Should I Start Over?

So, as a writing minor I find myself in several classes that I have to share pieces. I always freak out about telling a story about life in a way that it hasn’t been told already. Sharing with a group of peers always scares me. The night before I had to turn in my first workshop piece for my creative non-fiction class, I was FREAKING out. I didn’t know what to write about and the only thing I was working on seemed corny and contrived. I kept writing because I didn’t have any other option. I ended up sending what I wrote to a friend of mine and he said that it read like an author who will remain nameless. This author writes very explicit romance novels.

When my friend told me that I died a little inside. I wanted to start over and it was 3 a.m. because that was not the direction I wanted to be going in and I thought I had been very vague on anything that may have been explicit.  I didn’t start over and ended up with something that I loved.

I’m sure the semester will be riddled with many more panicky writing sessions and friends who just won’t get it. It’ll be a ride.

 

1st Response

My first reading I chose at random. I wasn’t looking for anything in particular and was pleasantly surprised by what I found. I read Whatever Normal Means Now by Joyce Tomlinson (http://mag.chamberfour.com/issue2/tomlinson.html). It was published in issue two of Chamber Four magazine. This piece was about Joyce’s experience with a teenage pregnancy, the resulting abortion, and the avalanche of emotions she felt. When I read the title I had no idea what the subject matter would be. It was a great read. I’m always weary when i read things about abortion. I assume that it’ll be someone bashing me over the head with a biased opinion and very little personal experience to offer. Tomlinson never even brought up the politics of the matter and I appreciated that. Her approach to her experience made it easier for me to feel what she felt, and and yell out “whhhhaaaattttt!!!” while I was reading.

I love that she saw the guy who got her pregnant at the end and that he was nothing like he was before. Everything about him that made her swoon had gone away. He had made nothing of himself and the decisions that she had made at 16 were the right ones for her. I enjoyed that I was just able to be in the moment with her and that I didn’t have to dodge any  opinions.