I found it very amusing how Anne Lamott said that her students are initially excited to start writing but by the second class, the joy has gone away. All because the formula to good writing is telling the truth. I on the other hand felt like I had a eureka moment and wondered why I had not incorporated that formula into my own writing. I suppose the students wanted the secret formula for how they can get their grandiose mystical and fantastical stories to sound good. I know that is my problem and it makes it hard for me to write because all my stories are jumbled up in my brain, entangled and struggling to come out. Writing a story with the truth will untangle the knots and let them flow.
Lamott’s idea is super helpful when she said to start with your childhood memories and create a story from it. I tried to do something similar this past summer, but unfortunately, I never finished the project because my focus was elsewhere.
The way she talks about how her students want to get published and do not consider their growth and are asking the wrong questions makes me sad. These students are eager to be published, and I am here, eager to start writing. I feel as if my writing is inadequate, which is why I tend to avoid writing. Numerous stories and ideas are in my head but none come out for fear of judgement and failure. The few times I shared my work with others, I always got great feedback, and I felt good that they liked my stories… if only I could get to like them.
Her words fill me with hope and determination. I will get my stories written and stomp on my insecurities. Everyone has a story to tell and just being able to get one of mine on paper or writing would be so amazing.
Journal 1
I think that concrete things I appreciate are how the author describes what it is like to write and the difference between just getting things down on the page issues on starting. What they see a lot from students when they can’t write and what works for them. Like writing down stories from when you were a kid and going through what? Why did I do that? Asking questions while you write down memories. Writing down names of teachers from all of your elementary school grades. Seeing what can trigger memories. She uses an example of a date in a restaurant, and then says that memories come up from there. Taking the clothes people around you wear and writing down thoughts about them. Writing down people in your life, different tastes and what they like and don’t like. I think that what sticks with me most about this is the message that you are learning and not just writing. You are learning to write, to craft something that is the way people will look at the ocean. You give them a perspective that you the writer makes from also sometimes putting yourself in other peoples pants. I also think that not everything you write down will be used or you will like. Part of the process she really pushes is that write what you don’t like so you know what you like when you slap it down on the page. That really resonates with me. Mainly because lately I’ve been writing things that I don’t really like. But I like the parts of the pieces that I like. So I get invested and change it up after getting invested on the writing.
Journal #1
If I could take away only one thing from this chapter it would be this: let the writing be written. Don’t impose your will onto the page, as if you are leaving a note demanding attention and action. Allow yourself to stumble upon something beautiful. Whether a character, a thought or an image, let yourself be led there by the story that is trying to be told. Lamott speaks at one point about writing three terrible pages before arriving at a 4th where some potential lies. This is a feeling I know so well. When you look at your writing and see so much that is nothing but dust, needing to be swept off the page, with small pockets of moss growing between the gray sand. These pockets are where the story is. But the dust is not useless. Certainly it cannot stay, but you need it in order to find the pieces of your puzzle. Lamott says, “… and you don’t care about those first three pages; those you will throw out, those you needed to write to get to that fourth page…” She adds that this fourth page was not what you had in mind at the start, and yet it feels somehow like you ended up where you always intended to be. What Lamott is describing reminds me of fishing: you cast and cast without feeling so much as a nibble until finally, hours later, you feel an unmistakable tug and suddenly things are happening so quickly. I want to stumble into a beautiful story, to grasp at the threads of it and follow that truth where it needs to go. That’s what I want to do. I want to tell the truth about something and maybe find a truth about myself.
My mother has always told me, “Don’t get it right, just get it written” so when Anne Lamott said, “Don’t worry about doing it well…” that resonated with me. Sometimes we just need to get words onto the page and then we can begin the recursive process. I also believe that in writing or in art you need to have a dedicated time to work and practice, so when Lamott talked about this I took note of it. Last semester I read something similar for an art class that described creating as something we must practice to improve; that we must sit down and work, even if only for ten minutes a day, to be able to hone our skills, whether they are communication through text or our skills as an artist.
Another element of the reading that stood out to me was when Lamott said “…good writing is about telling the truth.” I paused on this quote in particular because even when you are writing science fiction or fantasy the quote still applies. Good writing exemplifies the human condition in a way that brings the reader into the space of the characters in question. It has to speak to human truths. Though the setting may be different from our day to day lives, being able to convey the truth of our own feelings and our interpretations of the world around us is a core skill for one who intends to step into the headspace of a creative writer.
