I met my project mentor over Zoom while taking the literature course The Short Story, a class which examined a variety of short stories and their context of fitting into the canon of recognized literature. One of the stories was a Baldwin story, which reinvigorated my interest in his writing. My mentor’s work also deals with Black writers, and specifically W.B. DuBois, whose sociological studies were deeply impactful to the field. I really enjoyed the conversations I had in that class, and found being able to bounce my ideas off my professor and peers helped shape my thinking around the short stories we dissected. In doing so for “Sonny’s Blues” and subsequently choosing to write an essay on it for the class, I got to clearly see how Baldwin used his language and themes to display the transformative power of empathy. It clicked for me just how studying the technique of other writers could be utilized to sharpen and clarify my own writing. In speaking with my mentor, who gave me input based on his knowledge, additional resources to consider like articles, and encouragement, I was able to obtain momentum on this project. 

My professional goals involve continuing to write and hopefully get published. I know I want to work in the publishing industry and my professors and Pitt’s alumni network could help me in forming connections to professionals already established in the industry.

I would love to collaborate with someone in the film department, as I think making a short film would be a deeply engaging project. I’ve turned a poem into a type of short film before, as well as a little stop-motion movie. I enjoyed having visual and audio components to consider, although these projects would likely be much more refined if I knew anything about film or photography.