Writing workshop

I participated in a local writing workshop a few weeks ago. Many local writers and wanna-be-published-writers attended, manuscripts in hand. The purpose of the afternoon was to read each others' manuscripts and offer constructive criticism.

As a writing teacher, I am accustomed to reading and evaluating student writing. Some weeks I read and evaluate ninety-six papers. It is impossible for me to comment on every aspect of a paper so I usually make an overall comment about the manuscript's potential for the intended reader and identify three strengths and three areas for improvement.

At the workshop I was required to comment on far less work, but I approached it the same way. I mentioned the pieces' strengths and then a couple places for improvement. I was very aware that my comments were my opinion--although I do think my opinion is the right one--and the writer could heed them, or not. I wasn't even assigning a grade to the piece. I learned that commenting on someone's work, even with the best intentions, can create hurt feelings. Even when the comment seems innocuous to me.

I wanted to say,"Get a thicker skin or you'll never make it in the publishing world."

I didn't.

I've spent some time thinking about the situation. We writers need feedback if we are to make our writing better. However, it is easy to bristle at even the most benign suggestions.

To eliminate hurt feelings and make a feedback session valuable next time I'm going to ask participants to answer the following questions (suggested by Sheila Bender in "The Writer".
1. After listening to my draft, what words remain memorable?
2. What feelings do you experience from reading my essay that you think are intended?
3. What feelings do you have that interfere with the ones the essay is going for?
4. Where are you curious to know more?

A Writer's Journey Continued

Thud. Thud. Thud. Crack.

That's the sound of my forehead beating against my computer screen. I returned from a week's vacation and simply cannot regain my writing focus.

Maybe it's the four thousand e-mails awaiting my response. Or the overdue newspaper columns. Or preparing for the 5 speaking events looming. Or perhaps the untitled, unfinished, unorganized book manuscript taunting my name. Overload. Danger, Will Robinson, danger!

So what's a poor writer to do when facing more mountains than she can climb?

1. Quit whimpering, sniveling and whining. The only way to get something done is to get off the floor and do it.

2. If you can't skirt the mountain, start ascending step by step. Begin. Now. Break the mammoth task down into small, accomplish-able goals: spend one hour on e-mails, then one hour each on columns, presentations and book. Then go for a walk. Breathe. Scarf chocolate. If not cross-eyed, repeat process.

3. Quit obsessing over distractions. You can't change life. It will never be a perfect writer's world. You must work. You must feed your family. You mustn't live in a pig sty. You really should go to the funeral of your friend's mother that will eat up many precious hours of your writing time. Go. It's the right thing to do.

Okay. I have a workable plan. Now I just have to replace my cracked monitor, strap a cold compress over the knot on my head and take the first baby step. Here I go!

Thought for the Day

"If you're going to make it as a writer, talent comes second--after staying power."

First Draft

I've been working on the first draft of my novel and struggling a bit. Although I know where the novel is headed and I have a vague idea of who will be in the novel, getting the first draft on screen is arduous for me.

Today, I pulled a book off my shelf called, "The Passionate Accurate Story" by Carol Bly. I reread her chapter on first drafts and it's going to help me when I sit down to write tomorrow.

Here are some of Carol Bly's ideas:

First write a values list. Write down two goals or values which make life good. Write down two goals or values which cause injustice and suffering or lessening of joy. Write down two missing goals or behaviors. As a child, you thought that grown-up life would have these. Now that you are adult, you don't see them around. List two injustices which you see about you and should keep an eye on, even on your wedding day.

Your values list, says Bly, will be something to return to when you get stuck in your first draft. Returning to it will remind you what you want to write about and will also help you write literature that matters.

Bly writes that the first draft should be writing without effort to shape. You can develop first draft by asking questions: what else did this character do? Where was all this? How did these people feel?

The skills of generation are questioning...and inviting the unconscious to join. Be certain not to cut anything.

Follow the strong feeling. Follow the intensity wherever it takes you. If you feel no intensity, pull out your Values Listing.

Late Bloomers

"Christy" by Catherine Marshall planted a seed in me as a teenager (I read it 9 times!) to one day write a book that would touch other hearts the way "Christy" touched mine. The fertilizer didn't kick in for thirty years, but one fine day in 2002, "The Distant Shore" bloomed large and lovely. Ten books followed in quick succession.

I guess you could say I'm a bonified late bloomer. Are there others out there like me? Those who need a few extra years for ideas and motivation to marinate before coming to full robust flavor?

You betcha. You may be one of us.

Julia Child's first cookbook was published at age 49 and her television debut occurred in her 50s. Prolific author Raymond Chandler published his frist novel, "The Big Sleep" at age 51. Morgan Freeman found movie fame at age 52. Paula Dean overcame agoraphobia to open up a small catering business in Georgia and published her first cookbook at 50; this led to her own TV show at age 55. World famous artist Grandma Moses (Anna Mary Robertson) began painting in her 70s. Laura Ingalls Wilder was 65 when she published the first of her "Little House" books.

So how about you? Are you feeling the itch to bud?

Take heart - it's not too late to propogate, fertilize and harvest your latent talent! So put on those gardening gloves and coax some gorgeous fruit from those fallow fields today.

An Amateur

Are you new to writing? Do you consider yourself an amateur? When someone asks yourself what you do, do you start with "I'm a writer..." then add the word "but..."

What's so bad about being an amateur?



The word seems like such a putdown. Yet the word is rooted in the Latin verb amare, "to love."



At the turn of the twentieth century, when the Olympics were revived by English gentlemen, they insisted on amateur status for the contestants to keep the money-grubbing lower classes from competing and destroying the high moral purpose of the games. Yet today professional has come to mean "someone who takes his work seriously" while an amateur is considered a dilettante.

We Grit for the Oyster authors have a motto: "Do not despise these new beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin" (Zechariah 4:10).

So don't apologize for being new to this writing gig. Take it and run with it!

Writing questions and one answer.

I'm trying to write a novel this summer and mostly I have lots of writing questions, like: how do you name characters? Do you give them names that symbolize their role in the story? Do you give them the names left on your list of "names I like" after you've finished having children? How do you know when you've selected the right name for your hero or heroine?

Will the characters in your novel be based on people you know? Yesterday, I was biking with a friend and when I told her my plan for writing a novel, she asked, "Will I be in it?" So far, the answer is no. The people in my novel are based on variations of me. But I'm going to have to branch out because just me will make for a boring novel.

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My sister is placing her daughter and son-in-law's wedding announcement in the newspaper. She needed to cut twenty-five words to get a reduced placement rate. She asked for help. Rule number one for cutting words: the work "of" is a red flag that you can probably rearrange and cut. Example: John and Colleen Rodgers, residents of State College becomes State College residents John and Colleen Rodgers... By following that simple rule, we were able to cut twenty-five words from the announcement, cut the cost and express content more clearly.