“Any growth requires a temporary loss of security.” ~ Madeline Hunter
Me, The Writer
What was your writing identity prior to the course?
I started writing in a journal since Grade 10, and since then, I have continued to write about my life each week, along with what I observed in the world, such as my stress and high school experiences. I also think about the overwhelming topic of the human condition through the form of poetry.
What is your writing identity now?
I still continue these habits I have established since Grade 10, and through the CWR course and blogging, I have been able to diversify my writing, such as be exposed to non-fiction and short stories.
I would classify myself as an individual who thinks in poetry and by embarking on this journey, I have been able to experiment with the ways of writing poetry, such as full circles, carrying a through-line symbol, and emulating other pieces.
This journey also made me aware of the visual aspect of the piece, such as the images for each post and considering the left, centre, or right alignments.
Reflect on your development as a writer. Angelkarafilli. “Ink and quill.” Angelkarafilli, 9 Feb. 2016, angelkarafilli.tumblr.com/post/138991305816/ink-and-quill.
Genre
As someone who thinks in poetry, I have delved deep into the process, listened to spoken word, found those breadcrumbs in each presentation, and enjoyed the new perspectives I am exposed to.
Regarding non-fiction, it is something that I am interested in, but I realize it takes the most amount of time to research and format. Although this is time-consuming, I know that this is a very rewarding pathway that I may pursue in the future; however, I have no intentions at this time.
Short stories are something I am currently working towards, using my poems as a launch pad for my short stories, such as “My First Hit”. It is cool to see how I can draw out my poems to fill the aspects of character, setting, and plot. It certainly is very fulfilling and has many opportunities to express creativity.
Ideas
People who have read my pieces notice how impacted they feel afterwards, so I consider myself an individual who explores a range of topics that all connect back to the human condition and behaviour.
Such as my interpretation of stress in my piece of “Self-Induced”, where it can relate to many high-school students, “The Blank Canvas”, where it represents the progression of maturity and how individuals in society lose their creativity through the responsibilities of life, and with “Hope From a Wishing Well”, I discuss about the idea of hope and how it becomes unrealistic the more invested we are in our “ideal” world.
Details
Imageryis a key aspect of my writings, and I certainly will continue to incorporate that into my works. I found that imagery is a way to immerse the reader in their own minds and stimulate the aspect of imagination, which immediately creates a hook and connection to the piece and allows them to discover what relates to them.
Something that I am continuing to be aware of is the way I choose words that create a sense of flow between the stanzas, instead of my initial thought of complex words and scientific lingo. I then realized that simplicity works better than complicated words.
Structure
Structure is something that I am continuing to work on in my pieces, such as how I explore a topic, whether it be a full circle effect, such as in “The Blank Canvas”, beating around the bush with my origami crane emulation, or making a more conscious effort to see how I can incorporate the visual structure of the piece, such as playing with alignments.
Voice and Style
In regards to voice and style, I will continue to develop my unique writer’s voice as an individual who incorporates science with lyricism, storytelling, and insightful perspectives.
GUMPS
In terms of GUMPS, I believe that I am doing well with grammar, however, I would like to continue to improve my use of semicolons and colons to allow more flexibility and freedom in my sentence structures.
I also am working on being more conscious of my sentence structures, such as recognizing the appropriate situations for simple, compound, and compound-complex structures for stylistic and structural choices.
How would you explain your voice? What is stylistic of you? From: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/533817362057286443/
As mentioned above, my voice can be described as scientific, objective, realistic, but also lyrical and leaves the reader thinking about the topic explored. By writing phrases that create more meaning beneath the surface, such as indirect descriptors that describes an aspect of the piece, it creates a sense of fulfillment when readers take a closer look at what I have inexplicitly described.
As a mentor writer, what advice would you give to future creative writers?
Recognize that there will be ebbs and flows with Creative Writing. Some days, you may have the most wonderful creative juices and the passion and energy to crank out an entire short story, while other days, you might fall flat and only have a few sentences to the prompt.
I’ve experienced that feeling, so understand that it’s okay and creativity can’t be forced. I have seen that it works the best when you are reading, seeing, or hearing something that connects to you subconsciously, which leads to the journey of finding that connection.
Future goals and plans regarding writing?
My future goals would certainly be to continue to write about the world around me and continue to post on the blog with the pieces that I have written.
