Embracing the Creative Process
By Bob Abor
2019/05/25
Qi Hao, Beijing
The session begun with gauging the audience understanding on book writing in which the moderator asked if there was anybody among the audience who has written a poet or short stories. Three participants said that they are authors.
What is the initial motivation for you to start the creative process in your careers?
Mr. Sofronis Sofroniou acknowledged that his first novel is something that accumulated in a period of five years when he was studying in New York. “I was in a foreign but things were happening in my country politically and socially. So I wanted to express it to the public, writing was the only way,” he said. His writing had to do with the history of his country in last century and relate it to his experience in New York and the positive comments he received gave him motivation to start writng the second book. It has influenced him to focus on things of global perspective.
Mean while Mr. Mr. Michal Hvorecky is motivated by the desire to go against the stream and do something unique and see the reactions. “I doubt everything; I try to be so skeptical so that I write the best article. One of my publications is coming out soon; I also want to surprise myself,” he said.
Mr. Xu Zechen said that unlike his colleagues from Europe, he became a writer by chance. He wanted to be a lawyer but failed to score the required grade. So he was enrolled in Chinese language department. But realized that he did good to go to that university to learn Chinese language where he met his teacher who was researching on the book of languages. “When I was enrolled in the department of Chinese language I did not know what to do because I wanted to be a lawyer. So I read a lot of novels and I got a novel which solved all my problems and started writing in the summer,” Mrs. Xu recalls. The novel I read was addressing several issues. I have written now for 23 years. I always ask myself why I write. “It is my profession. It helps to create a world different from the real one. It helps me to fulfill and express all ideas and imaginations in my life; I also make some money,” explained Mr. Xu.
Whether the change of the society which influence vision of writing
Mr. Sofronis Sofroniou said that much as he grew up from a tinny country and chanced to live in New York, he learn that it is essential to write something that has a global touch. He says that is reason the main character of his book in from Cyprus but also included things related to love and art to be more global. He noted that he wrote his books in Greek so it can be read by people in Greece and Cyprus yet the contents has a global perspective. H said that in New York he got useful feedback and helped him to position his work globally.
Lastly, he explained that he uses popular names in his books so as to have a global appeal.
Mr. Michal Hvorecky said that in Slovakia where he comes from you can drive in just one hour to three different countries. Thus, he travelled to many European countries like Poland, Ukraine. But he discovered that the more he is abroad, the more he miss his language. And like many countries in Europe are having immigration issues, many people from his country are too leaving. However, he said that he does not want to go abroad. “I really feel home. Although sometimes I write in German, I cannot switch to a new language,” he explained.
Mr. Xu Zechen noted that globalization is something that worries Chinese authors because most of them do not travel abroad. They also do not speak English, a language that is globally used. Nonetheless, he said that China is so different from western countries in many aspects. “In China you travel very long distances to reach a foreign country. There also diverse dialects in the different provinces of China. , so the provinces are like Netherlands, France and other European countries,” he added. Mr. Xu noted that he was lucky to live abroad-New York.
He advised Chinese authors to go global by understanding their environment and reflecting it in their writing. “I came from a small town several years ago to work in Beijing, it is like being abroad. Because where I come from is underdeveloped and Beijing is the well developed and industrialized world,” he explained.
Mr. Xu further observed that with the rise of the internet everyone is in a global village where you have access to any information you want for your work. He mentioned that there was a time when he was in a car driving with his friend talking about globalization. He saw people selling things the traditional way but was surprised that they had embraced internet usage. In this observation, he said that if literature is a reflection of the world, then authors should reflect these changes their stories.
Is sense of belonging important as a human being or as a writer-Ms. Xu An asked?
According to Mr. Sofronis Sofroniou, they have an identity crisis in Cyprus, so his sense is more tuned to what is happening in his country. He acknowledged that he was forced to write in Greek because it is their official language but he is not attached to Greece. I feel more attached inside Cyprus. That is why I write things about my country from a global perspective,” he explained.
How do you get the momentum to continue writing when you reach a boring part-asked Mr. Wu Peng?
Mr. Michal Hvorecky answered that less is more, and advised him not be afraid to cut his story rather to make it longer for no good reason. Basing on his experience, he also advised him to always try to create strong major character; the main story teller who can make the story interesting strong from the beginning to the end and thus, will help him finish the story.