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By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 12/14/2012
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Howdy, Campers ~ Happy Poetry Friday!
...and if it's at Jama's it's sure to be tasty!
For my last post of 2012, I'm going to break from our series on publishing opportunities (see
Esther's last
two posts and
Carmela's post, with more to come!)...
I've been thinking about my family and our, well,
interesting year (especially the part about
my husband dying of a heart attack and being brought back and now being completely and miraculously fine); about hard times and hope, about sunrises, candles, glowing kitchen windows at night, and about the dark of winter and the glint of winter sunlight.
WINTER SOLSTICE: GIRL TALKING TO THE SUN
by April Halprin Wayland
On a hard day's chill,
when my heart stands still,
Sun, oh, Sun, where do you disappear?
Then Sun answers me,
answers quietly,
Look around, little girl, I am here, I am here.
© 2012 April Halprin Wayland. All rights reserved
I am Jewish; I just recently learned that the fifth night of
Hanukkah (which can be
spelled many ways) is the first night in which there are more flames than darkness, more candles lit than unlit, and represents the triumph of light over darkness.
I love that.
Okay...ready for today's writing workout, Campers?
WRITING WORKOUT: A Light in the Darkness
1) Take a cozy moment to scribble ten ideas triggered by the phrase, "a light in the darkness" or by the 1:06 minute video above. Jot down memories, images, or the name of someone in particular who helped light your way in a dark time.
2) Consider imitating the rhyme scheme of the poem above:
A/A/B
C/C/B
3) Or write a 100-word story.
3) Or write forget #2 and #3 and write the poem or story you were meant to write today.
4) Write like a little kid who is so jumpy-excited to get a piece of paper and a pencil she can barely sit still. Give that little kid a chance; let's see what gift she creates for you this holiday season!
And speaking of gifts, don't forget to enter to win a gift for yourself or for some lucky teacher in your life: an autographed copy of JoAnn Early Macken's, Write a Poem Step by Step. I have her book and it's terrific! See JoAnn's guest post for details.
Not actually in Southern California where I live,
but in Phoenix, several years ago.
Still, a pretty note of light and hope
with which to end the year...
Happy Holidays One and All!
So we're all warmed up and stretched! The holidays are approaching. In fact, Chanukah is already here. So let's jump into the meat of it, shall we? If you've done your homework then you have your brain working on different scenarios and hopefully that wonderful imagination of yours is rearing to go.
Now it's time to work on something that will keep you focused on your story even when visiting Santa at the mall. Whatever your book is - whether you're just starting it or revising - take your favorite scene, you know the one, it's the one that keeps playing in your head, that you know you have to write for this book or work your way to or polish till it shines. That one. Take it and write it. Right now. Out of context, out of order. Just write.
It feels naughty doesn't it? To dive into the whipped cream before the main course? But why not? You can always redo it. In fact, that's your homework. Redo it every day a different way. OR write another favorite scene you see coming. Even if you end up not using it, it will get you in the mood so to speak. It won't take long, and you'll enjoy it. Heck, you might even find yourself working the whole book around it. That's happened to me believe it or not.
If you read the blog last week (and did your homework) you're well prepared to get going! Got comfy clothes? Kidding! Any good workout has to start with some stretching and warm up so we don't jump in and hurt ourselves. Writing is no exception. So I want you to do the following exercise. You can do it each day and use a different outcome or you can do it once and jump into something you're dying to start. Think of it as a game.
Take the character you created last week and pick one from each of the following categories then write a couple pages. Just write. You don't have to show anyone, just see where it takes you.
World:- Deep space
- Kentucky
- The Amazon
- an apartment in New York
Antagonist:
- An animal
- A rival at work/school
- The weather/world itself
- A psychopath
Goal:
- Safety
- Love
- To retrieve something of value
- Save a relative
Okay now here's the fun part - don't make it obvious! Mix it up. Have her fight the world itself in an apartment in New York in hopes of retrieving something of value for example. You can mix these up and add your own as the week goes on so you try something new each day. OR you can use the first try to help you in whatever project you're working on now. Your choice.
Ready? Set. Go!
By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 9/28/2012
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Howdy, Campers! Happy Poetry Friday! Info about how to enter today's Book Giveaway is far, far below.
Poetry Friday is hosted today by the
Paper Tigers--thank you!
Years ago, I attended an informal farewell lunch after speaking at a writers' conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I was tired and wasn't feeling well and very nearly skipped that lunch. Luckily, I didn't. That's where I met the dynamic and sparkling
Carolee Dean.
I have since had the great pleasure of being on a panel Carolee put together for this year's International Reading Association Convention in Chicago. (That's where I learned how generous, well-organized and cool-under-pressure she is.)
Carolee keeps a gazillion plates spinning in the air at once. She not only works in public schools as a speech-language pathologist, she also teaches writing, helps sponsor middle school and high school poetry slam teams, and is the author of three young adult novels all including original poetry. They are:
COMFORT (Houghton Mifflin),
TAKE ME THERE (Simon Pulse), and the JUST ABOUT TO BE PUBLISHED paranormal verse novel
FORGET ME NOT (Simon Pulse, Oct. 2, 2012)--which you, yes
you can WIN in our Book Giveaway--woo-woo (details below)!
