Application for KIDD Tutorial: Getting Honest

“I created the OASIS because I never felt at home in the real world” ― Ernest Cline, Ready Player One (p.79). I think this is my favorite quote I have come across as this is why I write. I have felt misplaced, fear, rejection, pain…reading and writing are the ways in which I escape my real world; they are my OASIS. I want to read something that transports me to a different time, or perhaps to a different world altogether. I want to dwell into the lives other people live and see that perhaps that my own life could always be worse, or on the flip side: I can strive to achieve something better. I want to write to bring this same sense to the world with my own writing; to help people identify with a fictional character that can bring them out of their own potential misery and into a world where they can fix something, cure someone, and where there are no limits as the ones we have set for us in the real world.

Whenever someone has asked me what I want to be, my first response is “to be an editor”. Following that, I tell people I am also striving to become a published author. Currently I do not feel I have the complete list of necessary skills to achieve either of my goals, but I want to have the confidence to be able to confidently pursue both of my dreams without a doubt in my mind that I can do either one successfully; this is what I hope to gain by entering the Kidd Tutorial. I want to know what it means to be an editor, what it means to be a writer, and to know how to separate these from each other.

KIDD Tutorial Application Sent!

Today I applied for the KIDD Tutorial which is, in the program's own words, "A yearlong sequence of courses for undergraduates in creative writing, intellectual inquiry, and craft-based research". Based on my understanding, I will be in a workshop setting gaining information regarding how to edit, how to get work published, learn the ins-and-outs of publishing houses and their process, hear from agents, meet with agents, and most importantly: learn what it takes to write a novel (that doesn't exceed 300 pages).

This is what I have strived towards since I began my education, and now I have been presented with the opportunity to actually become part of of this process. To get more in depth into what this process is, however, I went onto the KIDD Tutorial site and copied some of the details I found most exciting--

I will be "encouraged and challenged" all year by writing for all three genres, even if my focus is creative writing as it is important to know how to be flexible in your work, and it also helps give new definition to your abilities. I will be "Reading critically as a writer" as this "is an essential life-long skill for all writers...to examine how authors have put together a story, poem, or essay; what craft choices they have made; and why they made those choices and to what effect". This will help me make decisions like this regarding my own work. After all, "Asking questions, analyzing, probing, digging deeper into texts both published and self-generated is how writers identify and clarify issues (both thematic and craft-driven) at stake in their own work". And then "In spring term, all Kidd Tutorial students contribute a selection of their work to the Kidd Anthology, which they also help to edit", which goes along with a final creative project, which means submitting a personal and professional portfolio for my own use when applying to internships and jobs, which will consist of "15–20 poems, 3–4 short stories, a novella, or, on occasion, essays in creative nonfiction". And finally there are the KIDD Talks, not unlike TED Talks, which means I get to go to book signings and have my books signed by the "visiting writers who come to campus as part of the Creative Writing Program’s Reading Series. In addition, visiting writers, writers from the University of Oregon, and Willamette Valley area writers are invited to give 50-minute talks to all the Kidd students in an intimate setting. The Kidd Talks vary from lectures about craft elements, to discussions about the authors’ work (students are assigned work by authors prior to the talks), and Q & A. Previous Kidd Tutorial students have frequently named the Kidd Talks as one of the highlights of their time in our Program".

Yes I used a lot of quotes from the page, but (ironically) I couldn't think of better ways to say all this. Besides, that's a lot of rewriting and I just don't have the energy right now. But with that notes aside: I am hoping to all the Gods/esses and Deities of Writing that I get to become part of this program. This has been a life-long dream of mine to be part of something that sounds so...well, amazingly beneficial. Quite frankly it sounds too good to be true. But even if I don't get in for Fall 17, damn it all I am going to apply until I can get in.

If you're interested in applying at some point too, click on the following link. The deadline for Fall-17 has already passed as of 2 minutes ago, but applications still roll out now and again so follow along and look into it for yourself @ https://crwr.uoregon.edu/undergraduates/the-kidd-tutorial/course-components/

The application does ask you to get somewhat personal as you are required to write a short few paragraphs regarding why you want to apply, why you write, what you read and why, etc. I felt I was asked a series of relatively personal questions based around my writing, and I am proud of my statement, so don't be afraid to check it out. Especially if you're considering applying too. 

Creating Something Meaningful

I am so used to writing seemingly "meaningless" drama (drama written for the mere sake of adding conflict when it is entirely unnecessary to add). Of course drama, in the case of Shattered Lives, does serve a purpose of its own: to prove a point. Though other times because it adds excitement when I feel it's lacking, and because drama fills in 'time'. Little "historical" side note: It used to be the only way I felt I could move a story along. Unfortunately this "meaningless" drama managed to leak its way into Changing Kathryn, the lack of meaning compromising the whole of this new series and what I want it to stand for.

I have found it to be a difficult task to write something that will make a difference; that will be void of meaningless drama. The question to ask then, is this: how can my writing contribute to society? This is an incredibly important task for me to tackle in today's social climate in regards to racism, xenophobia, and the future possibilities i.e. the plausible dismantling of our constitution. That is why I have worked so hard with Changing Kathryn. Now don't get me wrong, my Shattered Lives series has been written to add it's own benefits to society, but I readily will admit that there is unnecessary drama. CK has been written and will continue to be written very carefully as my goal is to ensure an international benefit no matter race, gender, age, etc.

To keep true to this promise I have been doing research, my studying involving the meaning behind certain symbols and colors I have used, and that I hold dear within my own spiritual beliefs to incorporate these into the story without being overtly (key word, there) obvious. I am also including: shamanism, other religions, magazine clippings, news articles...everything I am using and writing has a carefully designated purpose in my book. I have also dwelled (unfortunately yet mandatory) into the awful creations known as "Breitbart" in order to gain better understandings of intolerance.

I've taken the time to journal what I have gained/gathered as I go; I would like my future readers to understand further why I wrote the things I have--after all, a lot of carefully planning is going into this book, and I would like to share that with the world. However, due to potential spoiler alerts, I think I will only share these meanings upon request. That is, until I can find a better solution.

Case-in-point, I'm trying to write for change, love, tolerance, and spiritualism. This is what I want to share with you, readers. And I promise to continue striving towards that.

Sincerely,
Sabrina S.K. Regan