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.