Lastly, Lamott speaks a lot about the anxieties a writer faces. I thought this was interesting because I’m not an anxious writer. Should I be worried about this? If I’m not tortured with self doubt am I thinking enough about my process?
I have come to appreciate the way writers talk about their writing processes. I find it influential when they openly discuss the tribulations of writing and how difficult it can be to start. Beginning a piece is often the thing I struggle with the most out of the whole process, so hearing Lamott reinforce the difficulties I face while offering solutions is beneficial. Lamott mentioned how one can take their frustration, anxieties, and other inner ‘noise’ and mold them into the work. I thought this idea could be helpful for me, as I am frequently distracted by different needs. What resonates with me is the idea that people want to learn more about people. The thought that we need to understand ourselves and each other is fascinating. I have noticed when I read a particularly good essay or book, it depicts some aspect of the human experience I can find myself in. Authors who do not censor their lives or stray from the truth of existence often create the most enjoyable and worthwhile pieces. Lamott described this as telling the truth in writing, which reminds me of my previous writing classes that focused on specificity in experiences. When someone truthfully conveys their life events, it becomes more real. I am interested in figuring out how to take my experience in life and shape that into a fictional world.
After reading pp 3-15 of Bird By Bird I feel inspired to start writing. When Lamott wrote “good writing is about telling the truth” it stuck with me in a way because most of the books I read are fiction and so that makes me want to write fiction but I think if I took Lamott’s advice it would make my writing better because it actually happened. She also talks about writing about childhood so I made a note of that because I never thought my childhood would be something people would want to read but making it a story I believe will make it something good. Doing this would make my writing flow more easily than trying to come up with a story. Something I appreciated thoroughly while reading was the way she talks about how writing is a way to get your voice heard. In her quotes “We have so much we want to say and figure out.” and “finally their voices will be heard” this sticks with me because I always write when I have something to say so I doubt I will ever stop writing because I always have something to say.
Bird By Bird seems like the type of book they should have required throughout the English department in high school. As an English major myself, I find it particularly interesting how someone’s own opinion about literature could leave such an impact on their readers. There were many concrete aspects of this chapter that interested me, which starts with a quote. This quote reads, “I don’t even know where to start” (Lamott, p. 4). This is often what most students say when they are assigned an essay to write. It is when the world seems to be doomed and some may even choose to drop out of the class. It is important to note that an essay has to begin with words. If a writer is able to write down a few words or short phrases, their brains will be able to piece the puzzle together to create a story, even if it is a short one. Lamott talks a lot about this, and how these notes are for your eyes only. These words could make absolutely no sense, but to you, they have deeper meaning. Trying to think too analytically about writing is often when writers experience writers block. This is caused by thinking too much about sentence structure or word choice, which makes it hard to start small. Lamott also talks about how voices of judgement and anxiety can often take over, creating yet another block. The way she describes how her students feel resonates with me because I am that student. I am the one that looks at the final draft before a single word is even written. I am the one who tries to make my rough draft into a final copy the same day I start the assignment. If I appreciate and notice how Lamott’s description of writing pertains to me, I will be able to develop not only as a writer, but as a reader as well.
I generally have a very difficult time reading books assigned for class. Even if they aren’t the typical drawling textbook, being told to read fills me with an apathy for my favorite pastime. However, there have been a few exceptions to that. I’m hoping this book is one of them. The introduction, explaining the author’s past, motivations, and experiences held my attention for the most part. I was happy to find out I did, in fact, find her funny, and was entertained by the sarcastic tone she held. Despite this, I also noticed the very real message she held in this introduction. There were parts of it, where she’d mention the loss of her father, or the suicides of his friends, that had me taking her seriously. In addition, the way she talked about her father felt almost familiar. While the conditions and relationship were different than my own, she described him in a loving, idolizing way. Something in the first few pages of this book that really stuck out to me, however, was her description of herself as a child. I resonated deeply with it. Much like her, I was a very anxious, insecure kid. I was also smart. While I tended to excel in more than just writing, writing became a big part of my preadolescence that has stuck with me even after I stopped. Writing was a way for me to take all the difficult feelings I had and put them on a page. I’m excited to continue this book. I haven’t felt that way about assigned books in quite a while.