So let's meet Carolee in person. Hey, Carolee--how did you officially become a TeachingAuthor?
I've spent over a decade working in the public schools as a speech-language pathologist with students of all ages and a variety of challenges. The most difficult thing for most of them is writing, and understandably, many of them hate doing it. I'm always trying out activities to inspire my reluctant writers. Sometimes the activities work. Sometimes they don't. When they do work I like to share them with other educators because I know how difficult it can be to continuously come up with inspiring lessons.
Among some of my better ideas is a twelve step story analysis method I call
The Secret Language of Stories. I've given presentations on it at several state, national, and international conferences including the International Reading Association 2012 in Chicago where I co-presented on an all day panel with you and
TeachingAuthor
Esther Hershenhorn. I have a description of the twelve steps
on a tab at
my blog.
What's a common problem your students have and how do you address it?
It's easy to get stuck staring at a big white page or a blank computer screen. I can't tell you how many times I hear the words, "I don't know what to write." I reply, "writing isn't about knowing. There is no magic right or wrong answer as there is in other subjects.
Writing is about choosing, about considering the infinite possibilities and picking one." To this the student inevitably replies, "I still don't know what to write." Then I usually give the stumped pupil a whole list of suggestions which he or she usually doesn't like because that blank computer screen is still just so darn intimidating.
One strategy that has worked extremely well for me is to create a PowerPoint with directions on each slide for what part of the story to write on that particular slide. I also include suggestions about what kind of accompanying images to select. I usually let kids choose the images first since the pictures often inspire their writing. This has worked extremely well with even the most struggling writers. Kids love power point and they love Google Images.
I have some high school students who read and write at first and second grade levels and they have come up with some of the most amazing stories.
(Directions for Carolee's PowerPoint story along with a downloadable PowerPoint can be found under the Teacher Resources section of
her blog).
Would you share a favorite writing exercise with our readers?
I like to get kids talking about stories before they write them. There is a strong connection between oral language and written language and it often helps to verbalize ideas before putting them down on paper.
One of my favorite activities is to cut out unusual pictures from magazines. Advertisements often contain images that may be interpreted in a variety of ways. I play music and then ask students to walk around the room. When the music stops I tell them to sit down in front of a picture and describe to the class what they think is going on.
We do this several times and I've found that the random nature of the activity takes off the pressure to think of something good. After they've all come up with two or three ideas, we sit down to write. I often use the structure of poetry for this stage of writing because the focus is on ideas rather than grammar.
I LOVE that idea, Carolee. I can see using it in my classes for adults writers, too. Okay, so tell us...what's on the horizon for you?
I'm in the process of writing up
The Secret Language of Stories as a teacher sourcebook and I just wrote
an article for Cynsations exploring the history of verse novels going all the way back to Homer and the Iliad and the Odyssey.
In the immediate future, FORGET ME NOT, my paranormal verse novel, is coming out October 2! It's about a girl who has been cyber bullied and hides out from her tormentors in a deserted part of the school only to find herself stuck in a hallway full of ghosts.
(
Read the great Kirkus review of FORGET ME NOT here and another terrific review of her book here.)
Sounds wonderfully SPOOKY, Carolee--and just in time for Halloween!
And finally, since it's Poetry Friday in the Kidlitosphere, would you share a poem from your new book with our readers?
Absolutely. Here is an excerpt from FORGET ME NOT:
WRITE IT OUT
That's what Ms. Lane,
my writing teacher,
would say.
Spill it out onto
the page.
Sometimes it's
the only way
for thoughts heavy
as bricks
to become feathers
and fly away.
I could go
to her class.
Get my head
together.
I'd sit next to
Elijah.
I wonder if
he's heard.
Even if he has,
I know
he
wouldn't say
a word.
poem © 2012 Carolee Dean. All rights reserved
Wonderful! Thank you SO much for stopping by to talk with us, Carolee!
Here's the exquisite book trailer for FORGET ME NOT:
Campers! Join Carolee's
Ghost Tour which starts Oct. 3, and check out the
original jewelry made especially for Carolee's book launch!
Carolee has generously offered to autograph a copy of her about-to-be-published book for our
BOOK GIVEAWAY. Yay! To enter, just follow these rules:
You must follow our
TeachingAuthors blog to enter for a chance to win an autographed copy of Forget Me Not by Carolee Dean. If you're not already a follower, you can sign up now in the sidebar to subscribe to our posts via email, Google Friend Connect, or Facebook Network blogs.
There are two ways to enter:
1) by a comment posted below
OR
2) by sending an email to teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com with "Book Giveaway" in the subject line.
Just for the fun of it, tell us a true ghost story of your own in 50 words or less. This is optional!
Whichever way you enter, you MUST give us your name AND tell us how you follow us. If you enter via a comment, you MUST include a valid email address (formatted this way: youremail [at] gmail [dot] com) in your comment. Contest open only to residents of the United States. Incomplete entries will be discarded.
Entry deadline is 11 p.m. Thursday, October 4, 2012 (Central Standard Time). The winner will be chosen in a random drawing and announced on October 5th.
