The ATA Chronicle - March/April 2023 - 26

Behind all the " other people's
words, " there has always
been an urge lurking to create
something I can proudly claim
as my own.
me to " leave it for later
when there's time. " As the
pandemic confined us to our
homes, many of us thought
about potential business and/
or career changes. For me,
it's not as much about career
advancement as about selfactualization,
regardless of
whether I'm ready or not. At
this stage of my life, a voice
in me sounds louder every
day: " If not now, when?! "
So, I finally signed up for
the creative writing program
at the School of Continuing
Studies at the University of
Toronto and picked creative
nonfiction as the genre to
pursue. This genre includes
memoir writing, which aligns
with my goal of putting my
family's story into some
form of literary work.
Once the actual program
started, reality hit me in
several ways. As a nonnative
speaker, I was
hoping that attending a
writing program offered
by an English-speaking
institution would help
" improve " my language
skills in English. It
doesn't. The program is
not designed as a set of
language courses. Instead,
the instructors teach
about characters, settings,
points of view, and other
techniques of the writing
craft. The " language " is
about structures, styles,
conciseness, etc., rather than
grammar. The instructors do
flag grammatical mistakes
but drilling on grammar is
not the focus. If you want to
improve your English skills,
a grammar book or style
guide would be much
more helpful.
More often than not,
I've found myself the only
non-native English speaker
in my classes, but learning
everything as if I were a
native. Yet, I must not shy
away from this challenge
as my goal is to tell my
story outside the Chinese
language. Different from the
task of translating, creative
writing is about learning
to create scenes, sounds,
colors, and even smells-all
that can arouse people's
senses, convey emotions,
and reveal people's desires,
hopes, and struggles. It's
all about storytelling and
how to draw readers to your
writing to the point where
they can't put it down.
We do weekly assignments
on these themes and critique
each other's work in class
the following week. Critiques
are conducted in a safe
environment where everyone
can voice their opinion
and ask questions without
judgment or personal
prejudice. After taking five
courses, I've gained valuable
insights into creative
writing. Though I still make
grammatical mistakes, I now
have a better sense of how
to pinpoint potential pitfalls
(such as tenses, prepositions,
etc.) when I work with the
English language. And on a
wider perspective, I find that
my limit in " word weaponry "
isn't just an issue I need to
work on in English, but also
in my native language when
I write in Chinese. Writing is
not a natural occurrence but
a learned skill. All writers,
native or non-native, acquire
such a skill through learning
and practicing.
The best part about
participating in a writing
program is making
connections with people
with similar aspirations.
Every student has a story
to tell, be it losing a loved
one, discovering past family
history, or reconnecting
with an estranged parent.
Everyone has a burning urge
to share an authentic story
and touch people's hearts.
Instructors are not only
helpful in widening your
perspective and enhancing
your skills, but they also
offer industry insights and
professional help. At one of
the " Life Writing " courses,
my instructor, Beth Kaplan,
was very impressed with one
of my pieces about ballroom
dancing and helped me edit
it professionally and have
it published in the " First
Person " section of the Globe
and Mail, one of Canada's
national newspapers.
It's about Connecting,
Not Getting Rich
For burgeoning writers,
breaking into an age-old
industry is a tough challenge.
Major publishing houses all
require professional literary
agents to bring them projects,
26 The ATA Chronicle | March/April 2023
www.atanet.org
http://www.atanet.org
The ATA Chronicle - March/April 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The ATA Chronicle - March/April 2023