Well uh……this was definitely an interesting read, not going to lie. Right off the bat, the very first page stood out to me with the amount of metaphors and anomalies that are written down. For example, it mentions the idea of a dog chewing a chew toy constantly, as well as asthmatic deaths. However, on this first page, the thing that jumped out to me the most and resonated with me was the mention of mental illnesses creep up on you, comparing them to weird relatives. As someone who struggles with a lot of mental illnesses, for example I have ADHD, Autism. Depression, Social Anxiety and constant Self-Doubt, I can just envision myself in constant scenarios, beyond writing, where I have had so many mental breakdowns to the point where I felt like I couldn’t do anything right. It is such a hard thing to cope with and just reading stuff like that makes me remember how hard it is to do something that seems deceptively simple. That is why I think the term “Bird by Bird, Buddy”, despite being such a simple phrase, is incredibly helpful. If you are ever feeling so much anxiety or mental breakdowns when writing something or doing anything at all, just take it Bird by Bird, or as I call, one shot at a time. Take it step by step and think it out properly, don’t just wing it. I also like the idea of taking a quote from a comedy movie, that being “Stripes” which is an army spoof film starring Bill Murray and Harold Ramis and connects to a real-life strategy. “Lighten up, Francis” is a commonly used phrase to tell somebody to take a chill pill and relax, and I think everyone needs to be told this phrase once in a while. Finally, the one thing that sticks with me from the reading is the fact that the author says that the most important thing about writing a story is to first off write really bad first drafts because that is how you learn from your mistakes and get better. Practice makes perfect, as they say. I also really appreciate this part of the text because it confirms to me, who is super insecure about my skills, that it is ok to make mistakes once in a while because everyone was once bad at something before they became good at it, so that entire section is super nice to read and reaffirms that my way of thought has been correct.
I was really appreciative of the transparency in this reading. Often, writers have something deep to say about writer’s block and how to push through it, or inspiration and how to find it, but Lamott does a really great job telling it how it is. She offers simple advice, which is to just sit down and write about anything that has ever happened to you, in as much detail as possible, just to get the gears turning. In her very first sentence, she says “good writing is about telling the truth,” which seems obvious but, in my opinion, seems to be something that many successful writers believe they may be above saying. She doesn’t believe that there is a secret formula or a special trick to good writing. The acknowledgement of how difficult it can be to just plainly write is appreciated. She also stresses that the most important part of writing is never publishing, and that publishing can be a long and difficult process that is often discouraging. The Phillip Lopate poem that she shares on pages 10-11 is a really great expression of the doubt and stress that is almost inherent as a writer.
One concrete thing I took from the reading was that an author needs to pay attention to detail, which will push readers to notice and pay attention to the overall story. Something that really resonated with me was that good writing is about telling the truth. Connecting to your audience is so important, and raw emotion, honesty, and transparency are some of the best ways to do that. Overall, I feel like the message in this chapter is essentially to “just do it.” Start writing, even if you think it’s bad, and eventually, you’ll realize how you want to shape the story.
I had so much to say about this chapter, I wrote down in my notebook a lot but instead I’m going to go on a tangent about media consumption that I felt was, while briefly explored, not talked about enough throughout the 15 pages we read. Something that I’ve commented a lot on in previous classes is that if you want to write any kind of book, you have to be able to consume. What I mean by that, is that you don’t just have to consume books, you have to consume all kinds of literature in general. I think that these 15 pages are a really good show of that; that if you want to be able to write any sort of literature whether it be poetry, novels, short stories, whatever you want to do- you also have to consume that sort of literature. It doesn’t have to be a lot even, but what I’m getting at is how it’s not just literature you should be consuming. I’ll use myself as an example, my lack in consumption for books is made up for by my over consumption in the arts and my critiques on TV shows/movies/music. I’m not the kind of person who can sit down and read, and I know that about myself. While consuming books through college is enough for me because I make up for it in other areas of consumption, such as writing whenever I can, what you need to do to facilitate your writing is you need to keep consuming. You can’t do it just by skimming either, you need a true appreciation for it enough to want to write about it. Go to a museum, go to your local bookstore, go to the UNE Library, write a critique on a TV Show or movie, it gives you content to write about that you’ll be passionate about. And being passionate about the subject you’re writing about will bleed into the stuff you personally end up writing about through those experiences that you’re consuming. Media is an experience of its own. Consuming media is an experience of its own. To consume media is to consume an experience and I believe that it’s so important to write about whatever you experience, whether it be journaling, even. Now there are also unhealthy forms of consumption, like social media. Consuming social media and then writing about it will give you nothing because it’s face-value. But if you read books through college, and then expand on them in an essay through stuff you’re personally passionate about, I assure you the writing will come naturally.
