A group of us at my work decided we would sign up for an online course offered from Stanford University called Creativity: Music to My Ears.

This past week we were given our first assignments: create a playlist and an album cover for my life.

I spent a lot of time over the last few days putting homework together, and I thought I’d share them.

Playlist

The songs on this playlist may come as no surprise if you know my taste in music. They’re all acoustic songs (or acoustic versions of songs), and they express a chronological progression of life events.

I feel like the playlist is assembled with the right amount of melancholy to fit my personality, especially because I made it on a gloomy, rainy afternoon.

Album Cover

My visual inspiration came from Dashboard Confessional’s So Impossible and Summer’s Kiss EPs. I always felt like those album covers captured a simple moment of life, and that’s what I wanted to capture as a representation for my life. And what better way to show life and by showing love, which is why I went with the couple kissing.

The title, Just Not the Poetry, comes from my feelings about myself as a writer. I’m a published poet, but I’m always desperately trying to write fiction and essays to be known for them. I haven’t submitted any pieces to be published because I don’t think they’re ready yet, but I’ve been trying not to be noticed for my poetry because I’m a little afraid of what it means to be a young poet. There is a stereotype that comes with it, and I want to avoid that. Generally, I’m willing to discuss my life and my writing, just not the poetry.

That’s all for now. I’ll try to keep updating my assignments if they are post-worthy.