I was super nervous about poetry from day one, as it wasn’t a format I had touched since high school. When it comes to writing and poetry these things come naturally to me and I feel comfortable writing things. However, it took me a while to return to the poetry groove. The first poem I wrote was atrocious. It was about my cat it had a rhyme scheme and I made it look pretty but that wasn’t what I wanted. For a while, my poems felt lackluster or had no order, just drifting on and on. Some still do. I think what helped me the most to develop into the poet I am now it the community. Having friends and new ones in the class gave a new perspective to each poem so that I know I can get an honest reaction and be able to take that criticism the next time I rewrite those poems. But what drives me is hearing not only feedback but also listening to my peers’ poems and seeing what they can do. Because at the end of the day, it’s those who surround us that inspire us to do the work we do. I loved peer review because the poem can match the face and you can hear the artist in the poems. Also, it helps to listen to their process and how they interpreted/broke down their poem. That is what helped me understand my and others’ poems during class. Overall, revisiting old poems and getting peer feedback to experience other poems in the classroom with the community we created was crucial to becoming a better poet. Without those experiences and those interactions, I would have never fallen in love with poetry again.
To be completely honest, I walked into this class not liking poetry at all. I found it confusing, repetitive, and all around a headache. Through taking this class, I not only realized that I really like listening to others read their poetry, but I also enjoy writing it. I really enjoyed hearing everybody read their poems and being able to connect to the things they were saying. I also was not confident at all in my revision process in the beginning of the class because I didn’t really have one. As the semester progressed we did various exercises surrounding revision (the drafty draft poem for example) and they helped me immensely with my writing process. I found that I would get frustrated with my drafts when I couldn’t find where I wanted to go with them and I couldn’t find the words that I wanted to use. The Draft Draft exercise ultimately made it so that I needed to change something every time no matter if I wanted to or not, and by forcing those small changes I was able to build something that I actually liked more than I thought I could. By learning that it is ok to step away from the poem and return to it at a later date, I was able to actually start enjoying writing poetry. By being patient with myself and realizing that a poem that I write is not going to be something that I like when I read it for the first time, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t get there. Overall I really enjoyed this workshop and poetry class. I felt like I not only learned a lot about the poetry writing process, but I was also exposed to so many different kinds of poetry that I didn’t know before.
I definitely had to step out of my comfort zone to take this creative writing poetry class. I tend to stay where I know it is safe, but I wanted to explore my creative side (which was buried deep) and grow in that way. It has been uncomfortable, but throughout the semester writing and sharing has become easier. Starting with anonymous workshops, then doing peer workshops, and eventually sharing my final book with the class has been awkward but a natural development because of the skills and confidence gained over time. I have always liked writing as an outlet for my thoughts but I have learned how to refine that into something more poetic through different prompts and lessons throughout the semester. I have also learned to see my writing through the eyes of the reader–something so important to help with revision and to even consider sharing. Not only did I learn methods of writing poetry and how to navigate toward a final draft, I also learned how to create synergy within the poems as well as between the writing and how it is displayed. I was super nervous to make the artists book but I feel like we learned about creating synergy from all our workshops so that project felt a little easier. All the skills we learned this semester will be things that I can continue to practice and play with on my own, especially with the prompts found in the “textbook”. While I am still early in the learning process I have begun to learn about the actual craft of poetry and it is so wonderful to see the development of my poems from the beginning of the semester to the end. I hope to continue to develop these skills and continue to learn more to develop as a writer and poet in one way or another.
The first day of class I felt out of place. I have a passion for writing, but I do not have confidence in my poetry and I knew from day one that I would have to step out of my comfort zone to succeed in this class. I do not like talking in class, I do not like people seeing/hearing my work, and this class pushed me to just let it be and that it is a community; not a classroom full of judgment. From day one, poetry has been a very therapeutic class for me and not only was I learning and growing, but I was taking steps forward in my life. I have learned that when writing a poem, it does not have to be “one and done” and a single poem can flourish when you take time to refine it and find ways to change words, stanzas, technique, format, etc. I learned that every individual writes differently, but it really is all beautiful and it is possible to create an environment where critiques can occur in a positive light. I learned that my voice can be heard and that what I say may have an impact on someone else and to take risks. Risks in not only the class, but in my writing and looking at my poems from the beginning to now, I think you can see my writing grow in confidence. I never knew what an artist book was until this class and as scary as it sounded, it helped me learn that the combination of artistic abilities put together is beautiful- and what makes it even more beautiful is how individualistic it is. The chapters we read from the book also helped, and I will be taking what I learned from this class with me for the rest of my life. I also want to acknowledge that I learned through this class that there are professors who are here for us in all situations, not just in the classroom. Professor Miller, thank you. This semester has been extremely difficult for me due to events happening in my personal life, sickness, etc. but I still always enjoyed this class and the time I had. I started writing outside of class time again and being able to really speak more about personal events in my writing without the fear of people thinking it was stupid. I am very thankful for this class.
