Chan (seated second left) with Soswe members after the talk.
MIRI: Writers should gather their thoughts and ideas to write more often instead of letting them lie idle, said Dunstan Chan.
“Writing allows one to explore one’s thoughts and put them into writing, but most people who want to write encounter obstacles even before they start, like fear of making grammatical errors or giving the excuse that they have no clue about what to write about.”
He said this during a meeting-cum-sharing session with members of the Society of English Writers Northern Zone (Soswe) in the city.
Chan, who hails from Kuching, is a columnist, leader, conference organiser, parliamentarian, trainer, instructor, barrister and author.
His recent publication of `Sound and Silence’ was a collection of essays written at different times from different places and on different issues. They transcend time and place and touch on what was common to man, his strength and weaknesses, courage and fears, and attitude and values.
Chan’s one-day trip to Miri recently brought him to meet Soswe’s members at Gymkhana Club Miri (GCM) here, where he shared his experience as a writer.
Soswe’s president Loh Yunn Hua joined the session.
Met by thesundaypost, Loh said to get members interested in writing, they would plan more sessions for writing on a monthly basis.
“We are working on our second book ‘Malaysia Potpourri’ which we hope can inspire more local writers to submit their articles,” Loh said.
She said they will organise a writing trip to India in November this year.
Members should take it as an opportunity to experience the culture of another country to jolt them into writing.
Soswe was formed in 1997 by a group of enthusiastic writers from various professions and registered in 2002.
For more information on Soswe and the writing trip to India, call Soswe secretary Jennie Soh (016-8883679) or email [email protected].