Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
I’d transcribed the woman’s words — an author popular on Canada’s west coast — and stared at my writing on the page.
My writing.
That fact seemed to sap the passage of its value. It was a paragraph I’d found enthralling enough to carry me to the story’s end, but reprinted in my familiar pencil, I couldn’t see what had struck me so.
In behaving as though the words were my own, I thought I’d invoke some rare shade of genius that would make the copy superior to the original.
As it was, I fed it to the hearth.
About the Creator
Jennifer A. G.
🇨🇦 Canadian Writer, Painter & Embroidery Artist
♾️ Métis Nation
🎓 University of Victoria Alumna
📝 Publications: The Malahat Review, Freefall Magazine, Geist, Best Canadian Poetry 2026



Comments (2)
Ha, this says a LOT. I've felt similarly, though in different circumstances. Reading a bit of inspirational writing, rewriting it by hand, it doesn't hit the same. Or, reading something AMAZING once, then going back to it later, and it feels mundane or flat. Sometimes it seems that words have wills of their own...
This is a very thoughtful micro! Nicely done ❤️❤️