. But let us be a little more empathetic, everyone has aspirations. Can we deny them that right?
Yes, one thing is certainly intriguing. Everyone seems to be writing fiction in English today, in our country. Dr Bhattacharjee has certainly a point. One hears of professional editors and brokers facilitating publication. And in the newspaper world there is the phenomenon of Advertorials, that is; paying for writing and publishing. When writing becomes a transaction and you pay to be published, you perish.