Good luck, Campers!
By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 8/31/2012
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Happy Poetry Friday, Everyone!
Today we're celebrating by featuring a guest TeachingAuthor interview with the wonderful poet, author, teacher, and now, editor, Heidi Bee Roemer. And I'm THRILLED to announce the forthcoming release of the brand new poetry anthology edited by Heidi and Carol-Ann Hoyte: And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems--ATCGW for short. The anthology, which is illustrated by Kevin Sylvester, includes 50 sports-related poems by poets from ten countries. I am honored to be one of those poets, and I have to say that I'm in some pretty amazing company, including Charles Ghigna, J. Patrick Lewis, David L. Harrison, Avis Harley, Priscilla Uppal, and my former fellow TeachingAuthor, JoAnn Early Macken. ATCGW is geared for children ages 8-12, and showcases nearly 30 different poetry forms. A portion of royalties from both the paperback and e-book editions will be donated to Right to Play, an international organization that uses sports and games to educate and empower children facing adversity.
And great news for our TeachingAuthors readers: you can enter our drawing for a chance to win your own paperback copy of this terrific anthology, autographed by Heidi (or her co-editor, Carol-Ann, if you live in Canada). See details at the end of this post. If you don't win our contest, see the official CrowdGoesWild website for information on how to a copy. (The e-book is only $3.99!)
In case you don't know Heidi Bee Roemer, here's an excerpt from her bio: With nearly 400 poems, articles, and stories in various children’s magazines and anthologies to her credit, Heidi is also a song lyricist and children’s book reviewer. Her debut book, Come to My Party and Other Shape Poems, (Henry Holt) received starred reviews and was nominated for several awards. Her newest books are both from NorthWord Press: What Kinds of Seeds are These? and Whose Nest is This? Heidi is a former instructor for the Institute of Children’s Literature, and currently serves as a writer-in-residence for several Chicago Public schools.
I had the privilege of taking a poetry class with Heidi a few years ago, and I can tell you from experience that she's a great teacher--several of the poems I wrote while in her class were eventually published in children's magazines or anthologies. When I saw Heidi's call for submissions for ATCGW, I initially submitted a couple of reworked poems from that class. Then Heidi sent a follow-up call, asking specifically for poems about paralympic athletes--athletes with physical limitations. My first thought was: How can I write about a paralympic athlete when I don't know any? Then a few days later I remembered watching my son run his first marathon, and how inspired I was by all the paralympic athletes who participated. One runner in particular, a British man who ran on two prosthetic limbs, had left such an impression on me that I still recalled the awe and respect I felt watching him. So I wrote a list poem called "At the Chicago Marathon" as a tribute to him, and that was the poem accepted into And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems. I don't want to make this post too long, so I'll share just the first stanza of my poem here:
At the Chicago Marathon
The crowd roars as another runner rounds the bend.
I stretch on tiptoes to see:
white visor,
dark sunglasses,
rope necklace,
muscled arms,
red-white-and-blue shirt—the British flag, not ours,
four black numbers on a white rectangle: 1776,
same as the year our country declared independence from his.
. . .
poem excerpt © 2012 Carmela Martino. All rights reserved.
(Note: You can see a photograph of Richard Whitehead, the inspiration for this poem, running in that race here. That day he completed 26.2 miles in 2 hours, 42 minutes, and 52 seconds, setting the world marathon record for a leg amputee and placing 212 out of over 36,000 finishers. He will be running in the 100m and 200m races at this week's 2012 London Paralympic Games. According to the official website, those events will be held on Sept. 7 and Sept 1, respectively. You can read more about him at his website.)
And now, for the interview:
Heidi, will you tell us how you became a TeachingAuthor?
My “on the job training” experience as a teacher is based on nearly 300 school presentations and library visits. As a poet-in-residence for Chicago Public Schools I learned how to make poetry lessons informative, lively and fun! In 2001 I was accepted as an instructor for
The Institute of Children’s Literature, a college-credited correspondence course for adults who want to write for children. I also teach poetry to adults and children in various local venues.
What's a common problem/question that your students have and how do you address it?
New poets often write rambling, overly-long poems and approach revision with reluctance. Most rookie poets need guidance on how to trim, tighten, and tweak their words. Someone wisely wrote: “Poetry is a can of frozen orange concentrate. Add three cans water and you get prose.” I agree! Want practice writing succinctly? Write terse verse because it contains only a few words per line. Children’s terse verse may be sprinkled with rhyme, alliteration, assonance, and wordplay. Closing lines should illicit a response from the reader—a sigh, gasp, smile or giggle. To understand how to write stellar poems for children in any poetic form, I often direct aspiring poets to magazines such as
High Five, Babybug, Ladybug, Spider, Hopscotch, Boy’s Quest, Fun for Kids, Turtle, and
Humpty Dumpty. Those wishing to be published in these specific magazines should study not just one issue, but two or more years of back issues.
Would you share a favorite writing exercise for our readers?
