Articles

Writing as a Crutch

By Mark Antony Rossi

How valid is the outcome of writing used merely as a form of therapy? A strange question asked yet you often wonder when every jack of all trades is jotting down stories behind your back. And you thought you were the only writer around. Has the technology of digital publishing ruined the entire craft of writing? Some say it’s too easy and therefore lacks merit. Some say the art of editing is as extinct as dinosaurs. Some say you are a dinosaur if you cannot acknowledge its legitimate existence.

What of the young whom cling to poetry as a lifeline in a stormy sea of hormones? Is the product of this struggle a compromised mess of heaven and hell? And how do we view the visitors to our craft? The recently retired whom never had time to write before but now wants to write a novel but still has no time to listen to advice. Or the busy housewife exhausted from kids and work but finds the time to write romance novels heavy on the steam. The purists among us harp on structure, grammar and even perceived commitment to the arts. Yet none of this is worthy of conversation. The goal of writing is to make a connection.

The new criticism shouted across the Internet pages focuses on writers whom consciously use writing as a means of therapy. This practice for those not paying attention is a known quantity with proven results. Should we heed the purists whom deem anyone not writing about Michelangelo’s secret journals a fraud? Maybe we can frown on those not pursuing the missing case of Einstein’s brain.

While it is permitted, sadly, in a free society to mock a rape victim or combat veteran from seeking solace in writing this narrow viewpoint is not condoned by fair minded people of conscience. We should honor those who come in humility to share their pain in the world of verse. And if you must snicker that this practice amounts to using writing as a crutch please keep in mind—-there is likely a bottle, a pipe, a church or a faithful companion you lean on in the same manner. Use writing to the fullest and be glad.

About the Author: Mark Antony Rossi is a poet, playwright and author of the bioethics volume “Dark Tech” now available from Amazon. His most recent plays have been produced in Liverpool and New York.

http://ethical-stranger.webnode.com/ 

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