Writing can act as a different outlet for lots of different people. For some, it may exist solely as an art form, for others, a means of financial gain, and for others, it could be something you have to do to pass a class. However, nestled in these diverse perspectives is what writing represents at its core, and what’s explored to a great degree in Creative Writing: the way each one of us absorbs, interprets, and elucidates the world around us.
To Professor Joshua Geist, who prefers a more casual Josh, this concept is imperative not only as a constituent but to provide representation and platforming to people whose worldviews may otherwise be understated or unknown.
As Josh states, “Everybody has stuff to add to what people can experience through writing, but there are also people who are coming from different perspectives who, if they don’t show the world through their eyes, then we don’t get to experience that. We best learn about the experiences of other people when those people have the chance and the space to tell their own stories from their own point of view.”
After growing up in Fresno, Geist earned BAs in English and Psychology, an MFA in Creative Nonfiction writing, and a Certificate of Advanced Study in Composition from Fresno State University. He then taught at the Hanford COS campus before moving to Visalia.
Outside of teaching, Josh also enjoys more recreational outlets for writing, such as the MarchXness tournament, where writers compete in a bracket-style competition to determine who can craft the best essay on a themed song.
This upcoming March will see Josh’s essay on the song TikTok by Ke$ha pitted against other dance songs from the 2000s. He also runs a YouTube channel focused on video essays with his wife. He adds: “Increasingly, that’s sort of the space where essays are happening. . . For creative essays, like the kind of essays I write, that wasn’t really happening anywhere in the public consciousness. But as YouTube has become a dominant place where people are exchanging ideas, the essay sort of came back to life.”
If you find yourself wanting to learn more about any part of the writing process, the COS Writing Center is there to help. Visit: https://www.cos.edu/en-us/library/writing-center
