Welcome HoMe
For our Capstone project, Abigail Wilkins and I decided that we wanted to create something in line with our professional interests. Since we are both pursuing careers in the marketing field (and this particular field often includes collaborations), our goal was to create a promotional video for incoming students at the University of Michigan. We had noticed that there was previously no "Welcome" message to students, from students. Therefore, we set out to create a video that would highlight the best aspects of everyday life at this University. Over the course of the semester, our project posed numerous challenges. However, our final product is something that we are proud of, and we feel as though incoming students would appreciate receiving something like it. To view the video, click here!
.
Other Minor in Writing Work
While in the Minor, I have managed to produce some more traditional writing as well. Below are some of my favorite pieces, which I feel taught me a lot about myself by uncovering more universal truths.
Adulting
For the Gateway project, I set out to create something that would make sense of the confusion I was feeling. I've always been intrigued by the transition between youth and adulthood, and I found myself concerned over the fact that I didn't yet feel as though I had made that leap. I interviewed my five roommates, asking them endless questions. The roommates talk about life, growing up, what it means to become an adult, and if they feel as though they'll ever reach that point. The results are candid, relatable, and provide an undoctored view of the average college student. A special thanks to my five housemates, who opened up to me even when I was shining a lamp in their eyes and asking them tough questions. To view the documentary, click here! To check out more of the process wihin the Gateway, head over to my Gateway portfolio!
A journey through the Minor in Writing.
When I first entered into the Minor in Writing, I had no idea what to expect. I knew that I had always loved to write, but I had never before considered myself a writer. In the Gateway course, this dramatically changed. Instead of writing on the surface solely for the purpose of receiving a good grade, I began to learn how to write about myself, for myself. I learned the real reason why writing has always been so important to me, and I created a project that greatly mirrored my mental and emotional state at the time. Now, in the Capstone, I am able to take the tools I gathered in the Gateway and expand on them even more. I have created an account of my evolution as a writer, and I am now able to turn focus on the future and my professional goals for my final project.
Why I Write
Our first project in Writing 220 asked us to evaluate the motives behind why we write. I struggled with this particular project because, until now, I've only written because I was told to. Diving deeper and figuring out reasons beyond this proved to be both rewarding and exciting. My main takeaway was that I write to learn more about myself -- which I think is pretty cool.
Writer's Evolution
The first assignment we were given in the Capstone course was this: detail your evolution as a writer. I truly enjoyed writing this piece because I was able to look back at my older writing and see just how far I have come since the days of English 125.
Picture This
In English 325: Narrative Nonfiction, we were given three extremely open-ended prompts. As I mention in my evolution essay, these prompts used to really intimidate me. However, by the time I wrote the third one, I had grown to love my own voice and way of telling stories. I chose to focus on my fear of change within my life, and relate this fear to my compulsion to take pictures. It ended up teaching me a lot about myself, which was unexpected.