On Creativity and Creative Writing:
A Talk with accomplished writer, Ms. Neeta Singh

Nishtha Singhal

“When you write, you create.”

These inspiring words echoed in the minds of students of Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi as they left the room where Ms. Neeta Singh had just concluded her workshop on ‘Creativity and Creative Writing’ on January 31, 2006.

Ms. Neeta Singh, herself an alumnus of the English Department of LSR is a prolific writer who doesn’t believe in subjecting her creativity to the forces of the commercial market. She is currently involved in the structuring of the Education Policy of Bhutan. This vivacious and cheerful lady returned to her alma mater to help future writers fine-tune their thought process and writing skills.

According to her, creativity is a human trait that isn’t celebrated enough. “There should be a Nobel Prize for creativity”, she said, beaming ear to ear. Creativity is an inherent part of the human psyche, but not all of us heed it sufficiently. Ms. Neeta believes that it manifests itself in our day-to-day lives in many ways.

She said, “A simple example would be… how creatively a student can tackle her teacher’s question on why the homework was done shabbily. How creatively can you make excuses? How creative are you as a liar?”

Taking World Aids Day being celebrated every year on December 01as another example, she explained that this creative idea has immensely contributed to the cause of prevention of the deadly disease.

Keeping in mind her audience, who are at the threshold of their careers, she exclaimed, “Stylize a profession for your self…that’s creativity!”

Moving on to Creative Writing, Ms. Neeta spoke extensively on a writer’s thought process and its importance in good writing.

“To begin with,” she said, “self-esteem is the driving force for Creative Writing.” She harped heavily on the vitality of the ‘self’, saying, “Let your words flow from your inner self. Don’t let any parameters, standards or societal conventions determine how you write or think. Believe in your ideas.”

She philosophically and rightly stated, “The way to nurture yourself is to question yourself about everything. Introspect. Ask questions. Question the status quo. Dare to disturb the universe. Don’t be passive.”

She added, “The essential i’s in writing are imagination, innovation, inventiveness, intuition and individuality- the one who approaches every subject with an open mind and is fired with a passion to write, writes well.”

Commenting on the good quality of any piece of writing, Ms. Neeta stated that ‘economy of words’, though difficult to achieve, is an important end. “Apart from that, one’s writing should be coherent, precise and stimulating.”

One has often heard that no amount of reading can ever be a waste of time. Ms. Neeta Singh reinforced this by saying, “To be a good writer, one must be a good reader.”

To end on a positive note, she said, “Let not functional success become the benchmark of your Creative Writing. Failure and rejection as writers should not lead you to doubt your creativity. Don’t be hard on yourself. Most importantly, always preserve what you write. No writing is worth discarding.”