The Inner Banks: A Drive Home

Abstract

Abstract: The author describes a journey to her home state of North Carolina from Vermont to find a more profound connection from which to draw for her environmental and fictional writing. Thinking of a place that she can call home, she drives through the state, specifically the Inner Banks region, while considering her personal experiences with the area and intimate understanding of its idiosyncrasies. She also contemplates the difficulty of portraying these elements and their complexities in a genuine way that is free of hyperbole. A particular focus is the area's environmental context and how it contributes to and is affected by climate change, which ultimately leads the author to a realization about her lack of true understanding of the Inner Banks, and the importance of learning about it in a more personal way.