Anahita's Discussion of Imitations

Imitation of a genre that attempts to be continually innovative is a daunting task. As a group, we decided that essays in Brevity that were innovative had changes in format, whereas our imitation texts would have changes in style or language. Essentially imitation texts are creatively constructed narratives, possible compositions including: listing of sentence fragments; disconnected vignettes; poetic style and/or appearance.

Based on my collection of essays, Issue 25, I chose to use the model of vignettes for my first imitation text that discusses my father’s recent job lay-off. Framing is an important component of short creative nonfiction and I decided to open the essay with a moment that shared something about me, but had deeper realized meaning at the end of the essay: the reason I didn’t live in Ohio very long is because we moved for my father’s job.

The essay reads like separate stories till two back to back sections of dialogue which context makes clear are connected. The flow of the essay is also dominated by the emotional heights of the narrative. When I am in distress, sentences are longer and pleading—with the use of rhetorical questions. These long sentences build tension and quicken the pace. When things come to a close and the news is sinking in, my sentences are short and obvious to slow the moments between them.

A characteristic evident in all Brevity pieces is that they force the reader to make certain connections and conclusions; everything is not laid out. This aids in the genre’s desire to be universal because people can easily adapt meaning to fit their own situations, taking the essays for what they want them to be. I attempted to create this situation by closing the essay with a guiding question: Where are you from? The answers tie back to the previous mention of Ohio, indicating to the reader that I’ve moved a lot. The connection that it’s for my dad’s job is left up to them to make.

My second imitation is a less serious moment, but these are often used by Brevity authors in attempt to get at some of life’s bigger issues. This essay deals with self-confidence and identity, though very lightly. I chose to adhere to a stricter narrative format with this essay—no section breaks and no vignettes. But I framed the narrative with two poetry-like stanzas at the beginning and the end. Our group chose to write to imitations, one purposefully deviating from the narrative form, in order to express that even more abstract essays are ‘normal’ Brevity standard. The ‘stanzas’ of my essay are composed of fragments and single-word statements. The first of both sets ends with an italicized complete sentence. The rest of the essay is conducted in regular narrative style.

The fragmented style is experimental writing but not innovative for Brevity essays; another component of our analysis included examining authors’ use of grammar conventions. Very often they disregard normal conventions in favor of composing and controlling every aspect of their piece. I felt this same artistry when deciding where the period should fall in my series of words or fragments. A simple move one space left or two spaces right made the paragraph read differently and the idea conveyed change. This essay takes on the strong characteristics of short creative nonfiction: heavy imagery, metaphor, and syntax composed of stacked phrases.

Exciting for a writer is the frame Brevity allows one to work in—even in adhering to standards, you can justly give it personalized, creative touches. Even abstaining from these spurts of creativity is a decision about craft in itself. Brevity allows much flexibility of those working within its genre, imitating its innovative style.