Absolutely

Duck Lake

Mammoth Lakes, California. My home for a short while. Sometimes I miss it very much.

I'm Not Really Good at Writing Fiction.

Though this may be a shock for some people, when it comes to English, fiction is my first love. I’m sure I am not alone when I say that I started reading at an early age. My father was also and English major; I can vividly remember when he first told me about symbolism and them. After that, I have never been able to read fiction in the same way. Fiction became a puzzle that I always tried to decipher, not in a DaVinci Code way, but in an analytic way. I love dissecting literature and breaking it down into its simplest elements, I know this “kills it” for a lot of people, but for it breathes life into it.

Because I have such a strong affinity for fiction, reading what I deemed to be “good” fiction has always inspired feelings of jealousy in me. I have tried my hand at short pieces of fiction and have never been happy with the result. I can’t really blame it on any single thing, perhaps I am too ambitious, or maybe I use too many adjectives. I could read a piece of fiction and easily tell you what makes it work, but when I try to capture these same elements in my own work, I fail. Sometimes, I try so hard to get a certain point across that the work becomes dull. That’s probably it, I have no faith in my readers; it’s their fault.

Although I don’t have faith in my fiction writing, I know that attempting to write fiction has benefits beyond practicing creativity. So, it is something that will be required in my classroom. Like the other genres that we have studied in class, sometimes being able to recognize elements of the literature is not enough. The practice of using these elements in writing reinforces their function in literature. While a student may be able to bull shit their way through an essay, feigning understanding, a student that is able to employ elements of fiction in creative writing must have a definite grasp on the concepts. Thus, creative writing exercises in fiction can also serve as an adequate form of evaluation

Reading and Writing a Myth(matic)

When I began writing my myth, I was conscious of the elements that are common in myth, but it didn’t feel like I let it dictate my work too much. After studying poetry in this class, I made conscious efforts to include poetic devices in the work. For creating a myth, I only used these characteristics to get me started; from there, I took many liberties.

I think I felt so open when writing the myth because the myths we read in class were so strange that very little seemed “out of bounds.” It is possible that I got a little too creative and did not stay grounded enough in the “rules” for a myth, but I ultimately decided that I didn’t want to do something so traditional that it seemed boring.

I wouldn’t say this writing assignment really enhanced the study of myth for me as much as writing the poetry. I gained most new knowledge of myth by reading the explanations of the different types of myth, and then reading examples. However, this does not mean that I think it is an assignment that should be omitted from the syllabus.

Like the poetry exercises (last time mentioning poetry, I swear), we were given “prompts” to get us started writing. The study of myth served this same purpose. There is no question that creative writing plays an important role in education; though it may be difficult for many students, they benefit from practicing because they are forced to be aware of elements of fiction, as well as their own grammar. Getting students to write creatively sometimes requires giving them an outline. The myths and supplemental myth materials fulfilled this requirement. Armed with examples of myth and its purpose, I was much more comfortable creating one of my own.

Assignments like this also provide an outlet for students who often struggle writing academic essays, but thrive in a different creative setting. By having several assignments that require various types of writing, students’ writing ability become easier to evaluate. Often it will become clear if they are having a problem fundamentally, mechanically, or structurally. If it is clear that students can write eloquently when being creative, but suffer when writing academically, curriculum can be tailored appropriately.

Yep.

Thoughts on Poetry

When writing a poem or writing an essay about a poem, a common vocabulary is shared. For poetry, it is not as important for the writer to know the name of the element being utilized as long as the function is clear. The easiest example to use in poetry is alliteration. The poet may use alliteration to quicken the pace of a poem, build tension, or sound playful, but it is not important that the poet be familiar with the term “alliteration” to use the element effectively. However, for analysis purposes, a vocabulary has been adopted to create a forum where poetry can be discussed. While it is not completely necessary that the poet know this vocabulary, being aware of effective poetic elements will no doubt help create more powerful poetry.


Learning to write well requires reading well-written works. When students are able to identify poetic elements in poetry and explain their function, they become more aware of how to incorporate the same elements in their own poetry. By listening to how Yeats uses sound in “The Lake Isle of Innisfree,” it became clear how he used sound to create desired effects in the poem. Thus, I attempted to create sound effects in my poem that would correspond to a mood. This is a clever way to introduce students to the idea of writing poetry on their own. If students become competent in analyzing and understanding published poetry, the transition to then writing poetry of their own is much less daunting.


The readings that were performed in class prove that this teaching method is effective. I was very impressed by many of the poems read in class, especially since we were given “strict” guidelines for some of the practices. While it may not seem like these guidelines belong in poetry, they made the process of beginning a poem easier; sometimes getting past the blank page is the hardest part of writing.

take care.

Hello. Welcome.

Welcome. I hope you enjoy my blog.

I am a 23 years old. I live in the sometimes beautiful city of Van Nuys. My apartment is in a nice enough area to live, but a seedy enough area to be affordable. I was born and raised in Santa Clarita, and began my CSUN experience in 2002. After a year and a half of GE, I moved to Mammoth Lakes, California and started teaching preschool. While in Mammoth, I spent a lot of time reading books and just sitting around. After two years there, became motivated to attend college again. I am currently working as a bartender at a sushi restaurant a few nights a week. I enjoy alcohol much more than young children.

I am becoming a teacher because it seems to be the most logical profession for me. When it came time for me to consider careers, teaching was the only one that I could imagine myself doing long-term. After that was settled, I decided to couple this desire to teach with my love for English. I genuinely love everything academic and creative involving language.

I have become somewhat of a nerd in my relatively short life. Often times, “nerd” is used to describe people that are very interested in technology. In the classroom, I am sure that my interest in technology will be an asset. Knowing about technology may make me seem more in touch or hipper than my students’ other teachers. It will also allow me to remain organized and input grades quicker. There is no question that technology plays a much more important role in the classroom with each day. I am happy that this is being recognized by credentialing programs. I am prepared to update my software whenever it becomes necessary.

All the Best.