Try writing terse verse—it’s not as easy as it looks! Short lines force the writer to trim excess words. Focus on a single age-appropriate topic using mostly concrete nouns and vivid verbs. Establish a word pattern and engage your young reader by incorporating a lighthearted, playful tone. Terse verse, also called cryptic rhyme, was popularized by author Verla Kay in
Orphan Train,
Gold Fever and other books. Writers who wish to master this poetry form should read Verla’s complete cryptic collection. I’m pleased to say that ATCGW contains a delightful terse verse written by U.S. author, Ellen Ramsey. I won’t give away her surprise ending, but here are a few opening lines:
“What Do You Do With….”
A weight?
Lift it.
A racquet?
Swing it.
A rope?
Climb it.
A bike?
Ride it. . . .
poem excerpt © 2012 Ellen Ramsey. All rights reserved.
Do you have any suggestions for teachers on how they might use And the Crowd Goes Wild! in the classroom?
Educators will find ATCGW an easy fit with school curriculum. One suggestion is to engage students in related physical activities. For example, Laura Purdie Salas’s roundel is about goalball, an official sport of the Paralympics games; visually impaired players chase a ball that contains a bell inside. Using a cat toy with a bell inside, let blindfold students try to toss and catch the toy, aided only by the ringing sound. Patricia Cooley’s free verse about chess, “The King’s Gambit,” can also be creatively adapted. Students can hold large cardboard replicas of chess pieces (rook, pawn, bishop, etc) and play a life-size game of chess.
ATCGW can be used as a study of various poetry forms. The end pages identify nearly 30 poetic forms found in the anthology, such as haiku, limerick and shape poems, as well as less familiar forms: cleave, etheree, and palindrome. Keeping a poetry journal, students can study the various forms and write a new poetry form each week.
ATCGW also introduces students to poets featured in the book. Some contributing poets are recognized and revered around the world, others are just at the cusp of their writing careers. Students can visit the poet’s website or blog. If the poet has published other books, students might read those as well. Geography can play a role in classroom studies, too! Students can use pushpins and a world map to indicate where each poet lives. Once the study is done, students may write an email or letter to their favorite poet.
ATCGW is your first project as editor. What’s the experience been like? Would you do it again?
My dream job is to be a poetry editor for a children’s magazine. So when the book’s creator, Carol-Ann Hoyte of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, asked me to be part of this international “Olympic-related” sports poetry project, I jumped at the chance. It’s an exciting experience to discover new talent and see a book come to life. Yes, I would love to edit another poetry anthology—or children’s poetry magazine, for that matter!
I know you’ve lined up a number of events to promote ATCGW around the world involving some of the contributors (including ME!). Would you tell us about some of those events?
Carol-Ann and I are excited about our upcoming book launches this fall. The U.S. launches will feature eight Illinois poets. ATCGW’s official “Poetry Team U.S.A.” includes contributors Cathy Cronin, Patricia Cooley, Heather Delabre, Claudia Kohlbrenner, Eileen Meyer, Patricia Murphy, Heidi Bee Roemer, Michelle Schaub, and (yay!) today’s
TeachingAuthor interviewer, Carmela Martino! My heartfelt thanks, Carmela, for letting me tell your dedicated followers and fellow poets about
And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems. I hope your readers will check the listings below and join us for an hour of poetry, poets, prizes and fun surprises!
Thank you, Heidi, for this great interview, and for allowing me to be part of
And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems. Below is information about the book's first two launch events. I'll be posting additional dates and times next Friday. Meanwhile, don't forget to enter our contest for your chance to win an autographed copy. See the details at the end of this post.
First two launch events for And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems:
In Canada:
Thursday, September 13 at 7 p.m.
Selwyn House School
95 Cote St. Antoine Road, Westmount, Montreal
In the U.S:
Wednesday, September 26 at 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Mokena Library
11327 W. 195th Street
Mokena, Illinois 60448
Finally, details on entering our giveaway:
You must follow our
TeachingAuthors blog to enter for a chance to win an autographed paperback copy of
And the Crowd Goes Wild! A Global Gathering of Sports Poems. If you're not already a follower, you can sign up now in the sidebar to subscribe to our posts via email, Google Friend Connect, or Facebook Network blogs.
There are two ways to enter:
- by a comment posted below OR
- by sending an email to teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com with "Book Giveaway" in the subject line.
Whichever way you enter, you
MUST give us your name
AND tell us how you follow us. If you enter via a comment, you
MUST include a valid email address (formatted like: teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com) in your comment. Contest open only to residents of the United States and Canada. Incomplete entries will be discarded. For complete giveaway rules, see our
Book Giveaway Guidelines.
Entry deadline is 11 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012 (Central Standard Time). The winner will be chosen in a random drawing and announced on Sept. 12.
Good luck!
And after you've entered, don't forget to check out this week's Poetry Friday round-up at
Poetry For Children.
Happy Writing!
Carmela
As long as I have lived in Georgia, (eleven years now), the state has suffered from drought. I don't remember what a green lawn looks like. My yard (and everyone else's) has turned cornflake brown, with lots of bald spots. Lake levels have dropped until people with "lakefront homes" now have "mud front homes." Fourth of July often includes a ban on fireworks. Even sparklers feel hazardous when everything around you has turned to kindling.
