Roses and Revolutions

Roses and Revolutions by Dudley Randall, spoke true to the time and place from which he hails. Dudley witnessed the race riots in Detroit, and his poem reflects the grievances of the time or that building up to it. He talks of the city as if it exists on the face as being just that, a city like every other, but he sees the dispair of the people living in the city and the injustices they deal with. I thought the line about the Negro man lying in the swamp with his face blown off, was a very strong line with gruesome imagery. He doesn’t just tell the reader the hardships that people deal with on a daily basis but instead the more brutal realities, of black people who step out of line and what (I assume, the police or white people will do to them). The line where he talks of being hunted down like a hair reminded me of the poems from the earlier poets before emancipation, when the poems talk about trying to run away from the slave owners who are trying to hunt them down and catch them. It is interesting that this theme of being hunted down continues on even into the 60’s, after so much time had passed since then. Then he talks of groping in darkness and feeling the pain of millions. This line speaks of how hard it is when, like I said so much time has passed and so little has changed. The riots that are talked about in New Thoughts of the Black Art Movement reflect the feelings in the poem. This shows that like the article said the poets and artists played a big role in speaking for the people and portraying the feelings of many as Randall says, I feel the pain of millions.

Sorry for the delay...

Sorry to everyone, I guess I really wanted to delay my goodbyes. I want to thank you for all that you did and do. Everyone was inspirational in their writing in their own different ways. Especially with our work shopping groups, everyone was different in their writing styles but everyone contributed to the group in a unique way. We have gotten a little morbid, but all of still had something to contribute!
I probably will not be taking another creative writing course, however no promises, but I will also probably never try and publish a piece of writing. However, I now feel like I have the ability to write what I want, how I want and with semi-okay writing. It is all still a work in progress but thank you for, through the help from everyone I feel able to know write what I want, when I want, how I want, and know that I constantly improve my writing. So to everyone that provided me that opportunity I thank you. My writing is not perfect, but it is my ability and new medium of expressing my thoughts, ideas and feelings. This class has provided me not just with an educational level but also with enjoyment. So to everyone, thank you have a great break!

the last blog

I must say that I agree with the sentiments of my peers who have posted before, this semester has certainly flown by! I had a lot of fun in this class, and certainly learned a ton. Something that I was really pleased by was the high amount of participation in class: that blew me away. It wasn't just a few people, but really the entire class got engaged. Especially when we did those hysterical writing pass along activities, everyone had something to say. Also, echoing what Casey said, this was the first time that I learned about and used a blog, and it was certainly an interesting experience. I liked skimming through previous posts from other people, and seeing what people noticed and reflected upon. You learn a lot about people through blogs, I guess you could say.

Well, here is to another semester almost done. My second to last semester at St. Lawrence! As the only senior in this class, my advice to everyone is to live it up and enjoy your time here, don't get overwhelmed by work etc to the point where you cannot enjoy your friends and great experiences here. I mean, do your work too, but have a balance. It will be over before you know it!(Seriously)

Thanks for a fun semester! Good luck with finals!

Final Blog post

Well, I guess you know that finals—and the related stress—are here if you manage to write a blog post in Word and then totally forget to post it. ^_^

~*~

So, today was our last workshop, and I have to say that, as enlightening as they could be at times, I am more than happy to have them over with. The clash of personalities, the differences of literary tastes and styles, and the range of stories made for some interesting, if not always helpful sessions.

Though I am really not sure how much the workshops really helped me with my actual writing, I will say that they did serve wonderfully in another function; coaching me in how to quietly and gracefully take criticism. I’m pretty sure I speak for all of us when I say that it is really, really hard to sit there and listen as your peers rip apart a story that you put time, effort, and love into. This is doubly hard when the story is one that you either are getting conflicting responses on—both from between you peers, and between your peers and your professors—or one for which you really don’t think that people were getting the point of. However, considering that writing is a profession that means you will face a lot of rejection, and some of it quite vehement at that, I have to say that learning how to take that rejection with humor, accepting what they say and what you feel at the same time, is perhaps one of the most important lessons a aspiring writer can learn. It was always interesting in the workshops because you could tell who was more receptive to criticism, and who wasn’t. I’ll be the first person to admit that I wasn’t always the most receptive person to criticism about my own stories, but I like to think that I got better by the end of the semester.

