Writing

I've written several different types of stories for my high school publication, as well as professional publications for internships.

01.

Feature Writing

My favorite form of writing, I've written several features, typically profiles, for my publication.

02.

Sports Writing

After serving as Sports Editor in my sophomore year, I found my bread and butter doing sports stories across all platforms.

03.

News Writing

I've carved a niche for myself on the ODYSSEY website reporting on the everyday stories in the high school and Athens communities.

04.

Opinions Writing

I've written several editorials in my column "Tell Me, Wy" in addition to the other personal and opinionated content I've produced.

04.

Professional Publication

With three internships at local Athens papers, I've written several stories for circulation to regional audiences.

Photo by Lucas Donnelly

Photo by Aza Khan

Photo by Wyatt Meyer

Practice and Philosophy

Structural Conception

I conceptualize my writing like a movie. I like to start in the most heated moment, where the drama is highest and the tension is most palpable – “en media res,” if you prefer. Once I’ve articulated that moment, I think of myself as zooming out – I’ve shown the reader a poignant moment, now they need to understand why it’s significant. By answering that unspoken question, I keep the reader engaged, and ideally, loop that moment back in at the end of the story.

My Goal: 'Evocation'

“Evocative” is a somewhat loaded word, but it’s what I think about when I’m writing a story of substance. I don’t want to tell, I don’t even necessarily want to show – I want to evoke. If I can communicate an idea or an emotion or a feeling or a sense of place or character, then I’ve succeeded in bringing the reader into my narrative.

Write like it's fiction

WAIT!!! I don’t mean write falsely or without regard for the truth. When I say ‘write like it’s fiction,’ I mean I write as the authoritative voice on a subject and build a world for the reader. Fiction is an excellent guide for imagery and narrative techniques; my writing aims to embody these same techniques through the lens of truth.

My Favorite Quotes

Dr. Javier Soler plays an audio recording for his second-period Advanced Placement Spanish Language and Culture class on Oct. 3. The author Isabel Allende is discussing her novel “La casa de los espíritus” (The House of Spirits), when she is cut off by the disembodied voice from the ceiling.

“Ensure all students are in a classroom and lock the doors. Normal classroom activities may still proceed.”

Without looking up from her laptop screen, a girl towards the back of the classroom asks, “If there’s a shooting, can we run?”

Nobody laughs.

-- After Apalachee

We, as a nation, have decided to get back with our abusive ex in hopes that this time, things really are different. Only time will tell if we were right.

-- The future of democracy

How can we expect pre-schoolers to stand up for themselves when they’re still learning to walk, or high schoolers to fight for our safety when we’re mandated to be in the very place we know is dangerous?

-- Can we be safe?

For some, “Dirty Dancing” will never stop being a forgettable movie that never goes deeper than the on-screen romance. But for others revisiting the movie, it will pose an alarming question about 1963 and 2022: how different are they?

-- Social commentary: "Dirty Dancing"

For those who knew him, Percy’s death was a “where were you when” moment. Geneva recalls “feeling something leaving her” as she drove across the border between Georgia and South Carolina on her way to the hospital. Johnson remembers being interrupted from a pick-up game of his own to receive the news. Smith says he refused to believe it until he saw Percy’s body at the funeral.

-- The Impossible Dream

This vignette synthesized observational journalism – this event happened exactly as I described it in my Spanish class the week after the Apalachee High School shooting. In the second half of the vignette, I used short, precise sentences, echoing the diction of the quote for impact.

It’s a yeoman’s work to put political topics in an understandable, entertaining, and serious light for high schoolers. That said, I feel through the use of a simile, I accomplished all of these things in a concise manner.

The metaphor’s sense of impossibility here captured my emotion perfectly – the editorial talks about my sense of hopelessness, and the beginning of this excerpt highlights the inherent problem with gun violence advocacy with imagery and a powerful, evocative sense of wrongdoing.

In a social commentary where I attempted to bring new light to the abortion debate through its portrayal in “Dirty Dancing,” I felt this kicker question forced the reader to confront their own notions regarding progress, whether in regards to abortion or in the newfound meaning in what’s meant to be an innocuous classic.

Looking through transcriptions, I noticed that, by pure chance, I happened to have three quotes that mentioned the same moment: when the stakeholder learned of Percy Eberhart’s death. Reading these, the writing flowed naturally – I had the four sentences, written with a single, strong verb for repetitive emphasis done in less than two minutes.