Blog & Podcast | Shane Roc Sta

Spread the love

Shane’s writing journey

G. Jacinto Shane (Author of the ‘Winsome whispers of a lissome soul’ series)

When I was seventeen, I started writing. It was really strange that I turned out to be a writer because most people who write are avid readers and I’d never read that many fiction or poetry books in my life. I’ve started to read now and I’m loving it. But it started off as a mechanism to get all the load in my heart out (it still is in a way). I’d write what I feel down and whatever yearning or feeling that was bothering me would wash away. Then, I got into my medical college and I’d written around twenty poems then and some of my friends really loved them and some were like “Why is he writing so passionately for?”. To be honest, even I didn’t have the answer to that then. Because people normally gear towards pursuits that would bring them money and reputation. Yes, there are hobbyists. But they would not invest that much effort into elevating their art. I remember a friend ridiculing me saying that instead of wasting time writing poems, if I had spent the time studying, it’d be up to some use for the exams. But to me, when an heartfelt feeling or thought encapsulated me, there was nothing as engrossing about life during the span of feeling and jotting it all down. I regret nothing now. I studied when I felt like it and it has finally all turned out well. I think I have the reason for the kind of passion I have now. Writing has given me a friend without a face who knows me better than I know myself, and when I am heavy with something and I sit down to write, he’d tell me what it is all about and then put me to sleep. A lot of times, it would be like opening a parcel of emotions, and layer by layer they come off and build on with the piece, and I’d sometimes be amused by how much I’d been carrying.

I’d sit down all night to make video adaptations of my poems to put on my YouTube channel, which only the hundred of my subscribers would ever see. I was so passionate right from the beginning. It think it was destiny colouring me up during those all nighters showing me how I belonged with art with those blissful epiphanies.

Afterwards, a few friends asked me to put what I write out properly as books instead of littering them around carelessly. And so I did eventually. It was a magical moment touching my words on paper for the first time in the first book and it motivated me to write more and I received so much encouragement and love during the release from friends and family. My sweet friends even had a secret surprise party for me at the restaurant (BBQ Nation) celebrating my first book release.

I would post few poems on an international facebook poetry community to gauge how far they touch people and when the reviewers pick my poems for the top poems of the week and name me among the best poets of the week, it strengthened my conviction that my words are worth something to others too and the fact that I was able to create an impact on these amazing poets and poetesses delighted me whenever I was filled with self-doubt.

Nearing the end of college, I’d written a few write-ups that welled up in my heart about missing college life and my entire batch feeling the same way resonated with the pieces and some friends mentioned how much they love the writer in me during our Farewell at the college and asked me to never ever stop writing. Many of the criticizers had become rooters by then. It felt amazing that day. I’d receive messages from friends and random people from time to time on how much they enjoy my writings and such comments really fill my heart and motivate me to do more and more and not miss out any interesting muse that comes by.

I wrote two more books in the consecutive years and got to know a bit about the business side of books and it was not as fun as the writing. The editing and formatting were strenuous to do by myself. But it had to be done to fulfill my heart’s desire for my words to go on after me and reach as many people as possible. The first book has two stories which were really loved in the places I shared them. I received high praise calling those stories the best and most intriguing ones that some of the readers that read them had read in a long time, and it got me into prose and invigorated me to write a novel which is a work in progress right now. I can see the boy who whispers these words grow in thoughts and ideas with every passing year and I want to give him as much attention as possible. I respect him so much that at times I’d be laying in bed trying to sleep and it’d be 3 in the morning and a sweet idea would pop up and I’d get up immediately to start writing the train of thoughts and follow through with them down the lane with my flashlights because I’d forget them in the morning. Mysteriously enough, the 3 am thoughts are some of my most creative works. Therefore, I make sure I don’t sleep them off.

Basically my world of writings so far are the feelings and stories of a sensitive soul and hence the book title, ‘Winsome whispers of a lissome soul’. My three part series ‘Winsome whispers of a lissome soul’ have seven years of my writings of over 200 poems, several heart talks and two stories wrapped up in books and I think it is an important era of mine because it was a period of me figuring things out and growing up and falling in love. I’ve always been a sucker for the innocent and pure, immaculate love and many of my romance poems reflect that theme. I feel that people who are young at heart will particularly enjoy these books.

I’d like to tell the people reading this one thing – don’t ever give up on your passion. Your passion will take you up into whole new worlds that you never realized existed and you’ll be celebrated there.