Windward Review Vol. 20 (2022): Beginnings and Endings
"Beginnings and Endings" (2022) challenged South Texas writers and beyond to narrate structures of beginnings and ends. What results is a collection of poetry, prose, hybrid writing, and photography that haunts, embraces, and consoles all the same. Similar to past WR volumes, this collection defies easy elaboration - it contains diverse tones, languages, colors, and creative spaces. Creative pieces within the text builds upon others, allowing polyvocal narratives to interlock and defy the logic of 'beginning-middle-end'. By the end of this collection, you will neither sense nor crave the finality that a typical text brings. Instead, you will be inspired to learn and create beyond a narrative linear structure. Your reading and support is sincerely appreciated.
"Beginnings and Endings" (2022) challenged South Texas writers and beyond to narrate structures of beginnings and ends. What results is a collection of poetry, prose, hybrid writing, and photography that haunts, embraces, and consoles all the same. Similar to past WR volumes, this collection defies easy elaboration - it contains diverse tones, languages, colors, and creative spaces. Creative pieces within the text builds upon others, allowing polyvocal narratives to interlock and defy the logic of 'beginning-middle-end'. By the end of this collection, you will neither sense nor crave the finality that a typical text brings. Instead, you will be inspired to learn and create beyond a narrative linear structure. Your reading and support is sincerely appreciated.
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Congratulations,<br />
Barrio Writers <strong>20</strong>21<br />
Athena Armijo• Sophia Chapa• Ethan Clarke• Jacob A. Clauch •<br />
Janet Doe• K. Elise• Evolvere (Derek)• Sophie Johnson• Jasmine<br />
Martin• Leo Monsavais• Isadora Pak• Aleena Roy• Alisha Roy<br />
Hello again!<br />
We are fortunate as editors of the <strong>Windward</strong> <strong>Review</strong> to feature poetry produced<br />
by the Barrio Writer’s youth workshop in our collection of work. For many writers at the<br />
camp, this is their first publication; this may even be their first time creating poetry<br />
or prose at all in a workshop setting. Throughout a whole week in summer of <strong>20</strong>22,<br />
each writer practiced an extreme form of vulnerability in writing <strong>and</strong> submitting to<br />
an established literary journal. This feat is rarely attempted by most people, yet these<br />
young voices dem<strong>and</strong>ed an audience! As an attendee <strong>and</strong> mentor at a summer writing<br />
camp, there is nothing more exciting than the ability to project a writer’s budding voice.<br />
I started writing in a similar setting to the Barrio Writers camp: the summer<br />
after I turned 14, my mom registered me for a week-long writing workshop at TAMU-CC.<br />
Writing wasn’t an activity that I ever expressed interest in before, but because I needed<br />
something to fill time, she thought it would be worth a try. This was the beginning of<br />
something. Whether it was a lifelong love for poetry or an undying need to feel heard,<br />
this beginning is lush <strong>and</strong> fruited with so many beautiful experiences. I am now preparing<br />
for a MFA in Poetry at the Creative Writing program in Texas State, leaving behind a<br />
blossoming community of writers that extends all the way to the Antonio E. Garcia Arts<br />
<strong>and</strong> Education Center. Though the journey from that first summer camp has been long<br />
<strong>and</strong> winding, I know that I’m still at the start of something, something I can face with the<br />
support from those around me.<br />
“<strong>Beginnings</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Endings</strong>” is such a provoking theme for this journal because<br />
there isn’t a clear difference between the two concepts; where an ending dries out <strong>and</strong><br />
dies, a beginning springs up in its place. We are constantly in a state of flux, where<br />
boundaries are blurred <strong>and</strong> there may not be a clear vision of the path forward.<br />
Whichever direction you chose, I hope that you see the beginning of something take<br />
place. If you can’t find that beginning, create it. Create poetry, music, code, art, research,<br />
plans, schemes, or strategies to survive. Your imagination is the most powerful tool, one<br />
that people often forget to use once we dictate ourselves towards a certain goal. One<br />
step in the right direction could be the first foot down a rabbit hole of self-discovery.<br />
Above all else, remember that you are surrounded by a community of support at every<br />
point in your journey, <strong>and</strong> we are so lucky to see you be you in your primordial form. This<br />
letter itself is not an ending, but a portal to the beginning of a beautiful body of work.<br />
Thank you again to Dr. Robin Johnson of TAMU-CC <strong>and</strong> the Barrio Writers for allowing<br />
us to publish this next collection of pieces; your workshops sparked a connection with<br />
young writers that we cherish forever.<br />
Onto more beginnings,<br />
Raven Reese, Assistant Managing Editor<br />
89 <strong>Windward</strong> <strong>Review</strong> <strong>Vol</strong>ume <strong>20</strong>