I believed I signed up
for creative writing one or two days before the second semester started. I
remember my parents being a little uncomfortable with me giving up my only
study hall that I was goinfg to have second semester; a semester that was going
to include AP tests, final exams, final projects, and my last season of
baseball. Not to mention the regular stresses that come with the end of your
high-school career. Despite all of this I truly believe it was one of the
greatest and most important decisions I have ever made…but I should have
dropped astronomy…I really could have used that study hall.
I had been interested in writing since the beginning of
the year. I had started writing in a journal and writing for my own
entertainment. I just wrote…because I wanted to write, I guess it was that
simple. The plan was never to want to become a writer or to even do anything in
writing, now creative writing is my favorite class and I’m seriously
considering majoring in English and college and hopefully being able to make
some type of career out of writing. No promises though, things change and I
have other interests, but whatever happens I do not plan on ever being
completely done with writing. I mean come on there are sooo many cool things
about writing: you can essentially live forever through your words, people
reading what you created and just liking it is an awesome feeling, you get to
play God with whatever it is you’re writing, and I don’t know exactly how to
explain it but I just feel more alive when I can put what I’m thinking on
paper. For example, before I started writing I would always think about things
and find them interesting or inspirational or maybe just happy, but when you
don’t write something down epiphanies are short lived. Being able to write down
what your thinking just feels like a way to hold on to time and remind yourself
that YOU ARE ALIVE. Not merely living, but alive. And even though I realized
these things pre-creative writing, creative writing has helped me express my
thoughts in a much more awesome way. I don’t discredit journals, everything has
it’s place, but creative writing has helped show me that I can turn my raw
ideas or philosophies or whatever and turn them into really cool things! And I
now that sounds like a plebian simple way of describing it but it’s true; I
learned that I can make really awesome stuff.
If I was asked what my strongest piece was I feel like I
would have to say my play. Not simply because it received recognition but also
because I really liked how it came out and I can’t remember ever working harder
on something for school. It was the first time I really realized that I could
take what I was thinking and what was going on in my life and turn it into
something that other people could read, relate to, and enjoy. I actually sent
it to a friend of mine who shared it with his brother, who is a college student
in L.A, and his brother contacted me because he wanted to tell me how great he
thought it was. He even said it brought tears to his eyes; I could not even
believe that when I read it. The entire experience with my play was surreal and
I think my favorite compliment I received was from the people who told me I had
“a voice”. Now I just hope that I can write something even better than my play,
there is always that silly worry that I’ve peaked. But that won’t stop me
anyway, I have to keep writing and maybe next I’ll write a full length play and
it will be even greater. Uhhhh I honestly don’t know what my weakest piece was
probably the one that we were just supposed to use imagery in. I don’t remember
what the assignment was exactly and we never really work shopped so it probably
could have been better.
I don’t really know what my favorite assignment was. If I
could write something that I personally liked for a prompt, than it was an
assignment I enjoyed.
I think one of the most important skills that I gained
from this class was being able to develop the imagery in my writing. I never
used to write poetry. I never even really used imagery that much in my writing.
Now not only do I feel a LOT more confident using imagery in poetry but I also
feel like it’s a skill that can translate into if I ever wanted to write a
short story or a novel or anything really.
I also realllly liked the workshop experience. I never
felt SUPER comfortable sharing my work with other people. The workshoping that
we did in class seriously has helped with that. It also really helped me to
hear what other people liked and what they thought could be better. I am not
going to be able to give this up; I am going to need to continue workshopping
in college and hopefully after. It was truly the most helpful for my writing.
It gave me a better idea of what my strengths were and it really just helped me
refine and polish my work. There is a clear and significant difference between
the things I have and what I haven’t workshopped. I also thnk workshopping was
great for my confidence as a writer. Now I feel a lot more comfortable asking
people to read my writing and showing people my work. There isn’t really a lot
more to be said….workshopping is awesome.
So yeah that’s it, the end of what may be one
of the most important classes I’ll ever take. I loved this class
that is all
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