Reflections: Ep 12

We recently got to sit down with Gianna Russo and hear about her prolific art career and what she’s been working on as the Inaugural Wordsmith for the city of Tampa.

Gianna started writing very young. She was folding and making her own books by the age of five. She learned the rhythm and rhyme of language by listening to nursery rhymes.

Gianna taught herself how to write and when she got to college she met the first person in her life to identify as a poet. This mutual love of the craft lead to meeting other poets. A community was formed and this group met twice a month for twelve years. 

There is a lot to be said about the writing community and how writers find other writers who are on similar paths to encourage them on their journey. 

There is something special about writing for yourself, journaling or documenting your own thoughts, feelings, emotions and ideas, but art is also meant to be shared.

When we find communities of people who encourage us, challenge us, and interact with our art, our art gets better. We find the words and are encouraged to keep going.

Community is a gift to our writing and our writing is a gift to our community.

Listening to people’s poetry allows us to walk a minute in their shoes. It gives us empathy and understanding for situations similar and different to our own. There is nothing like realizing you are not alone, that you are not the only person to experience something or feel a certain way. 

Gianna applied for law school after graduating from college but realized she was dreading the idea of it. She didn’t want to become a lawyer, she wanted to write. She enrolled in trial English classes instead and realized she loved teaching. She is now in her 42nd year of teaching others how to write. 

We make our paths in this world. Even if some things are set out before us, we make decisions that change our trajectory every day. We decide to pick up the pen, to write, to commit to things and to say no to other things.

“Be brave enough to change course when you realize you want to do something or not do something.”

Life can get really busy and if we want to write, then we must make space for the writing. This might not mean you write every day. This might mean you only write once a week, but if something is important to you, challenge yourself to implement it into your life. 

Gianna says come up with an easy project for yourself. Take small steps and small goals.

“Make it too small to fail.”

Set a timer for 20 minutes. Write for those 20 and then see if you want to continue. Most of the time we do, we just needed to get into the swing of things. If you don’t want to continue, that’s okay. You’ve made a small step towards a goal. We just need to sit down and write. Make space for it in your life. 

“You have incredible stuff to offer. You have something worth sharing. Find your confidence.”

Perseverance is key. You will encounter rejection as an artist. It took Gianna 15 years to get her first book published. You will doubt yourself, but find the courage and confidence to keep going. 

Keep writing. And don’t forget, if you need a community you have one here!