Edward Iannuzzi-Sucich
WRT 212
9/1/2024
Journal #1
“Getting Started” details a variety of insights into creative writing, some of which were relatable, and some of which were surprising. The most relatable aspect of this chapter was the idea of writing as a time-consuming process, especially when the writing is a reflection rather than based on a concrete prompt. A few years ago, I tried at the end of each day to write a brief reflection piece on the most exciting thing that happened that day, and it was a struggle. Either it took a long time to think of something out of the ordinary that happened, or I ended up spending way more time than I had planned describing the event. Writing for fun is something that is very hard to do under time constraints, but that makes it even more valuable when I find the time to do it. I had found the last few pages of the chapter on the effects of writing to be interesting as well. There, the author mentions how writing makes us notice the details and “wake up” to the outside world. I notice how good novels manage to do this, occasionally even to a fault, but as an amateur writer, this aspect has not revealed itself in my writing. This is likely because I focus on the action and sometimes the thoughts of characters, while not putting in the extra effort to describe the background of a particular setting. Another, more peculiar, aspect of the chapter was how often the author mentioned publishing as being a fixation of her students. To me, this sounds counterintuitive. Given the multitude of careers outside of writing, I would have thought that students who choose to focus on writing would value the process of writing over getting their works published. Perhaps this fixation is a result of students seeking out concrete goals that give them direction in their writing and help them to quantify the value of their written works. In pursuit of these goals, they then lose sight of the passion that drove them to pursue writing in the first place. In writing creatively for myself rather than someone else, such as a publishing company, I find that I am able to appreciate the process of writing more.
13 thoughts on “JOURNAL # 1”
I found it very amusing how Anne Lamott said that her students are initially excited to start writing but by the second class, the joy has gone away. All because the formula to good writing is telling the truth. I on the other hand felt like I had a eureka moment and wondered why I had not incorporated that formula into my own writing. I suppose the students wanted the secret formula for how they can get their grandiose mystical and fantastical stories to sound good. I know that is my problem and it makes it hard for me to write because all my stories are jumbled up in my brain, entangled and struggling to come out. Writing a story with the truth will untangle the knots and let them flow.
Lamott’s idea is super helpful when she said to start with your childhood memories and create a story from it. I tried to do something similar this past summer, but unfortunately, I never finished the project because my focus was elsewhere.
The way she talks about how her students want to get published and do not consider their growth and are asking the wrong questions makes me sad. These students are eager to be published, and I am here, eager to start writing. I feel as if my writing is inadequate, which is why I tend to avoid writing. Numerous stories and ideas are in my head but none come out for fear of judgement and failure. The few times I shared my work with others, I always got great feedback, and I felt good that they liked my stories… if only I could get to like them.
Her words fill me with hope and determination. I will get my stories written and stomp on my insecurities. Everyone has a story to tell and just being able to get one of mine on paper or writing would be so amazing.
Journal 1
I think that concrete things I appreciate are how the author describes what it is like to write and the difference between just getting things down on the page issues on starting. What they see a lot from students when they can’t write and what works for them. Like writing down stories from when you were a kid and going through what? Why did I do that? Asking questions while you write down memories. Writing down names of teachers from all of your elementary school grades. Seeing what can trigger memories. She uses an example of a date in a restaurant, and then says that memories come up from there. Taking the clothes people around you wear and writing down thoughts about them. Writing down people in your life, different tastes and what they like and don’t like. I think that what sticks with me most about this is the message that you are learning and not just writing. You are learning to write, to craft something that is the way people will look at the ocean. You give them a perspective that you the writer makes from also sometimes putting yourself in other peoples pants. I also think that not everything you write down will be used or you will like. Part of the process she really pushes is that write what you don’t like so you know what you like when you slap it down on the page. That really resonates with me. Mainly because lately I’ve been writing things that I don’t really like. But I like the parts of the pieces that I like. So I get invested and change it up after getting invested on the writing.
