In the wild, the canary is a master of its environment. A bird known for its impressive voice, it sings a cheerful, melodious tune to establish its territory and find love.
And despite its talents, the canary is also a creature of great vulnerability. In the mines of yesteryear, these tweeps were sophisticated instruments of detection. In the presence of dangerous gases, this lil’ bird would gasp or faint, alerting miners of danger and giving them time to evacuate.
The canary in the coalmine is our collective metaphor for the sensitive harbinger of doom. The canary is a finely tuned instrument who flies freely above and moonlights below. And this canary, dear writer, is you.
As a writer, you are finely tuned to the wavelength of narrative. Other folks may find ways to quietly sweep complexity under the rug, but a writer is forced to confront it, because you dwell in parts unknown.
A story out of sequence, the slightly off-kilter use of terminology, even a questionable treatment of ellipsis… all of these are methane in the canary’s lungs.
When an experience is challenging to describe in words, when a sensible narrative flow eludes you, there is probably something foul in the air. Something that words alone can’t fix.
As a canary myself, I know you know this feeling. The tightness in your breath, the sense of disbelief, the faint quease of nausea. It all makes you want to fly away. But instead, I urge you to sing, bird, sing.
With the power of narrative thinking comes great responsibility. If you see something wrong, you must say something.
Reveal the complexity to the people you work with, show them how it harms the person on the other side. Your partners may resist at first, because untangling narrative complexity is your zone of genius, not theirs. But you must persist. You don’t need to have answers; questions are your ally.
The writer has a vantage point that others may not have, and that is the vantage of story. To help your partners see what you see, you gotta sing.
Wow, this is incredible. I don't think I need to describe it here as you said it so eloquently. What you wrote feels like a very special post for writers and for everyone who wants to make supportive communities.
I was born a writer, but my number one reason for writing is to hopefully help inspire positive change and help others by sharing new perspectives and opening hearts and minds via stories. You can probably see, then, why your message resonates with me. You shared it in such a beautiful way. Thank you for sharing!
This is a great piece! I especially like this: "You don’t need to have answers; questions are your ally."
I once worked on a team that was resistant, and eventually outright hostile, to narrative sensibility. Sometimes, the canary has to fly away!