Interview
Paperian Udyan started his creative writing journey with a 3000-word story
Udyan is a lawyer with almost a decade of experience. For him, trying new things in life is a way to discover his true self; he was a part of Toastmasters International and Business Network International (BNI), and served as a President in one of its chapters. He loves playing cricket and video games, and is a big time foodie.
Back in our time in Toastmasters, Shibani and I knew Udyan as a dynamic Distinguished Toastmaster who played various club Executive Committee roles, and also served as an Area Director and a Division Director. It was only in The Folded Paper, that we were introduced to his penchant for writing.
Read a few of his writeups here.
The Folded Paper (TFP): Your first story was about 3000 words. That is the dream for many of us. How did that happen?
Udyan Srivastava (US): During the lockdown, I came across “Write India” contest organized by Times of India. I wrote my first story of about 3000 words for it. Doing that wasn’t easy as I didn’t have much experience in writing. But, my parents and my wife loved it and wanted me to write more. I myself also wanted to continue writing and felt the need to learn more and the requirement of an external support for writing. I really wanted to nourish the passion for writing. Then my wife introduced me to The Folded Paper. So, yes, it all started with those 3000 words.
TFP: And how has it been after the start?
US: When my wife asked me to join TFP, I was initially hesitant to join. Probably because I was scared of judgments and felt that my writing was not good enough to be out in the world. I have always wondered whether I had it in me to be a writer.
Despite the self doubt and inhibitions, I somehow brought myself to join TFP meeting as a guest on 9th May, 2020.
One of the first things I heard was to ‘say yes to the first thoughts’ when writing. So, I wrote for about ten minutes accepting my thoughts and then read the same out loud to others. It was funny and creative, and the Paperians accepted me as part of their community. Throughout the meeting I had great fun, got several opportunities to write, interacted with fellow writers, and learned a lot. I felt like coming back again and I did. Since then I have come a long way having written more than half a dozen stories.
Back then, I feared judgments because of which I would spend a great deal of time thinking whether my idea was good or will people like it? I have realized those thoughts did more wrong than right to me. I wasted a lot of time and scrapped some really good ideas. Now, the fear of accepting my first thoughts and judgments are not caging the writer in me. I accept and record my ideas somewhere and then ponder upon, explore, and write about them without any fear.
TFP: What is your biggest learning so far?
US: I learn many things from the last session, Paperian’s Swipe File, where we share our Writing and Creativity Jam meetings’ takeaways. I have learned that feedback is most important. The session exemplifies it — we not just congratulate each other for a good meeting but also share feedback to improve ourselves constantly. Also important is to give the feedback humbly and implement it gracefully.
On the flip side, we shouldn’t take the feedback to our hearts. There is nothing personal and as it is a subjective area, the scope is vast and not all feedback can lead to a better writing piece. It’s important to remember that everyone’s style of writing is different and unique. We must learn from others but follow our own path based on our goals and the stories we want to tell. Drawing a cricket reference, no batsman needs to play all the balls; you can miss the ball or duck under. Same goes for feedback.
Having said that, I will circle back to my initial point — learning from and improving with others is essential for growth. A community gives one the opportunities to learn from the writing styles of and feedback from others, to broaden one’s horizons, ideas, thoughts, and perspectives. Again a cricket reference — I may think I am the greatest batsman and live inside a bubble. Only when I would step outside to play with others will I be able to evaluate how I play.
TFP: That is a cool example. Udyan, any more writing tips you would like to share?
US: Sure.
The best way to become something is to learn about it, implement the learning, and be open to feedback and failure — failure teaches a lot. Few might say we need to write a perfect story, but we need to realize nothing can be perfect; every story will always have something which can be improved. I find this possibility beautiful.
A story about a superhero has been told over several hundred times, but you could still bring your own perspective. We shouldn’t be afraid to experiment.
Also, we should join a community of writers. I realized that joining TFP was the best step I took for my writing and I thank my wife and fellow Paperians. As we all are there with one common goal to write, the community members motivate each other, give constructive feedback, and remove the fear of judgments. We also get to read other members’ writings and give feedback thus expanding our critical understanding of writing. We must be in the thicket of fellow passionate and supportive writers to fuel our passion to be a writer.
TFP: Is writing creatively helping your profession? Yes, then how?
US: I enjoy drafting in law because I like writing. Drafting requires a lot of thought process besides the technical details. Creatively thinking and writing has helped me in structuring my thoughts and accelerating the entire process with continuous practice.
TFP: What is your current relationship with writing now?
US: At present, I would call myself a student of writing who is exploring and experimenting with various styles and genres. I am realizing no one is ever too young or too old to try a new thing in life. I never thought I could be a writer, yet here I am writing a new story almost every week. There is definitely a long road ahead for learning, exploring, and improving. But if I can do it, certainly anyone can.
Also, the relationship is much smoother. Before I would often face writer’s block and lose interest in writing. Now, I can overcome these issues much more easily. Few days back I was waiting for my mother’s call at a cafe. While sitting I was just scrolling through my phone and came across the Word app, like I would have done a hundred times in the past. But this time I thought, “Let me open and start writing something,” and before I knew I had written one paragraph. In the next few days, I just kept adding more and improved it. Within a week, I was able to write a beautiful story.
Every story I complete feels like a dream and every dream fulfilled pushes me to write more. My goal is to write a book pretty soon by following the proper learning curve.
Want to write with such passionate writers in a curious and creative writing community? Join The Folded Paper today, a positive community for anyone interested in writing.
Till we meet the next time, happy writing!
