9/24/14

Blog #3

In regards to my creative non fiction piece, I have really been trying to put into words what exactly it is that I want to do. I mentioned in my last blog that I would love to tell some of the crazy and unique situation I have experienced in my life. I have a few problems with this: my first one is that I have such trouble putting these things into words. I've been dreading this brainstorming blog a little because, well, I'm not quite sure how to put these stories on paper... but I really want to tell the world about these experiences.

The other issue is that I have this big fear that I won't be able to portray these stories through writing the same way I do when I tell them in person. I know that this will be a challenge. Still, there is this feeling in the back of my head that the readers is saying, "Oh, I guess that's funny... maybe you had to be there." I don't want a "had to be there" story.

So one of the big things I have been trying to use (though I don't know if it would be better to use for the long or short piece) is my struggle to take the GRE. The long story cut VERY short is that I had my wisdom tooth pulled only hours before I took the exam. There was a lot that went on that day, and I think it's kind of funny that someone ends up putting themselves into these situations.

I was thinking that my concept could be to careful overbooking your life.. otherwise things can get crazy! Another concern I have though, is that this will be too much like a story. It will be a challenge to maintain the concept throughout.

Other Ideas I had:

• When I sprained my ankle
• The spider that visits my front porch every September
• My first coaching experience

Although I can have the image built, and I can tell the stories, I am having trouble brainstorming the connection and concept. Oy.

9/17/14

This week we read two readings. One by Bret Lott titled, "Toward a Definition of Creative Nonfiction," and the other by Lee Gutkind titled "The Creative Nonfiction Police." I have to say that when I read these pieces the only thing I could think of was how comical it was to read them one after the other. These two guys are polar opposites!

Lott speaks in a more poetic voice. Although I'm usually more a fan of prose than poetry, I did enjoy this quote from the piece: "What creative nonfiction is will reveal itself to you only at the back end of things, once you have written it." It displays a very deep and passionate approach to this writing genre. This seems like it could be a part of the definition for "creative nonfiction." However, Lott leaves one tactic out that we spoke about in class, and I just can't let go: truth. The vibe I received from his piece was writers feel the truth, or it's about your truth.

Gutkind's piece proved a much different approach. Coming from a home that was rich in ethics and morals, I appreciated Gutkind's definition more than his polar opposite. The four pieces that he mentioned made me think that these could be the four parts of his definition.

• "Strive for the truth"
• "Recognize the important distinction between recollected conversation and fabricated dialogue"
• "Don't round corners..."
• "Allow them [characters] to defend themselves- or at least read what you've written about them."

I think the only thing Gutkind possibly left out was the description for the journey of creativity. However, this may have been ironically (yet cleverly) placed in his piece; which is creative nonfiction. Touche. 

I think what mentioned from both pieces would be my definition of "creative nonfiction." As far as digital publishing is concerned, I imagine our definition of "truth" will vary. Because documents are accessible on the internet (and the internet is everywhere), it makes publications easier to find. The more readers you have, the more likely one of them would be someone the writer wrote about. This is another reason why I enjoyed Gutkind's fourth part of his "checklist" (see fourth bullet point).

Writing Ideas:

Alright, so here's the thing: Every time I think about what I should write, I can't help but think of these crazy situations I always end up in. Whenever I explain them to people, they look at me like I have ten heads. I've even had one of my closest friends tell me that I need to keep a journal of these events because "these things don't happen to normal people." (A side note: she has also witnessed some of the craziness.) I thought about some of these stories, but at the same time I just don't know where to start. I wish I was in a room with maybe 12 of me, and just bounced around with all of these ideas that exist from my brain... crazy, I know!

4017: Creative Nonfiction 9/10/14

Blog #1

There were quite a few aspects of the four creative nonfiction stories I read that stuck out to me as "important." One example that all of the stories have in common is that they were all told in a narrative form. I enjoy readings in this specific form because sometimes the way authors can paint pictures with their writing it seems as though they are sitting next to me telling and acting out the story. Complimenting the narrative aspect, all four of these readings told their stories in the first person narrative. I now understand why writing nonfiction in first person is important; it helped me fully understand the story without confusion.

Features of these stories that differed to me were style of writing. For example, "Out There" and "Some Things About That Day" seemed to be talking about what actually happened. However, "I Think I'm Musing My Mind" and "A Portrait of My Body" seemed to focus more on the internal thought of the narrator.

Another feature that differed from reading to reading were the usage of names. In "A Portrait of My Body," the narrator mentions the name of a woman he was with. Countering that in "Some Things About That Day" and "Out There" neither of the narrators mentions their husband's names.

Lastly, the biggest difference I noticed between short verses long forms was the way the narrator presented the information. The two readings that helped me come to this conclusion were "A Portrait of My Body" and "Some Things About That Day." "Some Things About That Day" seemed to be an extremely blunt reading. Its length consisted of a little over a page. This does not leave much time for detail. The narrator addressed the point almost immediately. "A Portrait of My Body," however, consisted of 7-8 pages. This left the narrator with much more time to go into detailed information.