A Teller’s Tale: Joining The Circle -- A Discussion of Process in The Writing of a Novel for Young Adults

In this thesis, I reflect on the writing of fiction for young adults against the backdrop of autobiography. Context is provided by the accompanying opening chapters of a novel for young adults—The Defectives of Ulibar— and excerpts from a journal written during the writing process. Aspects of the creative engagement—open brainstorming, focusing, rewriting—are anchored in the specific locations—a country road, a cabin in the woods, an indoor study—in which the processes occur. In the course of this endeavor, I learn that the writing of fiction, and the reflecting on the writing of fiction, are not after all so different. It is only be engaging in the groping, shape-discovering process that I learn what I have to say. I also discover that not only do my characters move from silence and disconnection toward expression and connection, but that I too, through the writing of fiction, am stepping out of the shadows and joining a circle of my peers. Lastly, I take note that with this document, I am taking my place in yet another circle: that of sharing reflectors on creative process, fellows in the Critical and Creative Thinking Program. Each of us adding our tile to an ever-evolving mosaic