By Mahadhir bin Monihuldin
œMy task, which I am trying to achieve is, by the power of the written word, to make you hear, to make you feel – it is, before all, to make you see.
– Joseph Conrad
Creative writing is many things. Creative writing, the endeavor to express ones self through the written word, the writer’s task to, ˜before all, make you see as uttered by Joseph Conrad, is something thats usually associated with tedious clichés like how its so beautiful, or so inspirational, or just insert whatever positive epithet you can think of and thats what it is.
However, something about creative writing you might not hear very often is this. Creative writing, before all, is risky.
Its risky for a myriad of reasons. Its risky because the poor, naive writer who has just tried to make himself vulnerable to his readers half-expecting his literary piece to be somewhat valued by them is suddenly confronted with judgement, disregard, indifference, and possibly contempt. It’s risky because with every appreciation you receive for your work comes its fair share of criticism. What Joseph Conrad left out when he uttered the quote above was that to make your readers see with the power of words would be completely meaningless if your readers are blind to the power of your words.
Yes, creative writing is a risky ordeal. But to those who still carry on writing regardless. You, my friend, are a resilient individual.
You are resilient for continuing your strive to connect to your readers despite failing to do so in certain instances. You are resilient because you understand that with sharing bits and pieces of yourself comes with its own gamble, yet you still share nonetheless. You are resilient because you remain steadfast to write with heart and soul simply for the genuine love of writing.
For the IIUM writers of Clairvoyance Magazine, you are resilient.
What is Clairvoyance Magazine you might ask? Its Chief Editor, Nur Hafiza binti Abu Bakar says, “Clairvoyance is the first literary magazine based in IIUM. It refers to a French term ˜clear vision, named so to emphasise that through writings, readers can see many things in a clearer perspective. In this context, we believe that through writings, people can see beyond their naked eyes.”
The objective of the magazine is to serve as a platform for IIUM students with a passion in writing to have their works published for others to read.
It comprises of students original creative writings in the form of both poetry and short stories.
According to Hafiza, the inception of Clairvoyance, was initiated by the Secretariat of English Language and Literature (ELITS) in 2014 and up to this point they’ve successfully published three editions.
“The first edition made its first appearance in November 2014 during BENL Writers Festival (BWF). The magazine is sold annually during the BENL Writers Festival,” says Hafiza.
As for the purpose which Clairvoyance attempts to fulfill, this is what Hafiza has to say about it.
“Clairvoyance strives to attract more talented students in order to have their works published. This magazine helps to promote students creativity and functions as a channel to showcase their literary works. Since it is IIUMs first literary magazine, it plays a vital medium for students to benefit and grab the opportunity to get their works officially published in the magazine.”
Last of all, for those who are somewhat allured by the idea of this magazine, either as a writer or a reader, we ask Hafiza: What is the beauty of Clairvoyance magazine?
Hafiza shares, “The beauty of Clairvoyance is that it is in the form of free writing. Writings promote imagination, therefore in Clairvoyance, we encourage students to expand their creativity through words. We do not exclusively set any theme for the works because we want students to express themselves freely. They get to write about almost anything and that allows them to be imaginative in different sense.”
If you are interested in sharing your literary works, do submit your entries to: clairvoyanceiium@gmail.com. The guidelines for the submission can be read in the pictures below. The closing date will be on 8 October 2017.
For more information, feel free to contact Ara at 0148374526, or visit their Twitter page @clairvoyanceiiu for further inquiries.***