The writing life has it's dry spells, too. We all have them, even though we don't like to admit it. After all, we are writers. This is what we do.We are supposed to be endless founts of creativity. We are "supposed" to write every day. When we don't, we feel guilty. OK, I feel guilty. For me, not writing is in the same league with not working out and eating junk food. A few days of not writing and I come down with a bad case of brain fog.
My first experience with a dry writing well came at the end of my MFA program at Vermont College. After two years and four drafts, I thought I had finished Yankee Girl. (Wrong. I had another two years and three drafts to go.) Feeling very pleased with myself I jumped right into a new novel. I had a setting and some characters so I thought I was good to go. I wrote the first couple of chapters and sent them off to my faculty mentor, Randy Powell for critique.
Randy made his usual cogent comments on the writing, but ended his last letter with a comment I thought odd at the time. Sometimes, after a big project like Yankee Girl, he wrote, it's good to let the creative well refill. What was he talking about?
A year and another "finished" novel later, I figured out what he meant. I had three hundred pages of writing; I didn't have three hundred pages of a novel. I'd pushed myself to write a novel, when I really didn't have a novel in me at the time. Sigh. Fortunately, by then I was working with an editor on yet another revision of Yankee Girl. From those three hundred pages (which are still lurking in my hard drive) I learned to let a story simmer on a back burner awhile. Writing Yankee Girl drained me, emotionally and creatively. I should have given myself some time off. I should have let my well refill, as Randy had suggested.
However, time off can turn into goofing off. You can't just sit around waiting for rain to refill your well. The trick is to keep writing, keep priming the pump until you get your mojo back.
I should know. I am halfway through my current work-in-progress. For a variety of reasons, I am too creatively pooped out to do the story justice, right now. So what am I doing?
Writing this blog, for one thing. Knowing that I will be talking to you all every other Monday has kept me going. I am also lucky enough to have a series of Young Writer's Workshops lined up for this school year. Working with students always energizes me.
But what if you don't write a blog or have a continuous supply of workshops and school visits to keep you sharp? What if you don't have the time or energy to journal for even fifteen minutes?
Writer's Workout I try to find at least three things every day that I want to write in my journal. Three things that make me stop and
It's that time of year... Today I turned in my syllabus for the fall semester. Oh, summer, I miss you already.
Of course we've all been engrossed in the Olympics this week, cheering for Michael Phelps (hometown boy), Gabby Douglas, and all the rest. Looking at track, at gymnastics, at swimming, it occurs to me -- you can be a breast stroke specialist and so-so in the free; outstanding on the vault and a little shaky on the beam. Like "sport," writing involves a HUGE compendium of skill sets that need to come together in a rather miraculous way to make even a passable final product.
Like athletes, writers have coaches (editors) and fans; we also need to put in our time (thousands of hours) and sweat. Unlike athletes, we have more than one chance on the big stage to get it right. Hallelujah. This is great news! Yet trying to convince my students that editing is not only important but a gift remains one of my biggest teaching hurdles.
This week I've worn my article-writer hat; my scriptwriter hat; my picture book writer hat. I just signed up for a romance writing class this fall, so we'll see whether I have a romance writer hat in my closet. However, my teacher hat is rather new and stiff still. I find that one of the greatest challenges in college comp is teaching students global skills and grammar skills; research skills and sentence-level editing. Some students have had many of these skills since they were very young; others don't know where to put periods or apostrophes. However, some who struggle with grammar are still among my strongest writers on a global level. And how do you differentiate instruction for students you see for a whopping two-and-a-half hours per week? Whew!
I have spent the last week contemplating last year's syllabus -- what worked and what didn't? What do I want to keep, tweak, revamp, delete? One exercise that was fairly effective last year involved introductions and conclusions. Many introductory comp students have had the five-paragraph essay format effectively drilled into their heads. They think they are required to write an introduction that concludes with a three-point thesis; that the introductory sentence of each of the next three paragraphs should repeat one third of the thesis statement; and that the concluding paragraph should begin with a restatement of the thesis statement, going on to summarize all that has come before.
Many students are shocked when I suggest that it is not good practice to say the same thing three times; in fact, many are shocked by the mere notion that they can write more than or fewer than five pargraphs in one essay. We spend much of the semester working toward the notion that the five-paragraph format is a template that can be molded to a variety of shapes, forms, and purposes.
Our textbooks concentrate on suggestions for making introductions and conclusions more interesting: start with dialogue; start with a story; start with an interesting fact. In the final paragraph, end with a story; bring your reader back to the beginning; offer a tip or a suggestion; look toward the future.
Many students nonetheless are resistant to these ideas and continue to write summary-type paragraphs that add zero interest to their papers. So we tried this writing workout:
Writing Workout
Rewrite your introduction once, and then do it again. Use two different techniques (anecdote, interesti
By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 8/3/2012
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Howdy, Campers! And...surprise! Following the success of our first Mystery Guest TeachingAuthor which Carmela Martino posted last Friday, here's our second ever Mystery Guest TeachingAuthor (MGTA)—complete with his/her Writing Workout and a fabulous Book Giveaway! OMG. I'll bet you can barely stand the excitement. The details about the giveaway are below, but DO NOT GO THERE YET. If you do, you'll find out who our MGTA is and blow the whole deal. Here's how we play the MGTA game: I'll share our MGTA's bio before giving you his/her Writing Workout [listen...this his/her thing is getting awkward...I'll give this to you: it's a her]. You try to guess who our guest author is before I reveal the MGTA's identity at the end of the post. (And even though it's going to kill you, no fair clicking on the MGTA's book links to find out the author's name!)
