Post by Mia Choudhury

The anxiety of not being able to communicate with your audience, as a writer, is a scary thought but Eley Williams tackles this with the grace of a fairy and the bravery of a knight. Being the winner of the James Tait Black Memorial prize and the Republic of Consciousness prize would make you think she has it all figured out by even someone as extraordinary as Eley Williams needs to tell herself to ‘keep going.’ We discussed the role of how doubt and anxiety play into the hands of fiction writing and how we can overcome them.

Eley was very open to sharing her tips and struggles for writing short stories, telling us that creating deadlines for yourself can help improve your skill as a professional writer. She mentioned entering writing competitions, not with the intent to win, but rather to challenge herself with a deadline to meet.

Other topics like the importance of research were mentioned and whether that was an inspiration to her writing or rather a necessity that forwards the idea. It’s both. Personally, I struggle to incorporate research into my writing for fear of being incorrect and how time consuming it can be. However, Eley Williams has opened up a door that combines research being the inspiration behind a project and also a necessity. Her writing deeply reflects her extensive research behind language and creates a new dynamic in her writing that I haven’t seen anywhere else before.

Attrib. and other stories by Eley Williams

I was very struck by the visual power of her writing. Every word that poured out of her mouth flooded me with images and swept me away, making it very easy to connect with her writing. She read the short stories ‘The Alphabet’ and ‘Platform’ from her book Attrib. and other stories. ‘Platform’ had an immense amount of energy to it that was grounded by the action of the protagonist’s finger pushing against a man’s forehead (you’ll have to read it to find out). I’d recommend Attrib. and other stories to writers looking for a breath of fresh air and inspiration for their own writing.

Eley said, “A project in the mind is more daunting than anything else on paper.” I couldn’t agree with her more. If I am taking anything away from this talk, it is to ‘keep going’ and write every idea that you think of. Writing can be scary and daunting and you may feel useless at times but every great writer you have ever read has mostly likely felt that way too. Write that draft again and again and again until you are satisfied. Like Eley said, ‘keep going.’

Mia Choudhury,  19 October 2018