Journal #1
If I could take away only one thing from this chapter it would be this: let the writing be written. Don’t impose your will onto the page, as if you are leaving a note demanding attention and action. Allow yourself to stumble upon something beautiful. Whether a character, a thought or an image, let yourself be led there by the story that is trying to be told. Lamott speaks at one point about writing three terrible pages before arriving at a 4th where some potential lies. This is a feeling I know so well. When you look at your writing and see so much that is nothing but dust, needing to be swept off the page, with small pockets of moss growing between the gray sand. These pockets are where the story is. But the dust is not useless. Certainly it cannot stay, but you need it in order to find the pieces of your puzzle. Lamott says, “… and you don’t care about those first three pages; those you will throw out, those you needed to write to get to that fourth page…” She adds that this fourth page was not what you had in mind at the start, and yet it feels somehow like you ended up where you always intended to be. What Lamott is describing reminds me of fishing: you cast and cast without feeling so much as a nibble until finally, hours later, you feel an unmistakable tug and suddenly things are happening so quickly. I want to stumble into a beautiful story, to grasp at the threads of it and follow that truth where it needs to go. That’s what I want to do. I want to tell the truth about something and maybe find a truth about myself.
Journal #1
My mother has always told me, “Don’t get it right, just get it written” so when Anne Lamott said, “Don’t worry about doing it well…” that resonated with me. Sometimes we just need to get words onto the page and then we can begin the recursive process. I also believe that in writing or in art you need to have a dedicated time to work and practice, so when Lamott talked about this I took note of it. Last semester I read something similar for an art class that described creating as something we must practice to improve; that we must sit down and work, even if only for ten minutes a day, to be able to hone our skills, whether they are communication through text or our skills as an artist.
Another element of the reading that stood out to me was when Lamott said “…good writing is about telling the truth.” I paused on this quote in particular because even when you are writing science fiction or fantasy the quote still applies. Good writing exemplifies the human condition in a way that brings the reader into the space of the characters in question. It has to speak to human truths. Though the setting may be different from our day to day lives, being able to convey the truth of our own feelings and our interpretations of the world around us is a core skill for one who intends to step into the headspace of a creative writer.
Lastly, Lamott speaks a lot about the anxieties a writer faces. I thought this was interesting because I’m not an anxious writer. Should I be worried about this? If I’m not tortured with self doubt am I thinking enough about my process?
I have come to appreciate the way writers talk about their writing processes. I find it influential when they openly discuss the tribulations of writing and how difficult it can be to start. Beginning a piece is often the thing I struggle with the most out of the whole process, so hearing Lamott reinforce the difficulties I face while offering solutions is beneficial. Lamott mentioned how one can take their frustration, anxieties, and other inner ‘noise’ and mold them into the work. I thought this idea could be helpful for me, as I am frequently distracted by different needs. What resonates with me is the idea that people want to learn more about people. The thought that we need to understand ourselves and each other is fascinating. I have noticed when I read a particularly good essay or book, it depicts some aspect of the human experience I can find myself in. Authors who do not censor their lives or stray from the truth of existence often create the most enjoyable and worthwhile pieces. Lamott described this as telling the truth in writing, which reminds me of my previous writing classes that focused on specificity in experiences. When someone truthfully conveys their life events, it becomes more real. I am interested in figuring out how to take my experience in life and shape that into a fictional world.
After reading pp 3-15 of Bird By Bird I feel inspired to start writing. When Lamott wrote “good writing is about telling the truth” it stuck with me in a way because most of the books I read are fiction and so that makes me want to write fiction but I think if I took Lamott’s advice it would make my writing better because it actually happened. She also talks about writing about childhood so I made a note of that because I never thought my childhood would be something people would want to read but making it a story I believe will make it something good. Doing this would make my writing flow more easily than trying to come up with a story. Something I appreciated thoroughly while reading was the way she talks about how writing is a way to get your voice heard. In her quotes “We have so much we want to say and figure out.” and “finally their voices will be heard” this sticks with me because I always write when I have something to say so I doubt I will ever stop writing because I always have something to say.
