An American Man at Age 10 - my reaction

The American Man at Age 10 is written by Susan Orlean. It's a short story out of our Feature Writing assigned book. It's about Colin Duffy, a ten year old boy whom Orlean follows for a little over two weeks. She literally showed up at his house in the morning, and just followed him through his school day, all the while interviewing his parents, teachers, and anyone else who knew him. Talk about immersion!

The biggest reaction I had to this piece was in regards to my own brothers. I have three younger brothers, all very different, but all very similar in that when it came to the basics of a typical 10 year old, they were spot on. As such, my brothers were very similar to Colin at 10 years old. Seemingly sophisticated little men with the interests of boys - like video games, and not admitting that they liked other little girls. They would sneak in video games when mom and dad were not paying attention. They would punch girls who they liked and yell and scream at you if you gave them that look that said, "oooo you have a crush!" I think boys at 10 are fun, and funny.

I love the angle she took with this story - writing about Colin as though he were a man. Like how Colin "lives with his mother, Elaine; his father, Jim...", as though Colin has a choice. I also think she really captures the mind of a 10-year-old. Like when she asks him these questions, and he says he doesn't know any women. Or when he asks her if she will have an abortion if her baby is a boy.

Loved this story. I can't believe how much time she spent really immersing herself! Again, the immersion involved in these great feature writers is a bit amazing to me...

Missing Alice - reaction

This story, Missing Alice, really affected me. It is about a man who revisits his past, specifically all of the places that make him think about his sister Alice, who died when both he and her were young kids. He goes back to the place where she died (a street corner where a car hit her), her grave, his home as a kid - everywhere.

He just really lets it all hang out emotionally in this story. It's a thread I'm seeing with any of these good feature pieces, whether it's about another person, a story, or a piece of someone's history (like this one). You must be emotionally in-tune and, at least it seems, vulnerable.

The reason this story hit me so hard is that back when I had cancer, I was terminal. My family really went through some pretty serious grief - even while I was still alive. I saw many of the emotions that this author went through in the people I loved. They tried to be all happy around me, but I would hear my mother cry in her room, because my room was right next door. It's a totally different viewpoint though, because he was on the side of the person who did not die. I'm quite certain if I gave this story to anyone in my family, they would probably have a tough time with it.

It's good to be alive :-)

Capote - my reaction

I just watched the movie "Capote" with my mom and dad. It was required by my Feature Writing class, for which this blog is dedicated. It is Saturday night, February 6th, late in the evening, and I'm just revelling in this movie. I absolutely loved it. Capote was such a flamboyent and eccentric person, and of course there have been many biopics on him. But this wasn't just another biopic. It was a snapshot of Capote's writing career - specifically, when he discovers, researches and writes his book "In Cold Blood." Philip Seymour Hoffman nails Capote's personality, look, lisp, and general ambience. I even noticed the little upper lip quivers he did - and I didn't realize how close Hoffman was to Capote's character until I watched a few YouTube videos of him on different television shows.

This film really represents what a feature writer must go through to truly absorb themselves in a story. Capote doesn't just watch from the outside and write what he thinks about this town and these men (he writes about a small town where a couple of men kill an entire family with a shotgun). He immerses himself in the town, interviewing anyone and everyone. But the more fascinating part is how he immerses himself in the lives of one of the killers. He starts to deeply care about - almost fall in love with - one of the two killers, Perry Smith. I went through the whole movie thinking that Perry was just along for the ride with the other guy, who was much more crass. However, in the end, you find out that he was the one who killed everyone in the house. Finding this out was one of Capote's goal for his book, and it deeply affects him when he finds out how brutal Perry was. I reacted much the same. I never thought Perry was the one who did it. Capote's reaction - almost a complete change in his personality, really throughout the whole experience - shows just how much he got involved, and even influenced the outcome and the process of the trials, appeals, and eventual death of the killers.

This immersion almost scares me. I would be afraid of getting so connected with the person or persons that I'm writing about that I would almost get too attached. I tend to be that way - very very emotional, and sometimes not logical enough. I would definately need to learn how to control my emotions. However, maybe the people who cannot keep boundaries, like Capote, are the very best feature writers...

Annie Johnson