- THE RIGHT FIT: ASPIRING WRITER FINDS SUPPORT FOR CREATIVITY
Left to right: David Masciotra and Dr. Edward M. Uehling, Professor of English When it came time to choose a graduate school, newly-published author was looking for the right fit.
“I knew that small and private schools fit me well, and I was attracted to Valpo’s English Studies and Communication program. It is a unique hybrid that is not offered by any other schools in the area,” said Masciotra. “Valpo has the elements that I need to enjoy and excel in a college environment, especially the communal sensibility.”
Those factors, combined with the accolades of two of his cousins, both Valpo graduates, and his decision was made.
Now, well into his coursework at Valpo, Masciotra is finding the ingredients he needs to fulfill his writing goals.
“Gore Vidal said that ‘the act of writing is the act of thinking’,” said Masciotra. “My coursework at Valpo has given me much to think about. From courses in literature to courses on the media and mass communication, my analytical and exploratory framework has been enlarged, and that has a powerful impact on my writing.”
Several professors, Masciotra says, helped provide a framework and support for his writing.
“She spoke about the meaning, value and utility of good writing, and what writers can do in their particular community and society,” Masciotra said of Dr. Susanna Childress, lecturer in humanities and English in Christ College. “She demanded that we ask the biggest questions and treat writing with great spiritual respect – that kind of encouragement and perspective is something to be cherished.”
Masciotra says his adviser, English professor Dr. Ed Uehling, has provided insight and support.
“The highlight of my work with him was the course “Contemporary American Fiction,” Masciotra said. “He made sure the required texts had a wonderful cohesion, which lent itself to exploring the nature and value of community in America.”
Masciotra recently published his first book, “Working On a Dream: The Progressive Political Vision of Bruce Springsteen,” a blend of music analysis, political commentary and cultural criticism.There is a deep intellectual and spiritual connection, Masciotra said, between the book and what he experiences at Valpo.
“My writing and Springsteen’s music deal largely with remaining loyal to an abiding sense of love and community, inclusion and the breaking of barriers based on race, ethnicity and sexuality, as well as the big questions of justice, democracy and freedom,” said Masciotra. “These ideas, questions and challenges are encouraged and examined at Valparaiso University.”