Bird By Bird seems like the type of book they should have required throughout the English department in high school. As an English major myself, I find it particularly interesting how someone’s own opinion about literature could leave such an impact on their readers. There were many concrete aspects of this chapter that interested me, which starts with a quote. This quote reads, “I don’t even know where to start” (Lamott, p. 4). This is often what most students say when they are assigned an essay to write. It is when the world seems to be doomed and some may even choose to drop out of the class. It is important to note that an essay has to begin with words. If a writer is able to write down a few words or short phrases, their brains will be able to piece the puzzle together to create a story, even if it is a short one. Lamott talks a lot about this, and how these notes are for your eyes only. These words could make absolutely no sense, but to you, they have deeper meaning. Trying to think too analytically about writing is often when writers experience writers block. This is caused by thinking too much about sentence structure or word choice, which makes it hard to start small. Lamott also talks about how voices of judgement and anxiety can often take over, creating yet another block. The way she describes how her students feel resonates with me because I am that student. I am the one that looks at the final draft before a single word is even written. I am the one who tries to make my rough draft into a final copy the same day I start the assignment. If I appreciate and notice how Lamott’s description of writing pertains to me, I will be able to develop not only as a writer, but as a reader as well.
I generally have a very difficult time reading books assigned for class. Even if they aren’t the typical drawling textbook, being told to read fills me with an apathy for my favorite pastime. However, there have been a few exceptions to that. I’m hoping this book is one of them. The introduction, explaining the author’s past, motivations, and experiences held my attention for the most part. I was happy to find out I did, in fact, find her funny, and was entertained by the sarcastic tone she held. Despite this, I also noticed the very real message she held in this introduction. There were parts of it, where she’d mention the loss of her father, or the suicides of his friends, that had me taking her seriously. In addition, the way she talked about her father felt almost familiar. While the conditions and relationship were different than my own, she described him in a loving, idolizing way. Something in the first few pages of this book that really stuck out to me, however, was her description of herself as a child. I resonated deeply with it. Much like her, I was a very anxious, insecure kid. I was also smart. While I tended to excel in more than just writing, writing became a big part of my preadolescence that has stuck with me even after I stopped. Writing was a way for me to take all the difficult feelings I had and put them on a page. I’m excited to continue this book. I haven’t felt that way about assigned books in quite a while.
Well uh……this was definitely an interesting read, not going to lie. Right off the bat, the very first page stood out to me with the amount of metaphors and anomalies that are written down. For example, it mentions the idea of a dog chewing a chew toy constantly, as well as asthmatic deaths. However, on this first page, the thing that jumped out to me the most and resonated with me was the mention of mental illnesses creep up on you, comparing them to weird relatives. As someone who struggles with a lot of mental illnesses, for example I have ADHD, Autism. Depression, Social Anxiety and constant Self-Doubt, I can just envision myself in constant scenarios, beyond writing, where I have had so many mental breakdowns to the point where I felt like I couldn’t do anything right. It is such a hard thing to cope with and just reading stuff like that makes me remember how hard it is to do something that seems deceptively simple. That is why I think the term “Bird by Bird, Buddy”, despite being such a simple phrase, is incredibly helpful. If you are ever feeling so much anxiety or mental breakdowns when writing something or doing anything at all, just take it Bird by Bird, or as I call, one shot at a time. Take it step by step and think it out properly, don’t just wing it. I also like the idea of taking a quote from a comedy movie, that being “Stripes” which is an army spoof film starring Bill Murray and Harold Ramis and connects to a real-life strategy. “Lighten up, Francis” is a commonly used phrase to tell somebody to take a chill pill and relax, and I think everyone needs to be told this phrase once in a while. Finally, the one thing that sticks with me from the reading is the fact that the author says that the most important thing about writing a story is to first off write really bad first drafts because that is how you learn from your mistakes and get better. Practice makes perfect, as they say. I also really appreciate this part of the text because it confirms to me, who is super insecure about my skills, that it is ok to make mistakes once in a while because everyone was once bad at something before they became good at it, so that entire section is super nice to read and reaffirms that my way of thought has been correct.