Work-shopping will always be my least favorite part of any writing course, though a necessary evil it may be. Hopefully, however, one thing this semester has given me is the thicker skin that every writer needs to be successful. Here’s hoping!

Good luck on finals, and Happy Holidays everyone!

Last blog

I agree, Casey; this semester has flown by! I can't believe the weekend before finals is only two days away.
This course has been extremely interesting. I loved workshopping; my classmates are talented writers and it was fun interacting and getting to know each other in that context. My favorite part of the class was the mini writing assignments. When given the assignment, they sounded so crazy (how was I going to pull that off? Where would I get the creative inspiration?) yet, as soon as I started simply moving my pen across paper, I always surprised myself.
I just watched the Jon Stewart--Mike Huckabee debate, and wow, Huckabee looks like a fool. The comment that struck me was when Huckabee said, "I want to make sure that people understand that if a person does not necessarily support the idea of changing the definition of marriage, it does not mean that they are a homophobe." Stewart responded by asking, "Why? It would be redefining a word. And it feels like semantics is cold comfort to humanity." Stewart then defends that "Words do matter. Definitions matter." I do not think that allowing gays/lesbians to marry necessarily re-defines the word "marriage." Two people of completely different races marrying does not re-define the word "marriage." Raising your biological child versus adopting a baby does not re-define the word "parenting." I hope this does not offend anyone, but I think that people are often scared of what they don't know, and I truly feel that not even trying to understand homosexuality but just rejecting it is a form of homophobia. I have no evidence, but I assume that most people against gay marriage aren't close with any gays or lesbians. I know the anti-gay marriage people I have talked to all refuse to believe that being a homoesexual is not a lifestyle choice.

goodbyes

It still hasn't hit me that this semester is coming to a close. I see the snow on the ground and hear Christmas music on the radio but for some reason I'm failing to recognize all the signs of winter break approaching! Maybe I'm just in denial of all the work I have this coming week, who knows! But anyway, I wanted to talk about this class. Even though I took this class to fulfill a requirement, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Looking back at all the writing assignments I've done over the semester as I assemble my portfolio, I can't help but feel a sense of pride. Who knew I was capable of all of this! I mean, sure, my mom always believed in me but I never thought I could write like this. I'm impressed with myself. I think that's what makes a good course -- when you can walk away feeling accomplished and proud. I'm going to miss the workshop sessions and the class discussions. Oh on a side note, I have never in my life written on a blog before. I'm glad I was forced to do so or else I would have never had such an experience! I really pushed myself in this class and tried new things and I'm grateful I had such an opportunity! It's been a pleasure =)

VERY late Jennifer Brice

So, I was so kindly reminded by my peers about blogging on a writer's series reader, and I totally neglected to write about Jennifer Brice after I saw her in..October! Time flies. So, thinking back to then, I loved Jennifer's reading, and I had the opportunity to meet her in my Advanced Creative Non-Fiction course that morning, where we learned a lot of interesting things about the process of writing and generating a story. At her reading, I was very relaxed by her conversational tone and mellow, comedic voice. She read from her newest novel, "Unlearning To Fly", which is a collection of shorter pieces about flying and learning how to fly, along with other stories. Her writing is so dead on: I loved her descriptions of juggling things with her girls, and the demands that children can have and how utterly exhausting and irritating those moments can actually be. I was laughing out loud listening, and when I read some of her pieces before meeting her.
Jennifer has a sort of soft spot to me, because she was my brother's professor at Colgate, where she is currently a creative writing professor. We had a good little chat about my brother, and she let me into his life a bit more, which was pretty interesting. Something that she mentioned in her Q&A at the end of her reading, was that writing teaches people something new about you, in a traditional or non-traditional sense. She used the example of my brother, who wrote an essay about how he loves going to the dentist, because it is so relaxing, which is something that I never knew about him. But that was her point, writing is a chance for you to talk about these little (or big) things that people do not know about you, and this is the opportunity to express these things: you can write about the dramatic or the mundane: whatever you want, as long as you make it captivating, interesting and a story. There has to be something to what you are writing, otherwise nobody will care.

I really enjoy going to the writers series readings, and I think that they are always enjoyable and interesting, with a good takeaway. And, listening to someone read is always relaxing to me, so it's a nice way to segue into the evening!