jackshoegazer | I am a writer. (Reply)

Hey kids! I got to see my letter of recommendation. I was pretty floored. I don't even know what to say and am even more embarrassed that I haven't finished writing my application essay. Below the cut is the letter of recommendation, if you're into that sort of thing:

January 29, 2010

To Whom It May Concern:

I write this letter on behalf of my former student, Jeremy Parker, who is currently applying to UW-Madison’s English/Creative Writing program. While I have written past letters for students interested in creative writing, I must say: Jeremy by far stands out as the most well-read and one of the best writers I’ve had the pleasure to teach. I am delighted, therefore, to think of him at UW working with the Creative Writing and English Faculty there, since I myself graduated from UW with an emphasis on creative writing 20+ years ago. Jeremy, I am confident, would be a new and forceful voice to join the voices of writers and readers at the UW English department.

My confidence comes from having worked with Jeremy in three different classes: English 1, Introduction to Literature, and Introduction to Creative Writing. In our first semester together in English 1, Jeremy quickly distinguished himself as the strongest writer in the group. He took on each assignment with enthusiasm, sophistication, creativity, and sharp analytical skills that led to rich papers far above the level of most I see at MATC. I remember, for instance, that he wrote a cogent and compelling argument for the need of a one-world government, a paper which dared to take on post 9/11 nationalism and conflicts between the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and U.S. foreign policy. While I challenged his final thesis, I was nevertheless swayed by his carefully researched arguments and examples. I was equally impressed by how Jeremy was willing to critique and respond to his peers’ papers; he was such a keen reader that he was consistently sought out by peers during workshop days. In short, from day one, I realized that Jeremy was a writer, simply put.

I was thus delighted when Jeremy took my advice and enrolled in my creative writing and literature course. He is one of the few writers I’ve known who can skillfully navigate between fiction and poetry. Over and over, his stories and poems have struck a clear chord inside me, for they consistently illuminate their subject matter, if only for a moment. In large part, I think, Jeremy’s sheer dedication to and discipline around writing leads to occasional bursts of well-deserved brilliant one-offs. By semester’s end he was turning in poem after publishable poem that took my breath away. As just one example, in his poem “Notes on God,” the reader encounters a sudden flash and tumble of language down the page that takes itself from a sarcophagus in ancient Egypt to its own mundane conclusion: “the driver needs a tip.” His stories were equally strong, and I even believe he’s been working on a novel.

So this has been my experience of Jeremy: he’s gifted, extremely bright, calm and cool, mature, responsible, quiet but always present, always engaged. I am sure he will write no matter what, but I hope the Creative Writing program at UW-Madison has the opportunity to provide him more readers, guidance, and opportunities for feedback as well as hear and learn from his remarkable voice.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.

Sincerely,

Dr. Amy Minett
English Instructor
Madison Area Technical College