This final journal will cover my understanding of what poetry could be, not necessarily what poetry is because I simply do not have an answer for that question. Coming into class on the first day I had no expectations. All that I knew was that I had no idea how to write a poem. Luckily, the restrictions on what a poem could look like are almost boundless, so I was able to work my way through the first few assignments without worrying too much. I had a moment a couple of weeks into the semester where I was at a loss and could not prevent myself from becoming frustrated with poetry. After that, it was pretty smooth sailing.
As I look back on the semester, I realize that I had been looking at poetry the wrong way early on. I insisted on trying to derive literal meaning from poems, which is not necessarily the intent one should wield while examining this type of writing. The chapter about imagery opened my eyes to a new way of thinking about poems. I came to realize that there are a multitude of different elements of any given poem, and that assigning meaning is less important than the feelings you get when you read a great poem. For example, sometimes there is a single image within a poem that makes you feel the strongest emotion you possess, and it makes you picture something from your memory, which makes those emotions even stronger. Poems can hold your soul prisoner in good ways and a bad ways.
Learning new things is difficult, poetry is definitely not an exception to that idea. After everything I am glad that I came to understand poetry better otherwise I would have been miserable the entire semester. The class environment helped in some ways as well, like workshopping, looking over professional poems, and discussing concepts that could help us write our poems.
I have grown exponentially as a poet and a writer within this last semester. I was able to express some of my deepest thoughts and feelings in such an artistic way that I never thought I would accomplish and I am really proud of my work in this class. When thinking about the writing process, I almost never used to go back and revise what I wrote (creative writing wise) before this class. I always used to revise as I went through my writing, but this time around I was able to learn to dump it onto the page and revisit my poem later. It was a struggle to look back at my work sometimes, but in the end I really started to enjoy it. Being able to look at my first rendition, follow my thought process I originally had when writing, then going back in and finding the words I wanted to use, or enhancing phrases I struggled with writing the first time around was an extremely fulfilling and fun process for me. I am still working on how much information to include, how much scenery, or how many verbs/adjectives to use in a poem. I find myself wanting to spruce up a poem by finding a unique word, but as I went through the semester I realized that writing a poem like that may lessen the impact the poem actually has on the reader. Thinking about writing this way is extremely interesting to me as well. I love being able to find words that work well and look good on the page. I also think we got really lucky with the writing community that was made in this class. We all became so comfortable sharing our thoughts and feelings with one another about our poems, anonymous or not. I really enjoyed the feedback everyone gave and all the suggestions that were shared. It was truly a lovely class of individuals to be able to share our creative sides with one another in this way.
I walked into this class a little nervous but mostly skeptical. I had never thought of myself as a poet and didn’t think this class would change that thought process. I always felt like my writing was too long and convoluted to be a poem. Any time I tried to write poetry it always felt fake or insincere to me. Like it was missing something or I was complaining. Like I was trying to be something I wasn’t. I felt that way for much of the first few weeks of the semester. I wasn’t proud of what I was submitting and felt like everything seemed cheap. However as I got more comfortable with the feeling of poetry and the shorter style of writing it started becoming easier. I found myself writing a few poems in my offtime not for class. It started becoming a type of writing that I was considering for some of the things I had to say. Which was surprising. I realized that poetry didn’t have to be the short three word lines and flowery words I had become so used to. It could be anything. I knew that logically but before this class I still found myself in a rut of trying to make every line perfect and cut words. Before I knew it I’d have a butchered piece of scraps in front of me that held no real meaning. But because this class forced me to write poetry and to actually try to put meaning into it and make something I was proud of I got much better at it. The fact that I wrote a poem, a few even, that I’m actually proud of and considering good pieces of writing that get my message across is insane to me. I never thought it would happen.
