David Herring
Zoom is such a great way of bringing writers together and I was delighted when Heard Word recently invited me to take part.
It’s fun to see how a whole ritual has developed around engaging with each other via this online portal: mikes muted, emojis at the ready, chat column primed and, as each face pops up on screen, waves and smiles, then, little adjustments to get the backdrops right, move the wineglass just offscreen or, in my case, get my wall poster of Samuel Beckett into place to oversee proceedings.
(Would the great Irishman have approved? I’m going to say yes: Zoom is the perfect forum for writers to ‘Fail better’!)
Heard Word has all the ingredients for Success too. Its format allows for a gradual speeding up of performance and response:
20 minutes Q&A with featured writer – yours truly, this time round
10 minutes of featured writer reading an original work
10 minutes of feedback to featured writer
3 presenting writers with 20 minute slots
3 lightning round 5 minute slots
Brad Gyori is a really empathetic host, bringing his forensic ear to bear on each person’s contribution, offering positive critiques piece by piece as well as suggesting constructive tweaks. The other online participants were all brilliant at chipping in too – tapping in their chat responses at a furious rate – and it was wonderful to read their insightful thoughts and responses.
A great mix of writing was showcased: poetry, memoir, fantasy novels… even a literally toe-curling cartoon (ask Abbey about that one!) In some cases, I was landed midstream in a story that had been shared chapter by chapter at preceding meetings. (A very Dickensian mode of story-telling!) In others, I was smacked between the eyes by a raw and powerful poem.
Zoom has another feature that is great for get-togethers like this – the ability to share screens and put your work up for everyone to follow along to. And, oh, ahum, if I was too un-tech-savvy to know how to do this, I was consoled by Sam, over my shoulder, musing,
‘I can’t go on. I’ll go on.’