WOTM: An Interview with @uwupoet

31 OCTOBER 2021

The Writer of the Month Project is a revised segment of The Plain Poets that looks into what makes a writer, be it their craft or ideas. At the end of every month, we will be conducting an interview with a selected writer, and we’ll be diving into their muses, their writing history and much more.

Behind the current facade of sunset and sunrise-tainted posts is Lu (she/her), the owner of @uwupoet. Based in Southern Europe, you might know her for her sweetheart username but I assure you, her writing is anything but wholesome. We’ll be getting into that a little but quick disclaimer: as she has chosen not to share further details for privacy reasons, we have kept the writer’s introduction short.

As a writer, she’s not fixated on any consistent or specific writing process. Writing doesn’t really start until the idea has been fully formed in her head. But she also does admit that if she has an overall view of the concept, she’ll quickly write down a line or two. Much of her pieces require a lot of time to develop so she always prefers to sit down and fully invest in her work. “Most of my pieces at first don’t have endings or beginnings,” Lu elaborates, “It’s just lines on top of lines and they’re never completed in one sitting. Once I feel like I have enough on the page (or screen, really, I only write on my phone/digitally).”

Cue the editing process which comes next. This is possibly the most interesting part of the interview. Lines are put together and arranged accordingly. As in, she intuitively figures out the order until she’s wholly sure the rough draft is complete. After that, she just writes without interruption. In addition, she also reveals that she doesn’t want any form of distraction possible — she prefers not to eat or drink, or listen to music. A clear head means a clear piece; anything that requires her to stop can interrupt her workflow and potentially, affect her quality of work.

(source)

[ AUTHOR'S NOTE: The posts to the examples are linked according to their reference. Do check them out! ]

In the meantime, one of her favourite concepts to write about is Greek mythology. For example, this post references Icarus while this other post references Atlas. Another theme reflected in her work is the symbols of ghosts and haunted houses too! Although she identifies as an atheist, she finds herself incorporating religion into her work such as this one. Topics-wise, she loves to explore heartbreak and her aromantic sexuaity. She says that aromanticism in writing, let alone the poetry community, isn't represented enough, and she wants to encourage more people to write about it.

If you were to ask, her personal experiences and background may affect her writing. Almost everything she writes has a personal correlation to her. “Sometimes I don't even realize an experience had a big effect on me until I write and realize it affected me more deeply than I thought.” she said. Lu goes to say that her country’s history of unfair war, genocides and collective trauma have also influenced her writing. As a result of her parents experiencing the events firsthand, the writer finds herself going back to writing about war and ancestry often. In fact, it’s what she mostly wrote about before being an Instagram writer. But she chooses not to publish them on her account.

As a writer, she adores the community to death. Since her entry into the writers and poets’ community on Instagram, she’s made so many special friends in the process. Every day, she’s fallen in love with how being a writer means you get to express the hardest of emotions and squeeze them into a fruitful outlet many can relate to. Lu says that being a writer gives her a voice, and it has made communication so much easier.

Writing has been a form of escapism for her. She sees herself always writing in her head, narrating what’s happening in her life and figuring out the perfect way to phrase the dialogues after eavesdropping on conversations. On nights when she can’t sleep, she’ll start writing a book in her head even though she doesn’t really have plans to publish one right now.

(source)

At the same time, writing is her form of grounding herself back to earth. Due to trauma, she’s felt that she’s been floating through much of her life, but writing brings her down to earth. She’s eternally grateful to have her words be read and transformed and loved by many.

But Lu does admit that writing takes a lot of vulnerability, and it’s something she doesn't think she'll be able to get used to. Spilling your rawest feelings onto paper as a private, quiet person is something she hates as a writer, especially when writing is a true window to one’s soul.

Lu definitely has a lot of advice to those who both want to start writing and creating on Instagram. For those who are considering either, she wants you to write and write and write (non-stop basically). Reading for inspiration and experimenting with styles are a great way to find your ideal forms, but then again, don’t compare yourself to others. Feeling inferior to other writers is often unhealthy and comes with no benefits. To her, art and poetry are often subjective, and to compensate for your writing inexperience, just try everything you like and want to do. You can pick up a consistent style as you go.

If she were to meet the person (her younger self) that was starting out, she would tell her this:

“Your writing style will change and that is okay! You’re going to spend so much time worrying about why it keeps changing, and you’re going to feel like a fraud on most days. But it’s okay. You’re growing and coming into your own. As you’re growing, you’re going to change so much and it will affect your writing style. It’s okay to feel that you don’t have style at first, but you’ll find it eventually. It’s called evolving, 12-year old Lu.”

Writing as a future is definitely on the horizon, but not professionally. Like I said, the writer doesn’t really see herself as an author, so writing will always be a hobby. While she doesn’t have a clear picture on what she wants to pursue yet, she knows she won’t stop writing anytime soon. She feels like if she weren’t a writer, she’d never say anything at all, which is a “lonely way to get through life”. Writing will always be a soft spot for her, and it’ll be something she cherishes doing.

Lu then mentions the milestones she met as a writer. To begin with, she’s won two state-wide essay competitions, which still feels like a dream to think about. It was not really a writing goal, but it still felt great regardless. Then her writing account hitting 1k followers was another milestone she was proud of. It felt exhilarating to hit the mark, and she never thought that it was a very big moment to recognise. But in general, she tries not to set milestones and expectations for herself, because it causes her to write less and worry more about the path to even meet a goal. This is the second thing she doesn’t like about being a writer.

Speaking of writing accounts, she does have more advice to those who want to start one. She tells you, don’t hesitate to interact with many writing accounts you like. Reply to their stories, answer their polls, and just like and comment! In the writing community, support is often mutual so stick to that and you’ll gain a friend in return. Hashtags and replying to comments are also a great way to get started, and just so you know, it’s your account. Nobody can dictate what you do with it, and all you have to do is have fun.

(source)

Although it can get a little tough sometimes, don’t beat yourself up over your insights. Low likes, saves and comments don’t mean anything — they never do. What matters is that you love the pieces you’re putting out there.

Here at The Plain Poets, we aim to identify these unique poets and writers and to put them on a pedestal via a platform everyone can support them. You may check out our page here.