Then let us know if you figured out who this most amazing lady is, either by commenting below, or an email.
Ready? Okay, let's go!
Today's MGTA is a Professor in the School of Library and Information Studies at Texas Woman’s University and has taught graduate courses in children's and young adult literature at various universities since 1981. She has published extensively, including five books on literature for children [including—remember, no clicky-clicky—Poetry Aloud Here! Sharing Poetry with Children in the Library (ALA, 2006), Poetry People: A Practical Guide to Children's Poets (Libraries Unlimited, 2007), and Children'sLiterature in Action: A Librarians Guide (Libraries Unlimited, 2008)], as well as over 20 book chapters and 100 journal articles; she's recently co-edited several ground-breaking e-anthologies of poetry for children. In addition, she edits for Librarians' Choice. Is this woman is making you tired, just reading about her? And there's more: her blog is full of tips and news (and poems) that help spread enthusiasm for poetry, and it has become a touchstone—the go-to blog in the field of poetry for children.
Have you guessed our guest yet? No? Well,
We have a special treat here today on our
TeachingAuthors blog: a
Writing Workout from a
Mystery Guest TeachingAuthor (
MGTA). This is a new feature we're trying out, so I hope you'll let us know what you think.
[Note: I'm still waiting to hear from Mary Ann about our giveaway winner. Sorry for the delay--we'll be posting the lucky winner's name soon.]
Now, here's the plan for today: I'll share our
MGTA's bio before giving you his/her
Writing Workout. See if you can guess who our guest author is before I reveal the
MGTA's identity at the end of the post. (No fair looking up the
MGTA's books online to find out the author's name!) Then let us know if you guessed correctly, or if the
MGTA is someone who's work is new to you. You can respond via a comment, or
send us an email.
Our first
MGTA is the author of numerous books for young readers.
MGTA's most recent publications are two young-adult novels,
Dark of the Moon (Harcourt) and
King of Ithaka (Henry Holt), and the four books in the middle-grade series,
The Sherlock Files (Henry Holt). Nonfiction includes
The Ancient Greek World and
The Ancient Chinese World (The World in Ancient Times, Oxford University Press). This author was the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators’ Regional Advisor for the Midsouth from 1999 to 2009 and is now SCBWI’s Regional Advisor Coordinator.
MGTA was awarded the SCBWI Work-in-Progress Grant in 2005 and a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities in 1994.
MGTA holds a B.A. with Honors in Classics from Brown University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Medieval Italian Literature from the University of California at Berkeley. This author lives in Nashville, TN and recently retired from teaching at Vanderbilt University.
Have you identified our guest
yet? Perhaps this
MGTA's description of his/her path to becoming a
TeachingAuthor will help:
Hi, everybody! So glad to be here at TeachingAuthors.
I was a college professor for 28 years, but not of creative writing! I taught Italian, and my students had to write in both English and Italian, especially when I taught Grammar and Composition. My students told me that they learned a lot about writing in general, not just writing in Italian, from that class! Occasionally I also taught classes in children’s literature and in writing for young readers. A few years into my teaching career I started writing for young readers, starting with nonfiction. I added fiction and now happily write both.
I like reading and writing stories that explore a familiar story from a point of view (POV) that we don’t usually hear from. I’ve written King of Ithaka, a version of the Odyssey as told by Odysseus’s son, Telemachus, and Dark of the Moon, the myth of the Minotaur as seen by the Minotaur’s sister, A
By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 1/27/2012
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Howdy, Campers! Author and illustrator Barney Saltzberg is a generous soul, and in his Friday the 13th interview, he offered an autographed copy of his fun and amazing book, BEAUTIFUL OOPS to one of our readers.
And the lucky, randomly chosen winner is...
Sarah Albee--yay, Sarah (who's an amazing author--check out her
website)!
Here's Sarah's
Beautiful Oops:
My oops moment happened when I was a very junior editor at Sesame Street. I was editing my first big book, a SS songbook (because I was the only editor in my dept who could read music and play piano). I went over to Jeff Moss's house (composer of Rubber Duckie) to show him some song arrangements, and when we got to People In Your Neighborhood (his song) we both stared at the composer credit, which read Joe Raposo (his long-time rival and writer of Bein' Green, among many others). Jeff was notoriously curmudgeonly, and I knew there was a good chance he would flip, even though of course it was just galleys and there would be plenty of opportunity to change it. So I quickly made a joke about it (along the lines of how interchangeable he and Joe were, whatevs). After five tense seconds, he grinned broadly. And we became fast friends.
