Gen Z & Disability
I wrote the “Stronger Together Blog” during high school for the NW Parkinson's foundation in Seattle, Washington. I was inspired to start the blog after my dad was diagnosed with early onset Parkinson's. Having a parent with Parkinson's so young was such a niche and unique experience for me and I wanted to create a platform for others in similar positions to relate to. In this specific interview, I talked to my dad about being a parent with Parkinson's and all of that he has learned from it.
In this experiment, I imagine my origin piece being used to help others in the greater Parkinson’s community, specifically adult children with parents with Parkinson’s. The intricacies of Parkinson’s disease and the unique experiences that come with having a parent with the condition make sharing your experience quite difficult for those that cannot relate. Hopefully, my writing can offer a platform for conversation and relationship building for those living a similar reality.
The genre I’ve chosen is to create short journal entries from my own perspective, mimicking my writing style from my high school journal. These journal entries will be informal and casual, reflecting on my experience and stories since my dad’s initial diagnosis in 2016 until where we are as a family today in 2022. I look forward to sharing the funny, emotional, and incredible stories I have about my experience watching my dad progress in his condition and meeting others in the community with similar stories to mine. By mimicking my high school writing style and offering short and sweet insights through the journalistic mode, I will attract my target audience of young adults with parents with Parkinson’s. This genre provides an appropriate “in” for my target audience because of teenagers’ infamous short attention span and attraction to short and casual stories. The journal entry genre is very relatable to young adults and puts a casual and fun twist on an otherwise serious topic.
Sample Exerpt, created by me
Working through wave one and two of this experiment has allowed me to evolve my ideas into something I am really excited about. Prior to meeting with my small group, I intended for my genre to be short journal entries that were tailored to young adults who have a parent with a disability. However, after consulting my group, I decided to modernize my genre even more and make it a compilation of tweets. I chose this genre as I know how notorious gen z is for their short attention span and how responsive people are to social media. By writing about tough experiences in a relatable and witty way, I can access my audience successfully and keep them engaged. My sample excerpt is an example of just one of the tweets that will be included in my final compilation. This compilation will take multiple forms, as I would
intend to create a booklet of all of the tweets to be given out to kids my age by Northwest Parkinson’s Foundation in their post-diagnosis support package as well as create a real Twitter platform for the stories to promote virtual dialogue among my audience.