From the beginning of the semester to now, I have been able to allow myself to feel less anxious about the poetry writing process in general. At the start of the term, I was definitely unsure and worried about how I would even produce poems I felt confident enough to submit, but as we worked through as a group and used our class poet’s handbook, I started to feel much more comfortable knowing most of us were feeling the same way. I don’t think I would have been able to let go of some of those anxieties if we didn’t have such a strong writing community atmosphere – knowing my poems were anonymous and that we all had to go through the workshop days allowed me to try to write in a way I never have for a class before. The hardest part for me in terms of the craft was getting out of my usual writing style and really trying to be creative – also helpful was the free reign we had over the structure of our poems and not being too formal. The feedback I received from our in-class workshops on my poems but also what I was picking up in listening to others’ ideas, critiques, and questions made me able to go back over my poems, even if they weren’t up for the workshop that class, and helped me in the revision process. I would say a moment in the semester where I started to see real changes and, in a way, become much more comfortable with the writing process of my poems was in our drafty-draft project. I have always loved to read poetry, and it did have this air of untouchable craft to it – even when analyzing poetry in other English courses – but having a devoted community that knew everyone was trying something different made poetry accessible to me, and I feel I will continue to write poetry because of it.
Throughout my time in this poetry class, I’m grateful to have experienced and learned so much in such a short time. Before this I felt really isolated in writing poetry and people around me didn’t seem to care for my writing or to have these deep, meaningful talks- especially in a class setting. But this class has allowed me to grow as a student and develop the person I want to be. I’ve explored my usage of language to show my emotions through my poetry to the people around me. It’s nice being able to be surrounded by people on Tuesdays and Fridays that actually care to listen and to analyze my poetry and to be able to take part in that creative process for the people around me as well. This class has definitely helped me improve upon my own vocabulary and has facilitated myself in honing my own ability to evoke emotions through my words. With all the workshopping and peer reviews, I’ve also been able to get really great constructive criticism on my poetry, too. I’ve found that this process has fostered growth in my literature in general by encouraging the revision process as well by giving me new perspectives and helping me improve my poetic voice. With all of the poetry we’ve been exposed to throughout class, I’ve also been given time to reflect and develop my voice as a feedback giver and writer, too. To have been given the opportunity to read a wide range of poetry from various poets and learn about their different styles of writing has been a true gift. So much exposure has developed a growth mindset within myself, and the workshop environment in general has been a catalyst for my ability to create and experiment. I’m really glad I’ve been able to give so much feedback and have been given the opportunity to be surrounded by so many wonderful peers as well.
On day one of this class, I came in with no idea of what to expect other than that Professor Miller was the advisor of the Creative Writing Club I’m in, and that this class would fulfill my Creative Arts credit. My experience with poetry was relatively small— analysis for AP Literature that tended to involve rhymes and 18th century words that often left me spending more time trying to decipher the words than the meaning and the breakdown of the poem. I had never been in a writing workshop either— my high school lacked any available creative writing courses, and our high school writing club was small and mostly focused on ’round robin’ type exercises. I was introduced to things like National Novel Writing Month, something I now regularly participate in, but I was always writing in solitude. The club advisor was my favorite math teacher, the presidents of the club took so many Advanced Placement classes that they never had time to write, and I only had a select few friends who wrote as well, all novelists or prose-based. In Creative Writing Club here, I found fellow writers, but most of us were not and are not what you might deem a poet. As a result, poetry seemed like a challenge, but one I was excited to learn more about. I was surprised, to say the least, when I found that poetry could be approached the way I approach novels: a story first and foremost. Between my few experiences with Shakespearian sonnets and William Wordsworth, I considered poetry as “Poetry” like what is seen in Dead Poets Society, and I was very focused on the flowery language of the words rather than that of my story, often leaving confusion as a result. Though I still have a way to go with that, my poems evolved to tell stories with characters, some with me as the speaker but many not following that common pattern. As I worked on my artist book, I discovered the benefits in formatting my poems as letters, something I enjoyed working on in certain novelistic contexts, and as a result, I moved forward, and continue to do so, with hopes of incorporating this new type of storytelling into my novelistic writing that is at the core of my identity as a writer.
