Feature: The Pros(e) Of The Circle
By Jaidyn L Attard
Me (Jaidyn L Attard) & R C Waldun on one of our first street writing meetups, early 2021.
I did a writing degree. Two writing degrees, actually. Four years. Melbourne has plenty of them to choose from. I’m always telling people about my experience at RMIT, or encouraging them to enrol if they’re interested in the writing industry. But I wish I’d taken up every opportunity the writing degrees provided, wish I’d reaped the benefits of a creative environment. Melbourne is such a creative city and I realised it only when I was wiping my hands clean of studying any further.
The people I shared classes with would meet up on Thursdays at the pub or go to writing festivals and spoken word nights together. They would later band together to form writing circles and collectives, release podcasts, start their own magazines or publish a number of cool and quirky zines. I didn’t get to be part of any of that fun, and I only had myself to blame. My attitude toward collaborating with others was, basically: ah no, too scary, I like to do things on my own! Angery reaccs only.
So I missed out.
Walking away from studies, I found myself craving the things I’d been most afraid of while I was at university – such as those open mic nights and writing circles.
I was drawn to these activities with my newfound post-graduation confidence, but it was too late. People had their tribes already. The types of pieces I was writing late into my second degree were very different from the ones I was writing in my first year. I shifted genres, shifted classrooms, shifted styles, and shifted friend groups. And still I didn’t fit in anywhere.
What was I to do?
Left to right: Madeline Mcfarlane, Clarisse E Stevens, Alex Wildes - members of the Degraves Circle.
STARTING A WRITING CIRCLE
Yes. I decided that if I didn’t fit anywhere that I would create my own space to fit in. We would meet in pubs, in libraries, in parks, even have wine nights at our houses.
I asked all of my friends who were interested in writing to join my group. The turnout … wasn’t great. Three people turned up to the first meeting at the Charles Dickens Tavern. A small enough group to manage for a first time session. One of us was an aspiring poet, one a fantasy writer, and another a folk musician who wanted his lyrics looked at by someone other than a musician (and I have no musical talents).
Take a look at the outline for our first session below.
Early meetings of the Degraves Circle.
WRITING GROUP SESSION OUTLINE
Drinks and banter
Pomodoro session - a silent timed writing exercise (15-20 minutes)
Share our writing
Offer feedback (the sandwich method: bread – things that are working in the piece, favourite passages, compliments … filling – highlight areas of improvement, offer potential suggestions if the creator is seeking it, mention weaknesses and ask any questions and queries … bread – close on positive aspects once again).
More drinks, maybe talk about our favourite books, and then depart.
Left to right: me (Jaidyn L Attard), Jay & R C Waldun after releasing our book, There’s a Tale to This City
THERE’S A TALE TO THIS CITY & THE DEGRAVES CIRCLE
I can say that the writing group went well. The only problem was that we couldn’t make it a regular arrangement because our schedules always clashed. I couldn’t understand how people made this stuff work.
Eventually I stumbled across two writers I resonated strongly with – Jay (@jaytheauthor, a street writer from England, living at the time in Melbourne) and R C Waldun (@r.c.waldun, a writer and Youtube artist). We formed our own writing group, inspired by the writing groups of the past such as the Beat Generation and the Bloomsbury Group. I always had Helen Garner and her writing associates in mind, since I had read so much about their tight-knit bonds and admired the energy and immeasurable support amongst writers and poets with shared ideals. Jay, R C Waldun and I shared our writing experiences as a group with social media and eventually compiled our collaborations into a book – There’s a Tale to This City, which is available *here* on amazon.
I was now beginning to realise the power in collaboration. The magic that brews in the middle of the writer’s circle. The trust and skills gained by sharing and workshopping our pieces around a table. No one left the circle without learning a thing or two about something they knew nothing about beforehand. I improved my proofreading skills, R C Waldun embraced a new style of storytelling, and Jay learned all about style sheets, grammar and copyediting. It was a wonderful experience.
I went on to establish another writing circle (still in its blooming phase) – the Degraves Circle. Based here in Melbourne, our group embraces the punk energy of writers taking autonomy into their own hands by (self)publishing their own work and learning about the industry together. You can find our collective on Instagram here (@thedegravescircle)
I even started going to Talking Blue open mic nights at the Blue Bar and stood up in front of a bunch of strangers for Vibe Union’s first headliner. I’ve had anxiety my whole life. I used to shake just reading my poems to one or two people. But by opening myself up to a writing circle, I was simultaneously fighting against my anxiety and my own lack of confidence in myself.
In just a few months, I was performing my poetry for people I didn’t know. An audience. My first real audience. And I have my writing circles to thank for that.
My first spoken word poetry reading as the headliner for Vibe Union’s Talking Blue (Blue Bar, Chapel St, Jan 19, 2022).
JUST DO IT
If you’ve been considering starting or joining a writing group – don’t wait.
Don’t expect someone to approach you with the same idea. Take it into your own hands. Start a revolution in your own little life.
Start small. Start with one person and build your way up. If you’re lucky, you, like me, will gain confidence in your writing by sharing with other writers and poets.
You might stop hesitating when someone asks you to stand up and read one of your poems. You might feel less intimidated by the red pen of an editor.
And you might just have a good time.
