Sunday, September 25, 2011

Learning from my past

Ink stained pages of my journal stare back at me. Who I am, who I was, thoughts and emotions almost forgotten but captured in words of my past. Journal entries and song lyrics, unrevised and raw as the emotion behind them. Free of scrutiny and hidden away in journals which rarely showed their innards to anyone but me. Little did I know, I was mapping my history as a writer. I was leaving footprints in the sand, unveiling my personal waltz through life, not as easily identifiable as "the grape vine" jig we learned in gym class.  It reminded me of what used to make me passionate about writing. Passion that has been somewhat hardened by letter grades and the roller coaster of confidence that I am on with my writing. Going back to my roots, going back to the fearlessness of my youth, and going back to having fun with writing is how I intend to find my inner self and my voice.

The above paragraph was a free write about my thoughts after looking through an old journal of mine full of poems and songs lyrics, even beginnings to short stories I never finished. Through composing my writing memory I realized certain themes in my life, but reading my old journal entries and poetry helped me remember certain themes in my writing. After taking time off from school, I have really struggled this semester with reimmersing myself in a fluid writing style, not just line by line chronological accounts of facts with no emotion and lacking content. From looking into my past as a writer, I am eager to reinvent my future as a writer. How? By remembering what inspires me to write and the forms of writing which I thoroughly enjoyed when I was younger. Writing poetry and song lyrics really helped my creative ideas flow, and I used to write poetry before beginning papers to play around with ways I could use my own voice to make my paper more interesting. I would write freely on my own time to unclutter all of my thoughts so I could make clear what I was trying to say when I had to write for a grade or for others to read. I also loved using metaphors and similes to make my papers more interesting, bridging the gaps in my writing, and creating more imagery to tie up loose ends in what I was trying to say. I had forgotten all of this and I am thankful for the reminder my journal has provided.

How does this apply to teaching writing? I see now the importance of looking back at what has shaped you as a writer. Whether it be digging out old papers you wrote for class, old journal entries, or just writing about memories you have of writing like we did in class; I think it is crucial to look at the past when shaping your future as a writer. This way you can remember what you enjoyed about writing, and see the progress you have made. It also is a reminder of what inspires you to write so you can call upon this inspiration when you feel stuck or in the grips of "writer's block". I also think free-writes and poetry are great tools for teaching writing. It gives students a chance to play around with vocabulary and syntax, also allowing them creative freedom in what they want to say and what emotions they may be feeling.

I will end with this line I really liked from the Walshe reading on Icon: "Product is what process makes it", which is true of us as writers too. The process we have gone through in developing our writing skills make up the product, or writer, that we are today.

2 comments:

  1. Christina-

    Wow, when I read your post I almost had to recheck the heading to make sure I hadn't been the one writing it! You articulated perfectly many of the things I feel about writing, including my own writing past. I have also been surprised at how much re-evaluating my journey as a writer has affected how I think about myself as a writer. Great post!
    Jessica

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  2. I also think it's very important to look back on our old writing, which is what is interesting about this portfolio assignment. It is so interesting to see how much I have improved, or, even better, reading something and being surprised about how well I wrote years ago.

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