10 thoughts on “JOURNAL # 16”
I was super nervous about poetry from day one, as it wasn’t a format I had touched since high school. When it comes to writing and poetry these things come naturally to me and I feel comfortable writing things. However, it took me a while to return to the poetry groove. The first poem I wrote was atrocious. It was about my cat it had a rhyme scheme and I made it look pretty but that wasn’t what I wanted. For a while, my poems felt lackluster or had no order, just drifting on and on. Some still do. I think what helped me the most to develop into the poet I am now it the community. Having friends and new ones in the class gave a new perspective to each poem so that I know I can get an honest reaction and be able to take that criticism the next time I rewrite those poems. But what drives me is hearing not only feedback but also listening to my peers’ poems and seeing what they can do. Because at the end of the day, it’s those who surround us that inspire us to do the work we do. I loved peer review because the poem can match the face and you can hear the artist in the poems. Also, it helps to listen to their process and how they interpreted/broke down their poem. That is what helped me understand my and others’ poems during class. Overall, revisiting old poems and getting peer feedback to experience other poems in the classroom with the community we created was crucial to becoming a better poet. Without those experiences and those interactions, I would have never fallen in love with poetry again.
To be completely honest, I walked into this class not liking poetry at all. I found it confusing, repetitive, and all around a headache. Through taking this class, I not only realized that I really like listening to others read their poetry, but I also enjoy writing it. I really enjoyed hearing everybody read their poems and being able to connect to the things they were saying. I also was not confident at all in my revision process in the beginning of the class because I didn’t really have one. As the semester progressed we did various exercises surrounding revision (the drafty draft poem for example) and they helped me immensely with my writing process. I found that I would get frustrated with my drafts when I couldn’t find where I wanted to go with them and I couldn’t find the words that I wanted to use. The Draft Draft exercise ultimately made it so that I needed to change something every time no matter if I wanted to or not, and by forcing those small changes I was able to build something that I actually liked more than I thought I could. By learning that it is ok to step away from the poem and return to it at a later date, I was able to actually start enjoying writing poetry. By being patient with myself and realizing that a poem that I write is not going to be something that I like when I read it for the first time, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t get there. Overall I really enjoyed this workshop and poetry class. I felt like I not only learned a lot about the poetry writing process, but I was also exposed to so many different kinds of poetry that I didn’t know before.
I definitely had to step out of my comfort zone to take this creative writing poetry class. I tend to stay where I know it is safe, but I wanted to explore my creative side (which was buried deep) and grow in that way. It has been uncomfortable, but throughout the semester writing and sharing has become easier. Starting with anonymous workshops, then doing peer workshops, and eventually sharing my final book with the class has been awkward but a natural development because of the skills and confidence gained over time. I have always liked writing as an outlet for my thoughts but I have learned how to refine that into something more poetic through different prompts and lessons throughout the semester. I have also learned to see my writing through the eyes of the reader–something so important to help with revision and to even consider sharing. Not only did I learn methods of writing poetry and how to navigate toward a final draft, I also learned how to create synergy within the poems as well as between the writing and how it is displayed. I was super nervous to make the artists book but I feel like we learned about creating synergy from all our workshops so that project felt a little easier. All the skills we learned this semester will be things that I can continue to practice and play with on my own, especially with the prompts found in the “textbook”. While I am still early in the learning process I have begun to learn about the actual craft of poetry and it is so wonderful to see the development of my poems from the beginning of the semester to the end. I hope to continue to develop these skills and continue to learn more to develop as a writer and poet in one way or another.
The first day of class I felt out of place. I have a passion for writing, but I do not have confidence in my poetry and I knew from day one that I would have to step out of my comfort zone to succeed in this class. I do not like talking in class, I do not like people seeing/hearing my work, and this class pushed me to just let it be and that it is a community; not a classroom full of judgment. From day one, poetry has been a very therapeutic class for me and not only was I learning and growing, but I was taking steps forward in my life. I have learned that when writing a poem, it does not have to be “one and done” and a single poem can flourish when you take time to refine it and find ways to change words, stanzas, technique, format, etc. I learned that every individual writes differently, but it really is all beautiful and it is possible to create an environment where critiques can occur in a positive light. I learned that my voice can be heard and that what I say may have an impact on someone else and to take risks. Risks in not only the class, but in my writing and looking at my poems from the beginning to now, I think you can see my writing grow in confidence. I never knew what an artist book was until this class and as scary as it sounded, it helped me learn that the combination of artistic abilities put together is beautiful- and what makes it even more beautiful is how individualistic it is. The chapters we read from the book also helped, and I will be taking what I learned from this class with me for the rest of my life. I also want to acknowledge that I learned through this class that there are professors who are here for us in all situations, not just in the classroom. Professor Miller, thank you. This semester has been extremely difficult for me due to events happening in my personal life, sickness, etc. but I still always enjoyed this class and the time I had. I started writing outside of class time again and being able to really speak more about personal events in my writing without the fear of people thinking it was stupid. I am very thankful for this class.
