I was cleaning out a filing cabinet in my office recently and stumbled upon my creative writing journal from 1995. This was my second year of college and I still had a lot to learn about creative writing. Looking back through these pages – after blowing away the dust and cobwebs – was like opening a time capsule into my writing past.
There’s something I find fascinating about looking over things I’ve written years or decades ago and forgotten about. Sometimes the words are familiar, sometimes they seem like someone else must have written them.
The pieces in my portfolio included early drafts that had comments written by my peers. Mostly constructive feedback, which was nice. Even a few compliments, which made me smile to see. Even after all this time it’s nice to remember some of those long-forgotten faces and the discussions we’d have about writing and favorite authors we were trying to emulate.
If you’re interested, I’ve included a few photos of some of the pages. The poems are incredibly immature. I was still young and trying to figure out who I was, who I wanted to be. The poems are a reflection of that. And they really aren’t very good. Still, it’s fun to read them and cringe a little in embarrassment.
For me, it was thirty minutes walking down a forgotten path. I haven’t decided what to do with this portfolio. Maybe I’ll scan the pages for posterity. Then I can find them again another twenty or thirty years down the road and remember them all over again.
RB
What a wonderful share, Richard! I love the candle and the icy plains. Your old-young work is worthy of a second round of appreciation. 👏 👏 I just wrote a story about journaling today! Creative minds think alike. 🤗
That’s wonderful to hear, my friend! Looking forward to reading it. Cheers!
Looking back at old creative work is always an interesting experience
I’ve come across drawings and poems from years ago, and it’s a mix of nostalgia and slight embarrassment🙈
Sometimes, I barely recognize the person who created them, yet other times, the emotions still feel familiar. It’s a reminder of how much we’ve grown and changed
I love the idea of keeping these pieces as a time capsule, scanning them sounds like a great way to preserve the journey
Thanks for sharing this glimpse into your writing past!
And Richard, you were in your second year of college in 1995? Looks like we’re the same age! 😃
Nice to know others feel the same way, Roksana.
And I think I may have a few years on you. I went back to college in my late twenties. I needed to travel and explore a bit before getting back to my education. 🙂
That sounds like a wonderful journey! Taking time to travel and explore before returning to education must have been so enriching
Ahhh! Life has its own perfect timing, doesn’t it?
You know, barring the occasional awkward rhyme, your classical poetry is actually rather memorable.
If you’re seeking recommendations for further development (I think this, in your case, would be a worthwhile pursuit), I’d recommend remaining as far as possible from current academic standards of incoherent negativity, and polish up your own unique contribution.
Your meter is excellent (the last bastion for most would-be classical poets), your subject matter worthy and some of your lines approach a master level emotional pathos. I’d just work on ultra conscientious searches for the smoothest rhymes (seeing these as already written on high and simply asking for them is how I do it, start to finish), and on putting out feelers for poetically promising situations in the world around.
Looking forward to reading some of it 😊
Many thanks for the kind words and suggestions, Ana. I do love poetry and plan to get back to writing more soon. I’ll take your advice to heart. 🙂
👍
Wonderful ♥️
Thank you!
Oh, such a coincidence. Just today I was looking at some of my previous illustrations… of when I first started this blog.
I cringed really hard, haha.
But it only means I improved a bit.
Your old stuff is good though! But I still need to start your books. I usually do audiobooks, so actually reading is a bit of an adjustment 🤭
But I will of course leave a review once I am done!
Ps. Can I do an illustration based on this question? I will of course tag your blog and hopefully send some followers your way!
Great minds think alike! I agree, it’s nice to see how we’ve improved over time. As for my books, one of these days I’ll get around to recording audio versions. Just have to find the time.
Oh, and please do. I’d love to see an illustration of this. It makes my day to know I inspired you to draw something. 🙂
It’s good to revisit one’s creative past. We change over time in many ways, so it’s fascinating to see where our heads were at years ago.
Absolutely, my friend. Thanks for commenting!
I’m a mixture of cringe and that was better than I thought when I re-read stuff I wrote decades ago. I like what you showed here, I think they may be better than your re-read. Trust me, I have read (and written) much worse,
LOL…thanks for the encouragement, Pat. Cheers!