I was really appreciative of the transparency in this reading. Often, writers have something deep to say about writer’s block and how to push through it, or inspiration and how to find it, but Lamott does a really great job telling it how it is. She offers simple advice, which is to just sit down and write about anything that has ever happened to you, in as much detail as possible, just to get the gears turning. In her very first sentence, she says “good writing is about telling the truth,” which seems obvious but, in my opinion, seems to be something that many successful writers believe they may be above saying. She doesn’t believe that there is a secret formula or a special trick to good writing. The acknowledgement of how difficult it can be to just plainly write is appreciated. She also stresses that the most important part of writing is never publishing, and that publishing can be a long and difficult process that is often discouraging. The Phillip Lopate poem that she shares on pages 10-11 is a really great expression of the doubt and stress that is almost inherent as a writer.
One concrete thing I took from the reading was that an author needs to pay attention to detail, which will push readers to notice and pay attention to the overall story. Something that really resonated with me was that good writing is about telling the truth. Connecting to your audience is so important, and raw emotion, honesty, and transparency are some of the best ways to do that. Overall, I feel like the message in this chapter is essentially to “just do it.” Start writing, even if you think it’s bad, and eventually, you’ll realize how you want to shape the story.
I had so much to say about this chapter, I wrote down in my notebook a lot but instead I’m going to go on a tangent about media consumption that I felt was, while briefly explored, not talked about enough throughout the 15 pages we read. Something that I’ve commented a lot on in previous classes is that if you want to write any kind of book, you have to be able to consume. What I mean by that, is that you don’t just have to consume books, you have to consume all kinds of literature in general. I think that these 15 pages are a really good show of that; that if you want to be able to write any sort of literature whether it be poetry, novels, short stories, whatever you want to do- you also have to consume that sort of literature. It doesn’t have to be a lot even, but what I’m getting at is how it’s not just literature you should be consuming. I’ll use myself as an example, my lack in consumption for books is made up for by my over consumption in the arts and my critiques on TV shows/movies/music. I’m not the kind of person who can sit down and read, and I know that about myself. While consuming books through college is enough for me because I make up for it in other areas of consumption, such as writing whenever I can, what you need to do to facilitate your writing is you need to keep consuming. You can’t do it just by skimming either, you need a true appreciation for it enough to want to write about it. Go to a museum, go to your local bookstore, go to the UNE Library, write a critique on a TV Show or movie, it gives you content to write about that you’ll be passionate about. And being passionate about the subject you’re writing about will bleed into the stuff you personally end up writing about through those experiences that you’re consuming. Media is an experience of its own. Consuming media is an experience of its own. To consume media is to consume an experience and I believe that it’s so important to write about whatever you experience, whether it be journaling, even. Now there are also unhealthy forms of consumption, like social media. Consuming social media and then writing about it will give you nothing because it’s face-value. But if you read books through college, and then expand on them in an essay through stuff you’re personally passionate about, I assure you the writing will come naturally.
Edward Iannuzzi-Sucich
WRT 212
9/1/2024
Journal #1
“Getting Started” details a variety of insights into creative writing, some of which were relatable, and some of which were surprising. The most relatable aspect of this chapter was the idea of writing as a time-consuming process, especially when the writing is a reflection rather than based on a concrete prompt. A few years ago, I tried at the end of each day to write a brief reflection piece on the most exciting thing that happened that day, and it was a struggle. Either it took a long time to think of something out of the ordinary that happened, or I ended up spending way more time than I had planned describing the event. Writing for fun is something that is very hard to do under time constraints, but that makes it even more valuable when I find the time to do it. I had found the last few pages of the chapter on the effects of writing to be interesting as well. There, the author mentions how writing makes us notice the details and “wake up” to the outside world. I notice how good novels manage to do this, occasionally even to a fault, but as an amateur writer, this aspect has not revealed itself in my writing. This is likely because I focus on the action and sometimes the thoughts of characters, while not putting in the extra effort to describe the background of a particular setting. Another, more peculiar, aspect of the chapter was how often the author mentioned publishing as being a fixation of her students. To me, this sounds counterintuitive. Given the multitude of careers outside of writing, I would have thought that students who choose to focus on writing would value the process of writing over getting their works published. Perhaps this fixation is a result of students seeking out concrete goals that give them direction in their writing and help them to quantify the value of their written works. In pursuit of these goals, they then lose sight of the passion that drove them to pursue writing in the first place. In writing creatively for myself rather than someone else, such as a publishing company, I find that I am able to appreciate the process of writing more.