This final journal will cover my understanding of what poetry could be, not necessarily what poetry is because I simply do not have an answer for that question. Coming into class on the first day I had no expectations. All that I knew was that I had no idea how to write a poem. Luckily, the restrictions on what a poem could look like are almost boundless, so I was able to work my way through the first few assignments without worrying too much. I had a moment a couple of weeks into the semester where I was at a loss and could not prevent myself from becoming frustrated with poetry. After that, it was pretty smooth sailing.
As I look back on the semester, I realize that I had been looking at poetry the wrong way early on. I insisted on trying to derive literal meaning from poems, which is not necessarily the intent one should wield while examining this type of writing. The chapter about imagery opened my eyes to a new way of thinking about poems. I came to realize that there are a multitude of different elements of any given poem, and that assigning meaning is less important than the feelings you get when you read a great poem. For example, sometimes there is a single image within a poem that makes you feel the strongest emotion you possess, and it makes you picture something from your memory, which makes those emotions even stronger. Poems can hold your soul prisoner in good ways and a bad ways.
Learning new things is difficult, poetry is definitely not an exception to that idea. After everything I am glad that I came to understand poetry better otherwise I would have been miserable the entire semester. The class environment helped in some ways as well, like workshopping, looking over professional poems, and discussing concepts that could help us write our poems.
I have grown exponentially as a poet and a writer within this last semester. I was able to express some of my deepest thoughts and feelings in such an artistic way that I never thought I would accomplish and I am really proud of my work in this class. When thinking about the writing process, I almost never used to go back and revise what I wrote (creative writing wise) before this class. I always used to revise as I went through my writing, but this time around I was able to learn to dump it onto the page and revisit my poem later. It was a struggle to look back at my work sometimes, but in the end I really started to enjoy it. Being able to look at my first rendition, follow my thought process I originally had when writing, then going back in and finding the words I wanted to use, or enhancing phrases I struggled with writing the first time around was an extremely fulfilling and fun process for me. I am still working on how much information to include, how much scenery, or how many verbs/adjectives to use in a poem. I find myself wanting to spruce up a poem by finding a unique word, but as I went through the semester I realized that writing a poem like that may lessen the impact the poem actually has on the reader. Thinking about writing this way is extremely interesting to me as well. I love being able to find words that work well and look good on the page. I also think we got really lucky with the writing community that was made in this class. We all became so comfortable sharing our thoughts and feelings with one another about our poems, anonymous or not. I really enjoyed the feedback everyone gave and all the suggestions that were shared. It was truly a lovely class of individuals to be able to share our creative sides with one another in this way.
I walked into this class a little nervous but mostly skeptical. I had never thought of myself as a poet and didn’t think this class would change that thought process. I always felt like my writing was too long and convoluted to be a poem. Any time I tried to write poetry it always felt fake or insincere to me. Like it was missing something or I was complaining. Like I was trying to be something I wasn’t. I felt that way for much of the first few weeks of the semester. I wasn’t proud of what I was submitting and felt like everything seemed cheap. However as I got more comfortable with the feeling of poetry and the shorter style of writing it started becoming easier. I found myself writing a few poems in my offtime not for class. It started becoming a type of writing that I was considering for some of the things I had to say. Which was surprising. I realized that poetry didn’t have to be the short three word lines and flowery words I had become so used to. It could be anything. I knew that logically but before this class I still found myself in a rut of trying to make every line perfect and cut words. Before I knew it I’d have a butchered piece of scraps in front of me that held no real meaning. But because this class forced me to write poetry and to actually try to put meaning into it and make something I was proud of I got much better at it. The fact that I wrote a poem, a few even, that I’m actually proud of and considering good pieces of writing that get my message across is insane to me. I never thought it would happen.
