Ryan Friend

ENG-507

Jessica Early

28 May 2023

Yet to Come

A writer’s journey is all their own. If it’s my own personal journey in question, it’s one of

great confusion and inconsistencies. My writing journey has gone in waves, in with one tide, out

with another. As I think about my relationship with writing, I find myself looking into three

variables of my life: influence, circumstance, and connection.

Legally, I cannot, in good faith, continue this Writing History piece without crediting my

Nana for instilling in me a love of the arts. Like most people, I consider my Nana, Judy, to be the

greatest woman in the world. I shall, respectfully, fight you if you disagree. From an early age,

Nana introduced us grandkids to the theater. She always loved to go, but could never find anyone

to attend with her until the 16 of us grandkids came along. It started with yearly trips to the

Indiana University production of The Nutcracker and continued throughout the years with

installations of The Music Man, Hamlet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and beyond. When we

weren’t attending a local production in the theater, you could find us listening to some smooth

jazz at a nearby festival or perusing a corner bookstore. My earliest memories of the arts, the

moments attributed to my pursuit of the English discipline, start with her.

Of the moments shared with Nana, specific things began to stick with me. My cousin,

Jenna, and I both took an interest in writing. Together, we began to write short stories which

quickly turned into novels, always in search of our next story. Our most notable work entitled

Beatrice the Brave (2010). The series, comprising four novels, followed a young, misunderstood
girl who didn’t quite fit the stereotypical junior high mold. In this coming of age series, Beatrice

was forced to balance math homework, boys, and the disappearance of her parents. Contact your

local Barnes & Noble to secure a copy of Beatrice the Brave1. Now, as emerging professionals,

Jenna and I continue to create together. Jenna currently works as a screenwriter in LA while I

teach the youth of America. In my free time, I read, review, and alter her pilots. The ability to

extend the creativity of our youth into the next chapter of our lives is everything. Writing with

Jenna and enjoying live performances with Nana allowed me to feed my soul with all writing has

to offer. I truly cherish the memories we have together and continue to create; they’ve

contributed greatly to who I am today as both a person and a writer. Their influence knows no

limit.

As I grew up, the influence of my early years stayed with me as I adapted to the

circumstances of education. Throughout the years of schooling, students must adapt to play the

game. Each course demands a different style of writing; each day demands a different task. It

was easy to fall into the predictable trap of writing assignments, a routine we didn’t want. I found

myself losing love for the art of writing. I sought out less literature, and I neglected the majority

of performance based art. Writing within the education system was less of my choice and more

of a chore to prove that I could do it. The prompts for our writing assignments harbored little

creativity and made me feel as if I was placed into a box mentally. As someone who wrote to

express and entertain, I sometimes struggle to find reward in academic writing. I was simply

burnt out. I turned to athletics and divulged all of my energy there instead.

Unfortunately, my writing hiatus continued throughout the majority of high school. There

were certain moments or assignments where I found myself enjoying my work, but they were

1
Important to note the sheer sarcasm presented here: Only one copy of each book exists, and you’d
surely have to fight our Nana to obtain them.
fleeting. During my senior year, my English teacher was nothing short of menace, perhaps even a

gremlin. It was apparent that the curriculum of the class hadn’t changed since the Moon Landing.

It was hard for us to find connection to any of the writing prompts or assignments which

provided little to no motivation for the coursework. I can vividly recall listening to the 68th

reading of “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” that year and simply thinking to myself: There has to

be more out there. This cannot be the best way to read, write, and interact with the arts. From

that moment on, I switched gears to pursue a Secondary English Education degree. For the love

of all that was good and holy, I had to break the cycle. Students deserve to see all that writing has

to offer and the power it yields, so I set off to do just that.

Upon my arrival to the English program at St. Ambrose University, I met Dr. Pat

Connelly. Connelly discussed literature in a way that reminded me how great it could be. He was

able to make any text, regardless of its publication date, relatable. Connelly had a way of

bridging the gap between academic writing and everyday shenanigans. Throughout the courses I

took with him, he gave me back my spark. He reminded me that I can do both. I’m able to be

academic as a writer and analytical as a reader without sacrificing my personal voice and

expression. He showed me that it’s okay to provide humor in writing; it’s okay to write on a

human level. Once I bought into the idea of having it all, I’ve never looked back. I’ve been able

to express myself through writing while improving my craft, and I’ve enjoyed the journey. Dr.

Pat Connelly is someone I think of often now that I have students of my own. I strive to emulate

the same support and guidance that he provided in my own classroom.

Within my first two years of teaching at North Scott Junior High, I witnessed a great lack

of appreciation for the arts. Students don’t seem to share my childhood passion to create. I see

more and more students who, quite similarly to me at their age, have fallen out of love with
writing. It’s an ongoing battle to show eighth grade students the value and importance of reading,

writing, and speaking. This is one of the very things that pushed me to pursue my degree in this

program; I hope to enhance my knowledge of strategies to share the light of this discipline with

my students. By reigniting my own youthful passion for creating, I’ll be able to light a fire under

theirs as well. In my classroom, I strive to provide creative opportunities for my students. I don’t

want them to feel as though writing is always a graded transaction. I want them to know its

ability to express feelings and ideas without a grade attached to it. By highlighting this, it’s my

hope to keep students from losing their love of the arts.

As I said, my writing history is contingent on three variables: influence, circumstance,

and connection. I owe a portion of my craft to my influences. Without people like Nana, Jenna,

and Dr. Connelly, my passion for writing would be minimal or nonexistent. The circumstances of

my writing journey challenged me. Academic writing and boring prompts challenged me to

figure out who I am and what I want. Although I didn’t enjoy it, those moments have made me a

better writer; they pushed me to find my voice. Now, at this point in my writing journey as a

second year teacher, I’m able to connect it all. I have the opportunity to take my experiences and

utilize them to best support my students. Through teaching them, I have found a greater sense of

confidence as a writer and a great deal of excitement for what’s to come. My writing history is

indeed still one of great confusion and inconsistencies, but the best is yet to come.