So...drawing the winning name, watching the exciting
announcements of the ALA awards (I felt as if I were in the audience!) and reading
Carmela's,
Mary Ann's,
JoAnn's,
Esther's, and
Jeanne Marie's fabulous and thought-provoking posts about awards, got me to thinking about winning...
...which inspired this poem for Poetry Friday, graciously hosted today by Jim at
HeyJimHill!
WINNINGby April Halprin Wayland
I sit under this treeto sit under this tree.
Illustration by John O’Brien from his picture book THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
Upon seeing the picture that Kathy sent me for Free Fall Friday, I burst into laughter because I identify with the man pushing on the cow. In preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Irene—minus my husband, who is in California for business reasons—I feel like I am trying to lift a cow into a tree without much success. Normally, my husband is diligent about clearing our yard and porch of anything that might blow away in high winds. Without him here, I bear all my weight against our heavy outdoor furniture and shove it against the edge of the garage, praying for Irene to lose her strength before she arrives in Connecticut.
When you are not clearing your yard, running out to stock up on groceries, or making sure your flashlights have new batteries, take a moment to study this picture. Enjoy writing to the prompt.
I look at the picture and wonder how many cows are waiting to be lifted into the tree. How does the cow feel about this? Are the cows and the birds connected in some way? Ultimately, what are the woman and man trying to achieve by doing this? Is a child watching the couple? Would the child have a better idea how to get the cow in the tree, and if so, what might that be?
Stay safe in the storm, and if you lose electricity, pretend you live in the old days and enjoy writing by candlelight. You may find it inspiring!
Thanks Betsy! It looks like all of us on the east coast may really have to write in the dark this weekend when Irene comes knocking. I hate losing my electric and have my fingers crossed that it fizzles out, but the outlook looks dim.
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
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There was a summer storm brewing last night. Although the rain never came the thunderheads gathered across the sunset turning the sky an ominous shade of orange. Visibility was low and as I gazed across the street I thought of sinister plots and London fog. Why is it, I thought, that so many writers still use fog to build atmosphere? Surely creepy things can happen in dust storms as well. An apt conversation as this is the time to be writing Halloween tales.
Part of the charm of the Halloween tale is the nostalgia, a traditional telling of a tale set in autumn. But tradition can border on boredom if we refuse to see it through new eyes and refresh the imagery. The dark and stormy night with the dilapidated old mansion in a heavily wooded middle-of-nowhere place doesn’t reflect our current day experience. What about that creepy foreclosure at the end of the street though? You know, the one that keeps changing hands—people move in, people move out—they’re gone before you can make an introduction.
What are some of the elements we usually use to build a frightening tale? We touched on a couple, abandoned houses and, of course, the fog. What are some other images that might be over used? What can we substitute for them?
A fun exercise is to take your favorite traditional tale and re-work it. What substitutions can you make to bring this tale into modern times? Can you change the elements around so that the story takes place in a different part of the country without loosing the fright factor?
As my mother once told me, “There is nothing there in the dark that wasn’t there when the lights were on.” Which leads me to my next question… what is that standing next to you?
photos and text by Robyn Chausse
By: KC Oliver,
on 8/6/2011
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Phase two of my holidays is goin' exactly as planned. =D
The week has been awesome and busy and fun. The hubby had a blast on a camping trip with his bro, and I spent time with my amazin' daughter and some really great friends.
My daughter and I always have so much fun together, she's as crazy as I am. We spent one day mall shopping, visiting the best store on the planet; 'Teaopia' - we spent as much time in there as we did in the rest of the mall!
The next day was a museum day at the Manitoba Museum, Planetarium and Science Gallery.
In the MB Museum we hung out in a bat cave; played eye-spy in exhibits; swam with the tall ship Nonsuch; got freaked out in the creepy town when we realized we were the only people left in the museum cuz it was after hours and closing (you do NOT wanna get locked-in overnight in a museum!). (O_o) Just sayin'.
We saw a Beatles laser show at the Planetarium - a first for both of us. Good tunes, dry ice and dancing lights - awesome!
The science gallery is filled with these crazy cool things like an anti-gravity machine, a meteorite you can touch, pulley chairs, sound wave dishes, you can even build lil Kinex cars and race them! So much fun!
I spent the next day at Starbucks with my friend Sammy, catching up and talkin' shop (writin' stuff). =) She is one smart lady and a fantastic writer. She always gets me psyched to write.
Yesterday, I went poolside with my buddy Valerie and my daughter. Nothin' like hours of warm weather, great conversation and yummy goodies. Valerie has even begun to write! You go girl!
I'm still on holidays until Tuesday and I plan to make the most outta every minute! Woot woot!
For my writing exercise, I woke up yesterday morning with this first line, 'I am trapped by the darkness of my soul', running thru my head and it inspired the following poem:
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By: KC Oliver,
on 7/26/2011
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All last week I was on holidays! And it was awesome. Spent the week at a cottage at Grand Beach, MB. Strangely, we had a heat wave at the beginning of the week, and then it cooled right down and it was cold! I really can't complain cuz the charming, warm weather has returned, although not at the heat wave magnitude. Not sure how I feel about that… =)
I don’t know how many people know this about me, but I love to run. And I woke up every day on my holidays at 6:30 a.m. just so I could beat the heat. My running route was along the water on the beach. I love running on the beach. There’s nothing like it.
