Where Am I? Sitka Story Lab Student Anthology
The Island Institute's Sitka Story Lab program released this new book of Southeast Alaskan student writing in May 2016. Called Where Am I?: Stories of Strange Landscapes, Wrong Turns, and New Worlds, the anthology features fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and zany creative experiments that convey the disorientation and the discovery that young people experience, from being in the wilderness to simply growing up. The young writers come from Sitka, Hoonah, Haines, Wrangell, and Skagway, and are as young as nine years old and as old as eighteen. "The writing ranges from fantastic and playful to emotionally moving and dark," said Story Lab Coordinator Sarah Swong. "I'm impressed at how creative and varied these writings are, and at how open students were to feedback and improving their work." The project offered students the chance to write a piece for publication and to hone their writing with an editor.
The Island Institute's Sitka Story Lab program released this new book of Southeast Alaskan student writing in May 2016.
Called Where Am I?: Stories of Strange Landscapes, Wrong Turns, and New Worlds, the anthology features fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and zany creative experiments that convey the disorientation and the discovery that young people experience, from being in the wilderness to simply growing up. The young writers come from Sitka, Hoonah, Haines, Wrangell, and Skagway, and are as young as nine years old and as old as eighteen.
"The writing ranges from fantastic and playful to emotionally moving and dark," said Story Lab Coordinator Sarah Swong. "I'm impressed at how creative and varied these writings are, and at how open students were to feedback and improving their work."
The project offered students the chance to write a piece for publication and to hone their writing with an editor.
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MICE OF VONNA<br />
We clashed all over the cave; at times the only light to see the next<br />
move was the mystic light from his eyes and the soft glow from his<br />
pendant. I had to get that off of him somehow. But how? He sped<br />
up. I couldn’t keep up with his swings. After three near misses, I<br />
lost my balance and fell back. He raised his sword to plunge down<br />
and finish me off.<br />
There were too many boulders to my right. The only way to avoid<br />
death was to go up the wall. A ramp led up, and I took it. I rolled,<br />
shoved the handle of my sword in my mouth, and galloped to save<br />
my life.<br />
His heavy paws fell on the ground and his breaths sounded with<br />
rage from his chest. If I had to go, I would rather it be on my terms<br />
than his. He was even closer now; his armor chink as he raised his<br />
sword up for one last shot.<br />
I closed my eyes and I jumped with everything that I had. The air<br />
streamed through my whiskers and fur until I hit something hard<br />
and latched onto it with my claws. I scampered, but I kept slipping<br />
down. I looked around, desperately, but there was no time. A giant<br />
mass of darkness landed on my platform and we both fell.<br />
I landed on a hard ledge. I was coughing and gasping, eyes still watering<br />
from the sting of coldness during the fall. I couldn’t breathe<br />
and my body wasn’t sure how much more of this it could take.<br />
Mardon was getting up. He was on a lower ledge, and he was<br />
climbing up to mine, but I could not find my sword. He was getting<br />
closer with each passing second.<br />
What could I do? Now, I really couldn’t breath. I was going to die<br />
alone, in this dark, damp, forsaken cave. I never thought it would<br />
end like this. I backed against the wall and stood up, my arms out<br />
stretched. If I was going to die, I was going to do it up right, with<br />
38 <strong>Where</strong> <strong>Am</strong> I?
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