So here it is. Yes, I'm that guy
posting his 12th blog at the last possible moment, but you
know what? It's all good. After finishing my project, I have something
entirely new to reflect upon regarding creative nonfiction which
until this point, I didn't before. And that, is the writing of
creative nonfiction. As I've mentioned in class, I was a fan of all
the authors we read this term though to varying degrees. We've
talked about their works, their histories, their processes, and we've
even examined creative non-fiction in filmic representations. For
this final blog, I would now like to reflect upon my own process of
producing this genre.
I've always been a strong academic
writer and admittedly enjoy its form. I studied some journalism and
a bit of playwriting as an undergrad and did well there too. I think
I must enjoy working within a relatively solid framework, the firm
structure allowing me to make a strong point. Fiction writing has
always sort of eluded me due to the paradox of its appearing at once
too complex in its narrative form and too simple in its style. Of
course I set up a structure for myself in approaching the creative
nonfiction writing I wanted to accomplish for 462. I choose the
authors, identified their themes and agendas, selected experiences of
mine in Thailand that related, and then bullet-pointed the scenes and
methods/tone I would use to relate them to each author. I presumed
that once I did that, writing the stories would be a breeze. Not
quite.
First, and this is due in part to the
wealth of Thai stories I have, every time I sat down to write about a
specific experience, I would find myself half a page later writing
extensively on some tangent or sub-story that figured into the
specific one I was trying to relate. Sometimes this ended up working
toward my agenda, adding a useful layer I hadn't considered, but more
often than not, I just had a page of really good story that didn't
fit at all into what I intended to express. In most academic
writing, you don't have such seemingly natural room to digress.
Now this next issue, I think has
something to do with a trick of memory or the power of nostalgia, and
it is probably most applicable to those writing personal, creative
nonfiction, although it is my no means exclusive to that domain. I
could not believe how much time I was spending on these stories nor
how quickly it was passing! An hour would slip by in what felt like
five minutes as I was reliving some experience with dodgy characters
in Bangkok or of serenity on the Andaman coast. I envy the
stick-to-it-iveness of those who do this for a living.
Even though I set this project up in
the way I approach most writing or other projects, there were some
unexpected surprises as things came together. Such as the sudden
realization of a connection that I hadn't pondered before when
applying an Annie Dillard approach to my travels in southern Thailand
or the discovery of a normative discourse in ladyboy go-go bars when
trying to think like Hunter S. Thompson. Overall, I was very happy
with the way things turned out and truly hope to continue with these
stories at some point. In the end, I used my own voice when writing
instead of trying to imitate style but still let the authors'
perspectives drive mine. It was certainly a worthwhile endeavor and
furthered my appreciation for this body of work even more.
