I'm still stuck and it's killing me. I feel like I'm the only project that is failing this bad because everyone else has something to show except me. All I have is a document with ideas and none of them see good. We've been having less and less time to work on our 20% and that doesn't help but that shouldn't be an excuse. I need to continue to work harder on my project and make up for lost time. 

So I've began to go more in depth with my characters. Not all of them will enjoy the others company. There's always someone that you can't stand and I'd like to make them seem as realistic as possible. There will be those that are closer than others and those that have more of the leadership qualities and those that prefer to follow. I'm trying to pull inspiration to people that have had a great impact on my life, but even by doing that this is still very challenging. 

I've been adding more and more to my document with all my ideas and I'm happy that these ideas are all beginning to fit in. It's better than how it was before when all my ideas were for different stories and I couldn't decide which one to pick from. I can feel myself progressing farther and farther but I feel the pressure coming from the presentation we are expected to do at the end of the year. I feel like I really need to start as soon as possible.

Ricardo Medina

20% Project

100 W. Farmland Ave.

Merced, Ca 95348



February 28, 2014


Mrs.Tina Spurlock

100 W. Farmland Ave.

Merced, Ca 95348




Dear Mrs Spurlock:


I am writing this letter to thank you for being my mentor. This 20% project would not be possible without you. This project was a huge leap of faith and I recognize that. You have no idea if any of us will succeed, but you believe in us. You believe that most, if not all, will be successful in producing something that we can call ours and be proud of. I hope I am one of the students that does this and makes you proud.


I am one of the lucky students that you have helped immensely. Not only have you given me tons of times and ideas for my writings but you helped me get over my writing block. You did this through great generosity on my birthday. You let me have a book that would help in every way possible. It helped me get my ideas on paper and even begin creating characters. I can not explain how much this book has helped me.


Through all this help I have began the finishing steps of brainstorming. All my ideas are in a document for me to revise and add to too my liking. Not only do I have a document but I have a book with tons of different ideas and I can’t wait to get it on paper. None of this would be possible without you.



Sincerely,


Ricardo Medina

Today I continue to fill out my document with information that has yet to be molded into my story. I am eager to begin but I must be patient and let all my ideas out on paper. Today I also finally was able to put the picture of me and my mentor so it has been quite a productive 20% day.

I am proud to say that with the help of my book I am finally going to start writing. I'd rather not say what idea I've chosen encase I end up changing it, but I really think this is the one. I hope to use a method I've heard of to start off my story. This method is too write the first things that come to your mind about your story and don't stop. You can't stop. It is not the time to care about grammatical or spelling errors; it is the time to spill out the story in my heart.

This week I have been spending it on a book my mentor/teacher has given me as a gift hoping it would assist me with my project. I can not thank her enough on how much it has been helping me move it along and brainstorm many more ideas. I hope to get pictures of a couple of pages on this website once I get more into the book to help people understand my process.

This Friday I spent the period trying to get a hold of my mentor. I really feel like my mentor can help me detail my 5 month plan and even give me a second opinion on my ideas. Maybe some of the ideas I have thought of are unoriginal, too boring, or unrelatable? I need someone I can trust that will make sure to be brutally honest with me.

We are half way through the school year and I still cannot think of an idea that would be good enough. I'm going through a huge writers stump and I'm trying my best to record every idea that comes through my mind. Whenever I think of something worth writing I make sure to put it down in my phone and transfer it to my notes on my Chromebook. By the end of this month I hope to be able to choose the best idea I have and begin my writing. I need to make sure I leave myself with tons of time because I like to put my writing away for a week or so and see how I feel about it then. I like doing this because I begin to forget the story and I can feel more like a reader instead of a writer. That way I can easily see my errors and what I would need to add to the story. The process of writing is already long enough without having to brainstorm an idea so I hope inspiration hits me soon.

Having all these visitors during are 20% project was a great experience. Not only because I was able to explain my progress to the visitors but I saw an old teacher from last year that I had greatly missed. She was one of the visitors I got to explain my project to and they seemed to have enjoyed my ideas. They thought some of the ideas I have brainstormed were great ideas and I needed to pick one already to start my novel.