From the beginning of the semester to now, I have been able to allow myself to feel less anxious about the poetry writing process in general. At the start of the term, I was definitely unsure and worried about how I would even produce poems I felt confident enough to submit, but as we worked through as a group and used our class poet’s handbook, I started to feel much more comfortable knowing most of us were feeling the same way. I don’t think I would have been able to let go of some of those anxieties if we didn’t have such a strong writing community atmosphere – knowing my poems were anonymous and that we all had to go through the workshop days allowed me to try to write in a way I never have for a class before. The hardest part for me in terms of the craft was getting out of my usual writing style and really trying to be creative – also helpful was the free reign we had over the structure of our poems and not being too formal. The feedback I received from our in-class workshops on my poems but also what I was picking up in listening to others’ ideas, critiques, and questions made me able to go back over my poems, even if they weren’t up for the workshop that class, and helped me in the revision process. I would say a moment in the semester where I started to see real changes and, in a way, become much more comfortable with the writing process of my poems was in our drafty-draft project. I have always loved to read poetry, and it did have this air of untouchable craft to it – even when analyzing poetry in other English courses – but having a devoted community that knew everyone was trying something different made poetry accessible to me, and I feel I will continue to write poetry because of it.
Throughout my time in this poetry class, I’m grateful to have experienced and learned so much in such a short time. Before this I felt really isolated in writing poetry and people around me didn’t seem to care for my writing or to have these deep, meaningful talks- especially in a class setting. But this class has allowed me to grow as a student and develop the person I want to be. I’ve explored my usage of language to show my emotions through my poetry to the people around me. It’s nice being able to be surrounded by people on Tuesdays and Fridays that actually care to listen and to analyze my poetry and to be able to take part in that creative process for the people around me as well. This class has definitely helped me improve upon my own vocabulary and has facilitated myself in honing my own ability to evoke emotions through my words. With all the workshopping and peer reviews, I’ve also been able to get really great constructive criticism on my poetry, too. I’ve found that this process has fostered growth in my literature in general by encouraging the revision process as well by giving me new perspectives and helping me improve my poetic voice. With all of the poetry we’ve been exposed to throughout class, I’ve also been given time to reflect and develop my voice as a feedback giver and writer, too. To have been given the opportunity to read a wide range of poetry from various poets and learn about their different styles of writing has been a true gift. So much exposure has developed a growth mindset within myself, and the workshop environment in general has been a catalyst for my ability to create and experiment. I’m really glad I’ve been able to give so much feedback and have been given the opportunity to be surrounded by so many wonderful peers as well.
On day one of this class, I came in with no idea of what to expect other than that Professor Miller was the advisor of the Creative Writing Club I’m in, and that this class would fulfill my Creative Arts credit. My experience with poetry was relatively small— analysis for AP Literature that tended to involve rhymes and 18th century words that often left me spending more time trying to decipher the words than the meaning and the breakdown of the poem. I had never been in a writing workshop either— my high school lacked any available creative writing courses, and our high school writing club was small and mostly focused on ’round robin’ type exercises. I was introduced to things like National Novel Writing Month, something I now regularly participate in, but I was always writing in solitude. The club advisor was my favorite math teacher, the presidents of the club took so many Advanced Placement classes that they never had time to write, and I only had a select few friends who wrote as well, all novelists or prose-based. In Creative Writing Club here, I found fellow writers, but most of us were not and are not what you might deem a poet. As a result, poetry seemed like a challenge, but one I was excited to learn more about. I was surprised, to say the least, when I found that poetry could be approached the way I approach novels: a story first and foremost. Between my few experiences with Shakespearian sonnets and William Wordsworth, I considered poetry as “Poetry” like what is seen in Dead Poets Society, and I was very focused on the flowery language of the words rather than that of my story, often leaving confusion as a result. Though I still have a way to go with that, my poems evolved to tell stories with characters, some with me as the speaker but many not following that common pattern. As I worked on my artist book, I discovered the benefits in formatting my poems as letters, something I enjoyed working on in certain novelistic contexts, and as a result, I moved forward, and continue to do so, with hopes of incorporating this new type of storytelling into my novelistic writing that is at the core of my identity as a writer.