Writing and reading are skills we are taught at a very young age, for some we pick it up easily, and in some instances it takes years to develop higher level reading and writing. As I’ve gotten older I realize we all have different ways to interpret writing, different ways in how we write and different inspirations in terms of our reading and writing. Some could be parents, teachers, librarians. Many different people or resources that give us the motivation or will to read and write. People I’ve encountered as a child, experiences I’ve had has led to the way I read and write. In this essay I will be discussing my inspirations, how I deal with writer’s block and how my writing and reading developed as I got older.
I have many inspirations, sponsors and reasons behind my mindset when it comes to reading and writing. From a young age it was imperative that I read more than anything else, my dad only bought me three things as a child. One was basketballs, another was football and lastly was many books. I fell in love with basketball at a young age, but my parents equally expressed to me the importance of school because without school there is no basketball. That was my first motivation to really get into reading. It was apparent that as I read more and more, my vocabulary would grow expeditiously. It also allowed me to articulate myself better than other kids in many instances. One memory that is preeminent in my head was in third grade, as a young kid growing up in Brooklyn New York it was somewhat of a struggle living with just my mom and siblings. There’s also a certain way you have to carry yourself being from Brooklyn, in school I would act out and get in trouble a lot, however I was very intelligent but spent more time acting a fool. I got in trouble one day for bantering with a fellow student, my teachers called my dad as quick as a blink. He drove down to the school, picked me up and took me to his house. After a good beating to my behind, he then proceeded to make me write a 3 page essay about how I would act moving forward. That stuck with me forever, after that day I began getting back to reading on my own and focusing on the craft of basketball. By the third grade I had an 8th grade reading level.
Interesting enough, I still have many of the books I read growing up. As I walk through my room and examine them they bring so many memories, that I can recollect just by looking at them still to this day. Books made me feel as if I was one of the characters, made me feel I was in a new life in some instances. Which gave encouragement to make some stories of my own, or share my experiences and allow readers to put themselves in my shoes. As I got older and started writing more meaningful essays for school, it became effortless to me and my teachers noticed. However one teacher helped my writing tremendously getting me to the next level. That teacher was Mr. Trevor smith, his critique and judgment on my writing really excelled my use of punctuation as well as words. It was evident that I was a strong prominent writer, but there were many subtle areas of my writing that degraded my overall essay or paper. Working with him helped enhance the overall level and competence of my story telling and writing, and I will forever thank him for that.
When free writing or writing a story of my choice , they’re many topics that I can and do choose from. The easiest is basketball, the experiences and situations that come through basketball are meant for story telling. Playing the sport for 17 of my 19 years on this earth makes it impossible not to have many fond memories and stories, but in all honesty those get played out as my life is way more than basketball. Sometimes I write about how I feel during the day or week, more like a journal but I took those really seriously as relaying my thoughts to the paper made me feel better, and also allowed me to go back and see different moods and feelings I had during those days. The easiest yet hardest topic for me is very vague, it’s my life. Being through so much and having so many experiences it’s as if sometimes I don’t know where to begin. Living in Brooklyn, New York for 14 years , then moving to Pennsylvania for high school and attending a boarding school. There are so many topics and stories to choose from , but it’s definitely something I can relay with minimal effort. The hardest part is what to choose and where to start.
As I got older my motivation lies in the classroom, reading and writing really comes from the teacher. Though I’m not proud of it, I kind of got away from reading on my own and with technological advances I have more in depth with social media than growing my vocabulary and writing skills. I believe as I’m getting older and am a college student now, it’s important I belligerently get back into the sport of reading and writing on my own and allowing my mind to grow out of the high school mindset to the college mindset. I feel this school will also be a literary sponsor for me, I say that because with very little down time and not being able to be on social media as much, it forces me to be more productive in the time I’m not doing duties for the rat line. Jotting down my days and my feeling towards certain things could be great for my time here, as we all know it’s not easy being a rat at VMI. Gives me memories and something to look back on as I get older about my experience here.
About a week ago I started writing an autobiography on my life, just turning 19 I feel there’s so much I want to get off my chest and advice I want to give out. I have a grandiose amount of events and experiences in my life worth sharing and allowing others to view for themselves. My dads one of if not the most influential sponsors in my life, he has two books published and that did very well in sales and gave many eye opening and motivational stories within it. We have already talked to a publisher, and it’s on me to continuously begin to construct a well written and well thought out book on my life.
Writer’s block was very detrimental to my work, as it happens very often leaving me stuck with no real direction in where my writing is going. If I’m being honest I had writer’s block in this essay, but I used the advice we learned, and took many breaks until I found something to talk about that would enhance my answer to the prompt. There’s other ways I individually got over writer’s block, for instance when writing about a topic I’m unsure about and know very little about. It’s important to find ways to get over the hump of not writing. One strategie I had was to honestly listen to music. It kind of cleared my mind and allowed me to think more freely about words and ways I can associate my writing to the topic.
In conclusion my reasoning, motivation, and literary sponsors are all distinctively different from others, as me and other people have different life stories and experiences. Coming into my freshman year at VMI, I will be a English major. Hopefully learning the tools to be able to teach and inform ones coming after time the importance of reading and writing, and watch as these skills enhance their life’s year after year, and that’s what it’s all about. Hopefully with the guidance I get throughout my time at VMI, I am able to pick up tools that will challenge my mind in terms of my reading and writing skills. After my time here I hope to be the best instructor and professor I can be to those after me.
Help received: None