3/19/15 Fiction Portfolio Summary

          I have come to find that, in writing fiction, I can incorporate much more of myself
into my writing. This week, I wanted to talk about my writing process in creating a fiction
portfolio, and what I learned in my writing process.
          Obviously I can draw from personal experience when doing any type of
writing, however; I find that there are certain views or events that you can put into a
fiction writing that would seem out of place in poetry or be deemed laughable if put in a
non­fiction piece. Fiction leaves room for fantasy and with that, you open your mind up
to see things from a different perspective. How can I make this more fun? How can I
add a bit of magic to my writing? Do I want this character to be like me, or do I want to
make up all of his characteristics? These were a few of the things that I found myself
thinking of when doing these fiction assignments.
          Another thing that I learned, which was most helpful, was that I should never be
afraid to share my work with someone else. Feedback is essential to creating a
masterful writing. Writing from a single point of view is very one-­sided, where another
perspective can give insight into what a broader spectrum of readers will enjoy. I tried to
take the feedback that I was given and write new sections and add new details that I
thought would appeal to more people, rather than just myself. Even if I get negative
feedback, which is bound to make me feel less than spectacular, I know that I can take
that and add more to my writing, ultimately making it better. 
          Part of my writing process included finding a starting point. This could be anything
from a character, to a setting, to some event that happened. After that, I would decide if I
wanted this to be realistic or just kind of fun a silly. I am not much a fan of the fantasy,
but just knowing that I had the option led my mind to wander to places it usually would
not have and I was able to add more detail and fun into my writing. After that I would just
start writing. I would pause occasionally to reread what I had so far and decide if I was
going in the right direction. If not, I would consider revising. If so, I would simply continue
to write. I noticed that I incorporated music into my fiction quite often. Putting something
that I personally love into my writing gives it a little bit extra personality and helps me
connect to it on a higher level.
          The last thing that I learned was that the first draft is rarely perfect. Sometimes I
want to write and not revise. This is a bad idea because I found myself missing words
and spelling. In addition to spelling and grammar errors, I also found places where more
detail could fit, or where I seemed to run on a bit. In the end, the revision took a lot of
extra time, but it bettered my writing, and it was worth the extra time spent. To sum things up, I learned to look at things from a new perspective, consider
others point of views, openly share my writings, and always check for errors. Overall,
the fiction writing was very enjoyable.