SIN interviewed Ava Murray from Writer’s Society for this week’s Society Spotlight.
When was Writers Soc founded?
I think Writers Soc was founded in 2015 or so. It was a very different scene than it is now. It was smaller scale which is usually the case for many new societies.
How many students are signed up for it?
This year alone, we had about 100 new sign ups. In terms of active followers, it’s between 20 and 30. I know that the pandemic made it so difficult to fully immerse yourself in social events like society meetings. Last year had a low turnout and I was worried it would be the same this year. I received the most wonderful shock I’ve had being part of a society when we got 40 people sitting in the room on our first day. And my god, have they made all the work worth it. So diverse in backgrounds, thoughts and writing styles. It makes everything chaotic in the best possible way.
Who is Writers Soc for?
Anyone who writes anything- which is most people. It’s doesn’t even technically need to be written down, if you have any way to express a story, a perspective, the doors are open to you. People may imagine our sessions to be intense affairs where we hunch in hushed silence, slaving over our “magnum opus”. That personally sounds like my creative nightmare. Everyone has a a story and it’s our goal to let people express that through storytelling, poetry and any other written or aural media you can think of.
What does a regular Writers Soc meeting look like?
Picture a bunch of tables, surrounded by a bunch of chairs. We meet up at least once a week and each session has a focus-whether it be music prompts, world building, character development, bite sized poetry. All genres of work fit the criteria though we do tend to focus on fictional writing. We provide prompts that are open enough to give you creative freedom- to make it as ridiculous or as sincere as you wish. A lot of our activities have a group aspect- societies are an environment that can help you make great connections, but individual pursuit is welcome too. Ultimately, everyone is a great writer- you just need a place to let it out.
What do you hope for the society’s future?
It was a concern as we returned to college that the society would crumble but I am forever grateful it didn’t. I wouldn’t have had the privilege of knowing the people I know now. In terms of what’s next, a new college year is on the horizon and that means new committee members will be stepping up to the plate. There were some things we never got a chance to tackle this year. My hope is that next year, the society will be adventurous. Writing is not just huddling over a notebook on your own. Every piece of fiction ever written is inspired by what is lived, and the collective experience of every writer out there is spectacularly imaginative.
How we write could and should reflect that.
Are you excited about the upcoming publication?
Excited doesn’t even begin to describe it. There is only so much one can do in a two hour session. The annual publication provides a means to delve deeper into your own writing capabilities. The theme this year was “voyage” and I was gobsmacked at the creativity- discussing not only physical displacement but emotional and temporal journeys too. Pre-orders are available this weekend and I would encourage anyone looking to support local creatives to give it a chance.
