This page hosts my submissions to Creative Non-fiction Workshop I. The class was really more an exploration of life through writing, as we covered topics from ourselves to love to childhood memories. Some of these submissions are direct experiences told as stories, others are a more ambiguous blending for truth and fiction, for what better tells a tale of ourselves than a blurring of those lines? In lieu of a final portfolio, we were instructed to write about whatever we wanted, however we wanted. And then we had to rework it twice: the first time to expand the word count, and the second time to expand it even more, or focus more on revision.
The first story: Who am I? We were instructed to answer the question “Who am I?” and told to do it however we wanted. I found myself thinking about identity theories and explained myself that way, though I left that assignment regretting not having gone with more of a story.
The second story: What is Love? Similar to the first assignment, we were instructed to answer a question, this time “What is Love?” We were told we could interpret love however we wanted. This story is one of those blurrings between fiction and truth, exaggerating in lieu of truthful pain. It’s written in the minimalist style of Samuel Beckett who we looked at in the first couple weeks of class, and was also inspired by a piece another student had written and shared for the “Who am I?” piece.
The third story: Childhood Memory. This story was a lot of fun to put together. We had to do two halves, each 250 words (approximately). The first half was a childhood memory from a distant point in time, and we had to write from the viewpoint of ourselves then, and only write from what we knew at that point from our lives. The second half was to recall the same memory from what we know now.
The fourth story: Being Gorgeous. Now THIS was FUN. I thoroughly enjoyed playing with this. It was difficult, because I usually don’t afford myself to be embarrassingly silly, but once the words started coming, it was a lot of fun. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much at a first draft. We were told to write whatever we wanted with the exception of using rhyme or meter (those weren’t allowed). It was supposed to be silly, non-nonsensical, and just all around crazy. We were highly encouraged to use onomatopoeia and make up our own words. The exercise is called “Being Gorgeous”.
The fifth story: Short and Long. I was incredibly down-trodden after hearing what we had to do for this assignment. We had been told to read a book a couple weeks before, which of course we all forgot about. For the next week, we had to write our reactions to that book, but sentences had to alternate short and long, short being no longer than seven words. So I actually read the book in a day, and wrote my reaction the next day. It turned out to be an enjoyable assignment to my surprise, our professor had advised us to try and bring the same sense of carelessness from the last assignment to this one.
The last assignment had three rounds. We were told to write whatever we want, however we want. The catch? It couldn’t be about ourselves. So my initial idea was I wanted a descriptive piece about the hometown I left behind in Chicago… Wilmette. I started describing my house throughout a day and the four seasons, interchanging the two as metaphors for each other. The feedback I received was to put more of a human element in there. So I started thinking about signs of life in the house. For the final draft, that became more focused on developing the part of me that got left in Chicago, that still lingers in that house, but trying to describe myself through belongings and items: not me directly. It is arguably the hardest piece I have ever had to revise. I’m still not completely satisfied on the “Final” draft, but I know with more work and concentration, it could become something really good. I hope you enjoy.
1st Draft – Timeless Inevitability
Writing Between the Lines 