The Hustle and Bustle

I took my first creative writing class junior year; it was focused on creative nonfiction. I was interested in taking this course because I love writing about my personal experiences and I thought this class would be the perfect way to get more experience learning how to do it successfully. I also enjoyed how this class was different than the other writing courses I had taken. During this class we had weekly assignment where we had to do short one-page writing assignments. We would bring these to class every week and discuss them and look at and think about one another’s writing. The class discussion about each other’s writing was one of my favorite parts about the course. The assignment for this particular one was to go to a place and observe it for a period of time and then use imagery and description to tell a story about the place you were observing. The requirements were very loose, and I remember wanting to find the perfect place and moment to write about.

This piece doesn’t have an obviously apparent argument. The argument is woven in the details describing the unique hustle and bustle of this restaurant during Sunday brunch. Because of this it was harder to write than I expected. It’s difficult to use only details in order to tell a story, but details can be so powerful when used effectively. It was also difficult to decide which details to include and not to include, some details I encountered were interesting but didn’t contribute to telling the story. I liked having such a strong focus on detail for this particular exercise, I feel like I was then able to bring that to subsequent pieces I wrote. I’m happy with how it turned out, and more than that I think I learned a lot from the exercise by paying attention to my surroundings.