'Writer's' Life

By Amde Sidik

“Ah life can be very inspiring” said one young budding writer, the moment he sees his work appeared in the printed media-in the case of newspapers. Surely feeling inspired for the work. An endorsement by editor or editors. And indication of approval that his work merits for public consumption.

“Life can be very frustrating, full of hopelessness and demeaning” said another, a writer who is not born nor trained writer yet not so young but has big ideal. Because his articles were sometime come out in time, sometime a few weeks later or sometime an editor calls him giving reason why the article cannot be published not himself decides but 'they' to be nice. You know what I mean.

Writer, I mean here is not a person doing writing for livelihood but simply keen and happy to write as hobby if you may say, I call the person simply a writer all the way embattling whether writing would one day becomes his new profession.

It means writing to get work published isn’t that predictable, life as if hinges on editor’s tolerance and mercy.

Again it depends what one is writing.

If one, simply wants to get his work printed in the newspaper this could be different too. But what I mean here is a writer who thinks he has something to tell. He wants to tell the way he wants to tell, something based on his expertise and experience but because in the eyes of the establishments his political thought is incorrect. He is of not the same feathers thus cannot flock together. Bearing in mind in Malaysia, being lefty may be popular at coffee shop or warong mamak but not in five star hotels, so to speak. Very few mainstream media would want to print ideas which do not tally with what PM or Chief Ministers or Menteri Besars’ thought, for the very fact all mainstream media belong to the ruling political parties and their associates. And printer’s printing permit is renewable only yearly. Malaysia’s printers and publishers are nowhere else but in Malaysia. If Malaysia has Murdoch or Maxwell or Time Warner or Viacom perhaps it could be a different story.

But be reminded being lefty it doesn’t mean one is less patriotic or less nationalistic than BN political parties supporters. Some, if not most of brilliant scholars are from this end rather than the other. One thing I am sure in Malaysian though, learning institutions on subject that I am referring to are not found in BN political parties and their associates. Not now.