The 5 Lesson's I've Learned from WRT 105 as the Members of One Direction:

One Direction, 2014


For this last blog post, I thought, what better way to showcase what I've learned throughout the year than relating it to my favorite boy band? Get ready to experience all of the ways I have grown as a writer (and how that relates to One Direction). Happy reading! :) 

         #1: Write about things that interest you and that you have a passion for (Zayn)

    It’s no secret that Zayn Malik, one of the original members of the band “One Direction”, decided to pursue a solo career in 2015. As millions of adolescent hearts broke around the world, it seemed to be a huge relief for the pop star. Many are quick to judge Malik for leaving the band so abruptly, but it was ultimately the best decision for him creatively and mentally. He realized that he did not enjoy the music he was making in One Direction and it really affected his well-being. While it did hurt my fangirl heart to hear him say this following his departure, it leaves us with a lesson that is crucial to all aspects of life: doing things that you truly have a passion for. It seems like such a simple concept, but not one that many become so accustomed to so early in life. This year I had so much freedom to learn and write about the things that I truly enjoyed such as the New Yorker assignment, the Op-docs, and my piece about Banksy’s “Stop and Search” painting. As an extremely slow writer I found that writing about my own interest’s makes the process so much easier. It allowed me to analyze and research things in a way that created meaning to my own opinions on the topic, which evidently became reflective in my writing. Who knew that teen pop-sensation, singer, songwriter Zayn Malik and my high school writing class would be teaching me the same life lessons! 

#2: Reflecting is fun! (Liam) 

This year I found that I did lots and lots of reflecting. From our unit essays to articles we’ve read in class, writing about them wasn’t my absolute favorite pastime (no offense Ms. Schilly). But as the year was winding down and I began to look through all of my blog posts, I realized that it was actually a great experience for me. I have always been a student who would hand in their assignments and never look back at it in fear that I would cringe at my work, but I realized how rewarding it could be. To see the mistakes I’ve made and how I could improve on them is a skill that I will carry with me in the future, and shows that it’s okay to be a little critical of yourself! If not, then how do we expect to grow as students, writers, and professionals? It was also nice to see comments from peers and teachers on things that I did well - knowing that people appreciated my insight was cool to see. Liam Payne is one of the members of One Direction that I noticed reflects on his time in the band the most out of all of them. Not only does he cherish the moments he had and their achievements, but he also recognizes the things they could’ve done differently that could’ve helped them grow as musicians. I’d like to think that I do the same to keep a good balance between criticism and recognition of my hard work, as both help me grow as a writer. 

#3) Organization is the key to success (Niall) 

I mentioned previously that I am an EXTREMELY slow writer. On average I’d say it takes me about two hours to write a three page essay, and although part of it is probably due to procrastination, I’d say that a lot of it has to do with my scatter-brain. I often have a hard time organizing my thoughts in my brain because I am constantly thinking about ideas, opinions, and simply the right way to say things. I contemplate how I want my audience to perceive my writing and how to get my message across in a way that is meaningful, which means there's a lot of deleting and rewriting throughout my process. My unit two essay about Banksy’s “Stop and Search” was when I truly started to utilize my organizational skills. Everytime I sat down to write an essay I would arrange all of my ideas by each paragraph onto sticky notes and stick them to my wall. It really helped me to focus my work and remember the points I needed to make in my writing pieces. Niall Horan, the Irish bloke of the group, is a virgo so he is inherently systematic and diligent in many aspects of his life. That and the fact that his albums are so beautifully crafted to be one cohesive piece of art is why he related to this lesson the most. If you listen to his album from start to finish, you’ll realize that he organized his work in a way that tells a story. With my own writing, that is something that I strive to achieve from my first paragraph to the last. Seeing all of my thoughts written down on a piece of paper showed me where my ideas fit the best and how it would all manifest into a full writing piece later on. Overall, being more organized has made writing a lot easier and is something that will be a part of my writing process moving forward. 

#4) There is usually not one “right” answer (Louis)

Unlike all of the pictures that are shown in my blog posts, oftentimes when you are analyzing an article, an idea, or an argument the answer is not always black and white. Louis Tomlinson had a huge amount of pressure on him to release an amazing first solo album in 2020. After the massive success of One Direction the anticipation of his work led to restless nights in the studio trying to find the right words and what people expect him to write about. The beautiful thing about making music and writing in general is that there never has to be a right way of doing something or one right idea. You can be vulnerable in your work and capture ideas that are completely unique to how you see things. This was something I learned in the last unit with my argumentative essay, which I had a hard time completing because like Louis, I couldn’t find the “right” answer. Once I realized that I didn’t necessarily have to stick to one stance of my argument it helped me expand my writing into an honest piece of work. I began looking at all sides, point of views, and perspectives that allowed me to show my audience that the truth is how YOU see it, and sometimes there is no right or wrong. It went against my mind telling me to choose one side, and it ultimately made my essay so much better.  With my topic I was challenged to expand my own ideas on what I perceive as the "correct" way to view things, which is a lesson that can be applied to many aspects of life.

#5) Look past the norms and the single stories (Harry)

    And last but certainly not least … *drumroll* The biggest lesson I learned this year was to not confine ourselves to what society rules as normal. Whether it’s ideology, gender stereotypes, or social norms, I have learned to be more critical of the outdated systems that sanction our society. Our first experience on the topic of norms and single stories was Chimamanda Adichie’s TED talk. She spoke about how dangerous a single story can be to a person or group based on the stereotypes that people make about others, and put into perspective how I’ve done this in my own life. I realized that I need to unlearn all of the bias I had towards people (that was conditioned by the culture around me) and educate myself. Harry Styles, who has definitely made himself out to be the more “flamboyant” or eccentric counterpart to his former bandmates is someone that perfectly represents stepping outside of the norm. This past December he was the first male solo artist to grace the cover of Vogue Magazine and shocker! He was wearing a dress. This caused a storm of outrage from anonymous haters on social media, making horrible assumptions about his sexuality and identity and shaming him for his self-expression. It even prompted a particularly irritating character in the media, Candace Owens, to go on a rant about “bringing back manly men”. This makes me wonder, who cares what men and women choose to wear? What truly makes someone a “manly man”? It opened my eyes to how society resorts to making false assumptions about people who are unapologetically and unequivocally themselves. I touch more on the topic of gender norms and stereotypes in my reflection on the film Tough Guise 2 which goes into more detail on redefining social norms. Like Harry Styles, I am finding myself constantly pushing to start new conversations and break through the norm, despite the scrutiny of others.