THINGS I WASN’T SUPPOSED TO SAY: A Mosaic Memoir
Date
2013-12-31
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MFA in Creative Writing, The University of Tampa
Abstract
This creative thesis project is a collection of personal essays that constitute a memoir manuscript. Intermingled among traditional essay forms in this collection are experimental layouts, including several fragmented pieces made of abbreviated snapshots in time that when pieced together form a larger picture. There is a braided piece that entwines two different stories set in two different time frames, an alphabetical list, and even a personal letter. Several relevant photos are scattered throughout the book making this work a true mosaic.
Each chapter has a confessional quality, and the self-revelation merges into a didactic tone in some of the later chapters. Beneath the overarching themes of secrets and taboos are instances of abandonment, abuse, and death by various means. The bulk of the content is bleak, but reasons for hope abound in the end.
The uniqueness of this memoir lies in the author’s ability to weave seamlessly in and out of time with the use of historic present tense verbs alongside past tenses. This effect of drawing a reader into scenes that occurred distant in time is the single most fascinating lesson the writer carries away with her from The University of Tampa’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program.
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Keywords
Memoir, Secrets, Taboos, Abandonment, Abuse, Death