Creative Writing Commons^™

Second Chances, Annette E. Slack

Theses

This project will focus on the dilemmas one faces in life. The main character in this project is Brandon Miller. Brandon has obstacles placed in his life because of choices that were made prior to his birth. Brandon's mother Angela was a young single parent when she made the decision to forgo school to raise a child in a very challenging environment. The neighborhood where Brandon and his mother live is filled with criminals and down on their luck individuals that choose methods of crime and drugs to get ahead rather than hard work and education. Despite the obstacles, Brandon's …

How To Make A Love Box, Sarah Wienke

Theses

No abstract provided.

Born Under A Lucky Chinese Sign, Just Wish I Was Chinese., Suzanne Newsham

Theses

This thesis is a cumulation of my life and my career as a student at Lindenwood University. Each essay is a comedic peek into the chaos that is my life. I was heavily influenced by the writing styles of David Sedaris and Sloane Crosley. Their views and easy read style of writing influenced me to write the same type of stories.

The first essay speaks to the influence that my parents had on me by making me feel overly loved and accepted even though I was adopted. "Not a dirty word in my house."

I continue with various lengths of …

Past Due: A Collection Of Poems, Byron Lee

Theses

"Past Due" is a co1lection of poems written almost entirely in free verse and almost exclusively based on personal experience. I find, at least at this point in my growth as a writer, that when I try to adhere to poetic structure, I feel confined. My style is sparse because I feel that this aesthetic best cuts to the emotion I'm trying to convey. I also love playing with line breaks, since I find that doing so can give several lines in a poem their own statement, like each poem makes its own statement even when bound in a co1Iection …

Through Windows, Sarah E. Jones

Theses

This short story collection focuses on the female perspective and expectations based on a host of influences: familial, cultural, and mythical. Even in extraordinary circumstances decisions are made about how to lives one's life. The collection explores the context in which women put their life experiences and personal relationships, and the space needed to consider these things. Readers familiar with Lorrie Moore's short fiction may find echoes of her solitary souls in these stories.

No Serenade For Spies, Cedric T. Jackson

Theses

The focus and purpose of this thesis has resulted in the culmination of a full-length novel. Since fiction is most often categorized by a specific genre, the actions and motivations in terms of characters and plot development will more than likely place this particular project in the genre of either a spy novel or action thriller. The introductory essay further elaborates on my journey as a writer, and the creative process behind the writing of No Serenade for Spies.

From the outset the goal was to create a plot-driven story with strong as well as interesting and believable characters. …

Seven Hour Education, Amy Recktenwald

Theses

Seven Hour Education is a hybrid of a collection of personal essays, and a short memoir. It chronicles my experience at the death of my son, Nicholas, and the resultant aftermath, some of which has come still years later. At times the material is contradictory in content and emotion, but this is to be expected as grief is a conflicting and fluid state of being. Much of the writing focuses on the "unexpected," situations and considerations most people aren't aware of in the life and perspective of the recently bereaved.

"Seven Hour Education" narrates the even of my son's birth, …

The Woman In Me Is The Woman You See: A Collection Of Poems And Two Essays, Jennifer L. Redd

Theses

This thesis will focus on poetry and two essays that act as bookends to my poems. The focus of the poems is mainly motherhood and how time, like the seasons, changes with every passing day. Winter is also a predominant theme in my thesis, as that was the season surrounding me during my project.

A personal reflective essay opens up my thesis. It summarizes my life of writing and how personal everyday experiences shape my poetry. I speak of the inspiration I am given from my family, friends, and working in a poverty stricken school.

A majority of the poems …

& Yet, Alexander S. Balogh

Theses

Unavailable.

Smack In The Day Of Distemper, Nancy J. Baumann

Theses

Not available.

Rockwood Revisited: More Exciting Tales From The "Hood", James A. Clay

Theses

The fol lowing essay and two short stories introduce a sequel to the book, The Rockwood Files: Tales from the Hood, which I wrote and published in 2002. The working title of the sequel is Rockwood Revisited. The original work is a collection of inspirational short stories that tell how several courageous inner city residents struggled to rise above obstacles they faced in search of a better life. Set in the fictional neighborhood known as Rockwood Square on Chicago's Westside, the stories chronicle life experiences of several of the neighborhood's past and present residents as seen through the eyes of …

The Casaloma, Justin P. Burnside

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Casaloma was written to challenge held beliefs in what constitutes genre, what constitutes "selfhood," and what constitutes borders.

First, it is an examination of Rimbaud's famous line, "I is an other," which challenges the position of the "I" in relation not only to the self, but the self in relation to the world around it. This I call the poetics of the pre-positional, or prepositional relationship. This poetics is explored and tested through the voices, and the suigenerous nature of the material that constitutes the book.

Secondly, this book is meant to be an exploration of ideas that were …

Dancing In The Ashes, Vytautas Adolph Malesh

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The following novel is the third draft of my creative thesis entitled Dancing in the Ashes . It is an exploration of the Detroit rave scene in its dying days, and it mixes real and imagined places and events in order to portray the essence of that time, if not the factuality. The bulk of the novel follows just over two weeks in the life of Thomas Kowalski, a drug dealer living with his parents in suburban Detroit. He parties constantly and seldom works except as necessary to keep his job at a local record store - an invaluable source …