Letters to the Romance World

My name is Sam Wallace. I was born in North York, Ontario, but moved to what my parents affectionately refer to as the “wild west” long before my earliest memories. In school, I always wanted to major in English. I wrote a short story in second grade which my teacher went on to include in her dissertation paper, and a more recent writing, a swashbuckling novel about the Golden Age of Piracy, remains an ongoing project of mine–one which I hope to have published in the near future. Beyond these personal pursuits, yet no less complementary when put together, it is courtesy of a love of literature and all things artistic which has led me to taking this course on the Romance World.

It has been said that the best job is the one that does not feel like work at all. I share this same approach to reading, and it is for this reason I have chosen to take this course with an expansive works list. I am receptive to learning about different approaches to writing and the novel perspectives which accompany them. After all, there is no way to improve without first studying those who came before. Because of this, as well as a lack of knowledge of works from the Romance World, I hope to enrich my understanding of literature through a new lens, implementing these strategies in my own writing and striving towards literary excellence.

Right away, the format of this course appears refreshing. I enjoy the idea of cataloguing my thoughts on my own website as opposed to embarking on the tired old routine of Canvas. There is an individualistic element to the exercise. Looking through the reading list once more, I’m excited to see where this course takes me in collecting my thoughts and learning from both the authors and what myself–as well as my classmates–take away from their works. The course website, wherein all our responses are archived, serves this academic goal.

One cannot claim to know what the future holds, but through the benefit of hindsight, I like to think the past has the power to influence what comes next. If one knows that they are skilled in a field, and take the necessary steps to better themselves often enough in said field, such actions can only be seen as time well spent. Through taking Romance Studies and taking in new perspectives, I hope to better my understanding of literature and the world at large. Only then might the future offer something special.