Journal # 11

A piece of Fiction – Chelsea Gomes
I have always found it to be easier to write fiction than reality, but I am the kind of person who has a very large imagination. When I am writing fiction it feels like I can go on forever, because it is all in my mind, and I just have to get it all out before I know exactly what sounds good or right and what isn't so good. I tend to have way too many ideas in the beginning, and I find later that I have to take a lot of them out because they really don't make a ton of sense, but more times than not when I have my finished product my fiction writings are way better than anything I had to research to write.

When I have to write a biography, it is really difficult for me, because you have to use someone else's findings, and you have to go off from what they have said. You do not get to use any creativity, and its very difficult for me to not feel like I am plagiarizing their work because I know that what I am saying isn't actually coming from my mind, its from someone else's. That has always been the number one reason I have never been a big fan of reality writing.

While writing the novel for this class, I have been pretty blessed so far. Ever since I started writing it almost feels like I can't stop writing because there are so many different things going through my head its almost impossible to get them all down and remember them. I tend to have a strange life sometimes so some of my life experiences have helped me while I was writing this chapter. Something really funny or scary or just plain weird will happen to me in the middle of the day, and once I get over the fact that it happened, I think “hey this could be good for my novel” and that is why this has been so extremely easy for me so far. I will be really happy if I can get this whole thing done without ever having writers block, but I never truly know what my day will bring, when I get that I usually just end up putting it off and going back to it later.

I have found though while reading my work over, that I have been too many insignificant facts into my writing that really wouldn't be there in a real novel. I think it might be because I am not starting from the beginning of my novel and I feel like if the reader hasn't read the rest of my story they might not understand very much about my characters or what they are really feeling. I am really enjoying writing this novel, but I have been really bad with deadlines in my experiences with writing. I am the kind of person that starts off and writes so much, but nearing the end of my deadline, I start to panic and I find that it is a lot more difficult for me to write. I really do hope I can get this chapter in on time, because I would love for someone to let me know what they think, but I am starting to stress out a lot, considering the amount of homework I have been getting lately, and the fact that I have no peace and quite at my house to do it.

All in all, I've really liked writing this chapter so far, and I hope it continues that way. I have always felt passionate about writing teen fiction, because it is the kind of things that I read. Since the books I have read have helped me though so many different things, I'm sure that if I finished this book, some girl some day would be like “wow, I have gone through this exactly” and I might just be able to help her out a little bit.

Journal # 9

Journal # 9--On Poetry

Now that you've had a chance to dwell with poetry awhile, reflect on what you feel is its usefulness and relative importance in the grand scheme of the universe. What would life be like without poetry? What arguments could be made for doing more poetry than we do in public school?

Did your experience this time around change your relationship with poetry at all? Which was the easiest poem to write? Which was the most difficult? Are you left with any questions about poetry or poets in general? Have you any desire to read and/or write more poetry independently of this class?




I have always been the kind of person, who liked to read poetry, but have never been one who has really liked to write it. I think that without poetry the world would be a very different place. Poetry shows how different the world used to be, without it we wouldn't understand Shakespeare time. It could be very productive to do more poetry in public schools, because we never know who could be the next Shakespeare.

My experience this time around really hasn’t changed my relationship with poetry at all; in fact, it might have made me dislike it a little more. It’s not that I do not like poetry, or the way you taught it, it’s just that every time I end up writing poetry, I tend to get some of the darkest feelings in me coming out, and those are the things I would rather keep to myself.

I’m not really sure what the easiest poem was for me to write, but out all of them, I think I liked the found poem the most. It was definitely the most fun. The most difficult poem for me to write was the imitation poem, no doubt about it. Every time I tried to do it, I either ended up doing the exact opposite theme of the real poem, or it just ended up sounding really stupid. Thank god, I ended up doing that work for you so I didn’t have to write it in the end, because I am sure it wouldn’t have ended up being very good.

I would like to read more poetry out side of class, but I have always liked to read it. There is something about poetry that makes my heart melt. When you read someone’s poem, and it is the exact same thing you are going through in life at the moment, it makes you feel better, because you know that at least one person in the world understands. That is the real reason I have always enjoyed it.

Journal # 8

Journal # 8 - Decisions Decisions

For a while I have been trying to figure out what to write about for this journal. Only just recently have I figured out what would be good to write about.

Last sunday I went to the University of Guelph for a tour, and it was the most amazing thing ive ever done. I have been stressing out over university for the last 2 years, and now I finally feel like I can relax a little bit. When I first applied to schools, I freaked out, because I got accepted to my second and third choice schools but not to Guelph, and it had started to make me worried. I was never completely sure until this weekend where I was going to end up going, because all three schools are amazing and all three had good reasons to go to them.

The first school I got accept to was McMaster University. It is a great school for psychology, and it was really exciting for me when found out that I was accepted. Before I had been accepted I was starting to freak out because everyone around me had gotten into all of their schools, and I hadn't been accepted to any. When the day came, I was actually in this class, and stated freaking out, because I had never thought that I could be good enough to go to MAC, its just a highly rated school I really couldn't believe it. The day I got accepted my friend who goes there, took me to go see the campus, and I really liked it. But I was still leaning towards Guelph.

Then I had the longest wait in my life, for about a month and a half I waited and waited, checking my hotmail, and my website every single day, to see if I had gotten accepted, it was the worst wait of my life. Then, about a week ago, again while in this class, I checked the Ontario Universities website, and saw that I finally got accepted to Guelph. I honestly thought I was going to pass out, I was so excited, and I felt like I should be jumping up and down, or doing a backflip. When I told my mom later that night she was so happy, it was amazing.

Going to the open house, and tour on Sunday, knowing that I had already been accepted to the school, made it so much better. Going there, and seeing it, it already felt like home to me, it felt like it was where I wanted to be forever. It was also kind of funny to me, seeing all the people there, knowing that some of the people who had there heart set on the school wouldnt be able to go, while others would wait to the last minute to decline their offer, and take the possible spot away from people who dreamed of schools like Guelph.

Yesterday when I came home from school, I had a suprise waiting for me at home. It was my cousin Ashley who had come down a day early for easter break. When I walked in the door and saw her sitting there, I couldn't stop myself from thinking about Guelph all over again. Thats when I really decided, I thought to myself, why am I still kind of debating over schools when I know in the end im going to go to Guelph anyways. So I accepted my offer, and all of the stress this has been giving me for the last two years is pretty much over. Now all I have to do is make it to the end of the year with a 80% average, and it will be smooth sailing. (atleast until I start thinking about how much money i'm losing)