Creative Writing Reflection

Writing is an artform that I really loved, especially narrative writing that focuses on story and characters. I felt that writing, along with photography are artforms that are a part of filmmaking, especially narrative films. Previously, I have had written books during my high school years, and although the results were disappointing for myself, I found it a useful experience. When this writing project was given, I felt very happy, because I've also written screenplays and felt that this time, writing a book could tell me how much I've progressed and make me learn more about it. I've come to appreciate writing as an artform a lot, as language is very complex and to convey it in such a particular way is an effective storytelling method.

To begin with, the book I had made was a fictional story, that was based on my experience, and as such the book felt personal. In particular, I felt April as a character is genuine and in some ways reflect myself. At first I felt that I was finished when I completed the draft, but upon reading it, I realised a lot of things could've been better with the story, layout, and how it was written. Because of that, I revised the whole book, which took a long time. However, reading it again this time, I liked it so much better. This is a lesson that a first draft most likely has many mistakes, and so revisions and improvements are important. I'm quite sure that even the current version of the book still needs revisions and improvements, but for now I'm pleased with this version.

Other things I enjoyed during the process is doing the research on Murakami, as it helped me understand how professionals write, even though it was a memoir and not his well-known novels. Looking back on the story as a whole and the characters within it also felt good, because I felt that I understood them most including what part of them I should include or leave out within the book. Moreover, I've understood that although I'm young and may lack experience in life, I feel more comfortable creating stories with issues and emotions I am familiar with. The only part I was struggling with is time, as I felt that I've taken too much time to write, and could've done better if I was more in focus and more productive.

Overall, the creative writing project is very fun and meaningful to me, even though it takes quite some time to finish. I will be sure to take in the lessons I've learned in this project to my future works that involves writing, storytelling, and time management.