Blog Assignment #8: Final Workshop Reflection

As this course is coming to an end I am realizing how much I have grown as a creative writer. This class has came with more than a few challenges with each assignment. By overcoming each challenge and using every writing technique required for each piece I received grades no less then an A-. Though there were many challenges the feeling of accomplishment after receiving each paper was great. I feel I can fully take on whatever writing challenge comes my way with hard work. In a way I am thankful for the challenges of this course. They have made me more conscious of my writing and of how the reader will perceive my writing. I have also learned new techniques of writing papers just a few pages in length. I've learned how to incorporate dialogue, strong details with a bit of emotional distance and how to create a sense of place into my writing. These are key components to great writing that I will take with me on my journey in the creative writing field.

The reading I enjoyed most was Frank McCourt’s excerpt from Angela’s Ashes. I find this piece so amazing because it is from the author’s point of view as a young child yet his memory and sense of character and place was so ripe. This piece taught me how important setting is in a memoir. This piece also showed me how I don’t have to write a memoir from a ‘looking back on life’ perspective.

“You never forget your first hallucination. Those that indulge in a little acid here and there know this is true and possibly those who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Nevertheless, hallucinations are no joke. Your mind takes you into a different world where everything is so tactile and intense. Inanimate objects take strange form, familiar people become unfamiliar in every sense except appearance, and noises of all kinds cloud your ears. Strangely enough every hallucination I have experienced was tactile to its fullest capacity, which means all five of my senses were being manipulated by my mind.

               

To avoid any confusion I’ll clear up a few things. First off, I swear, I’m not crazy. Second off, I’ve hallucinated hundreds of times and sometimes I get a kick out of it. And lastly, I am not a fan of acid or LSD. Moving on.”

This is my favorite piece I've written throughout this course. This is an excerpt from my experimental piece titled "I Swear, I'm not Crazy". I had the most fun with this piece because I had more freedom than the rest and I was able to show a more loosened and fun side of me. My other pieces seemed to have a more serious tone and the 'description of a place' piece was a made up romance. In this piece I share a sleep disorder that I struggle with and make is a somewhat fun topic and intriguing topic. I found it enjoyable to kind of trick the reader into thinking I do some weird heavy drug pretty often. 

Blog Assignment #7: Author's Note on Memoir

 "I walked downstairs and there he was dressed in his uniform with his bags packed. Sergeant Esquilin, my father, was being deployed overseas to Iraq. Though I had spent my entire life with him, living in the same home, eating the same dinner and watching the same shows from the same television, this day made me feel like fifteen years was not enough time. I felt angry that he was such a workaholic and even angrier at the fact that I was angry at someone who I could possibly lose forever. Feelings of hopelessness and depression overwhelmed my heart."

Right when I received this memoir assignment the first thing I thought to write about was my father being deployed to Iraq. At first I felt that this was a typical tragedy for a memoir until I sought out reasons on why my story in particular is special. My nephew was born two weeks before his due date on the same day my father was deployed overseas. It was truly a miracle and this was the motivation behind writing about this event in my life. 

I have about three journals with writings on random pages about my fathers departure and my everyday life while he was in Iraq. They are dear to me and they are always hard to read all the way through. For this assignment I figured I would use this event because it shaped so much of who I am today.

I had my doubts writing this piece because it took me almost two weeks to fully connect to it. I edited this paper about five times, over the course of three days, before submitting it and I still felt my words were not enough to express this heart breaking yet miraculous day of my life. I sat in front of my computer with Microsoft Word open for some time changing around words, editing dialogue and trying to find the perfect words. Surprisingly, I got an A on this paper and it was such a good feeling. I think this paper is perfect how it is, for the final portfolio. 

Blog Assignment #6: Planning an Interview for a 'Personal Profile'

I was able to finish my interview the day after this assignment was given to us. At first I was stumped on who to interview that would be interesting enough to write a paper on. That was until I had gotten an unexpected visit from my dear aunt Carmen. She is the most thrifty woman I know that enjoys the smaller things in life. She came over with some pizza and Pepsi and we started to catch up. She told me all about her volunteer work for Sandy victims who just so happened to be some of her closest friends. As she told her story I sat there in silence listening and thinking of how amazing of a story this was and how I had to write about it, whether it was a free write for my journal or writing for a class paper. After she told her story I had asked to conduct an interview with her and she was more than happy to. The interview was emotional and definitely hits the heart. She is a free woman and newly-wed lesbian that enjoys long walks, spending quality time with her loved ones and helping those in need. I think she is the perfect interviewee for this 'Personal Profile' assignment. 

I am thinking of writing this paper based on what it truly means to live free from my aunt’s point of view. I don’t want to just list the interview and write a very journalistic personal profile. Just some thoughts..

Blog Assignment #5: Responding to a Personal Memoir

Abradabra by Sharon Solwitz 

"Dialogue Between Two Halves of a Brain

X: I can't think straight. I want to die. It's like I'm already dead.
Y: Oh shut up. By it's nature, self is in bondage to death. Find a purpose apart from your desire to "feel better".

• This quote shows a strong sense of metaphor in Sharon's writing. This shows the humane thoughts of depression when dealing with loss, from one side of your mind. It then shows the other half rationing as to why it's alright to feel this way. In a broader sense, Sharon is writing with two opposing parts of her brain throughout this entire piece. Half the time she is teaching how to write effectively with distance and disconnect (without getting to personal) and half the time she is drawn into her heavy emotional feelings and reflects her free-associated thoughts into her writing. 

“Oh, Jesse

I want other people to miss him, to be affected, hurt, overwhelmed by the loss of him. Nick cries in his room, Meesouk’s grades have gone down, my friend Sheryl has upped her Zoloft. Good. Good, good, good.”

• This quote is incredibly real. This quote is effective to me as a reader because I find myself sympathizing with Sharon and her story as she shows a very vulnerable and realistic part of herself. This is an example of Sharon's personal feelings seeping into her work.

"Advice

Write what you can't remember"

• This is a clear quote that shows Sharon's attempt to stay on topic with the central theme of this piece which is how to write effectively. This quote is also effective because it is great advice for any non-fiction creative writer.. It is a reminder of how important and useful details can be in any piece. It also shows that details that are hard to remember or to heavy to remember, can be the most effective. 

Sharon Solwitz wins my attention in this piece with her inability to stay on topic in her piece. Her mind is always clouded with thoughts of the beloved child she had lost. I feel a sense of true self whenever she opens up to her overwhelming feelings. I can feel her longing to have her child back throughout the entire piece. Sharon also has a lot of literary pointers in this piece that I have learned from. Her contrast in her personal story and her actual lesson in writing is what kept me reading. I eagerly wanted to know more about each subject as the piece went on.

I think this memoir was published because it is a relate-able piece that shows it is okay to include personal heart wrenching details in one's work. This was a successful read because of the contrast and metaphor throughout the piece that I had mentioned earlier. This is a realistic fight between emotion, clarity and distance all at once. The author does a good job in balancing her emotions with the theme of teaching how to write effectively. Even when she is a little too drawn into her self, the reader is drawn in as well. I think this would be a best-seller because it shows the natural struggle of a person trying to regulate the natural feelings of depression and trying to function as normal as possible while dealing with the loss of a loved one. This piece is universally relate able on many levels and also is a piece with lots to learn from.