I’m back at work this week, but working towards yet another week of holidays, next week. Très sah-weeeet!
So I have discovered that I am truly crazy about Twitter and have become a wee bit addicted. Okay, okay, I’m a lot twaddicted. Wow, it’s worse than I thought… Anyway, tweeting is always on my mind now. Everything I do, or see, or hear, or say, is fodder for my next tweet. My friends may wanna keep that in mind. Hee hee. =D
So my new writing exercise is based on my thoughts around the fantasy genre image I chose. It was really difficult to go in only one direction, cuz my mind was buzzing with this image. Check out the exercise and enjoy!
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By: KC Oliver,
on 6/21/2011
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This week has been an interesting week - amazing weather, Game of Thrones finale, and we were adopted by a lil kitty - you know, important stuff. =D
The weather this past weekend was phenomenal! I tossed aside all thoughts of work and enjoyed it completely. Went to the park on Saturday and tweeted all about it. What fun!
Game of Thrones finale this past Sunday was soooooo awesome! I love that show. How do they expect me to wait until spring 2012! Is this some kind of archaic torture! Ugh! ....well, at least I got the books, so there. =P
We were officially adopted by a lil kitty that wandered into our yard about a month ago. We kept telling it to 'go home', but apparently it was home. She is now my son's kitty and he named her Phoenix. She is the most snugly cat I have ever met.
For my writing exercise, I did something a little different. I know I usually write dark fantasy genre stuff, but I felt light, so I wanted to share that. Enjoy!
Do you know love?
Has it found you?
Has it shaped you?
Has it made you more than you thought you could be?
Do you dream of love?
That goal that drives you,
That face that haunts you,
It's yours already.
Do you see the love?
In the eyes of children,
In acts of kindness,
In friendship.
Do you hear the love?
In laughter,
In a whisper,
In your heart.
Can you feel the love?
It surrounds you,
It changes you,
It is you.
I believe true happiness begins within; then radiates outward. And, it's contagious! <3
Another week rolls by and warm, dry weather seems hesitant to stick around. Good weather or not, the week rounded off quite nicely when I got the chance to go grade nine grad dress shopping with my daughter. Do you remember when the important grad was grade 12?? Not-so-much today. There's a kindergarten grad, grade six, grade nine and grade 12 grad! Sheesh. My daughter and I had a blast, like we usually do. I'm very fortunate to be close with both of my kids. And, my daughter will look stunning for her grad. She tried on a bunch of dresses, but when we found the one, we knew we had to get it. She was completely put together with the dress, shoes, earrings, bracelet and purse and I got to say something that I've never said before: "We'll take it all." Made my credit card smoke, but was worth it! =D
For my next writing exercise, I wanted to write something with an inspirational edge. They always make me feel good. I wrote the poem before I got the image, so I hope they work! Check it out.
Life is to be lived…truly lived.
Love more, live more, be more.
Be ready to give more, receive more and feel more.
Never ask more from anyone that you wouldn’t give yourself.
Falter not.
Understand what it is to truly live.
Fight for what you believe in.
Follow your dreams.
Be passionate.
Always.
Focus on what’s important.
Dismiss the insignificant issues.
Find that thing that drives you.
Give it all you’ve got.
Persevere.
Harbour no hatred.
Forgive all transgressions.
Let go of the past.
Look towards the future.
Believe.
Breathe deeply.
Truly see the world.
Truly hear the world.
Allow yourself to feel all that is around you.
Be open.
Give the heart what it wants.
Love with everything inside you.
Say what is in your heart.
Be true to yourself.
Live.
Yup, it definitely makes me feel good.
I thought I was bein' a smarty pants by using the word "write" in all my blog titles, but have since discovered through some recent analysis, that dynamic titles have a real draw factor for the reader. So, I thought -- here's an opportunity to put those findings into practice. So, from now on, I'll be coming up with titles that better represent my writing exercises.
So, I think I'm starting to get the hang of Twitter. I've started using #hashtags. They're actually pretty cool and are helpful for searching or even tweet ideas. I'm starting to get a lil twaddicted. *just breath, KC*
Anyway, my daughter was working on an essay about Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, and it got me to thinking about famous Shakespearean lines and gave me the idea for my next writing exercise.
What's in a name? That which we call a rose
Shall I compare thee to a summers' day?
[But] The course of true love never did run smooth
Is whispering nothing?
The lady doth protest too much
[And] All that glisters is not gold
It smells to heaven
Some Cupid kills with arrows, some with traps
One may smile, and smile, and be a villain
The green-eyed monster
This thing of darkness
Swift as a shadow
Make mad the guilty
And thus I clothe my naked villainy
More sinned against than sinning
One that loved not wisely but too well
The most unkindest cut of all
[So] The patient must minister to himself
I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you
There is special providence in the fall of a sparrow
Why then tonight let us assay our plot
The quality of mercy is not strained
In my heart of hearts
Tis better to be vile than vile esteemed
To thine own self be true
So sweet was never so fatal
O, happy dagger!
Chaos is come again
Neither rhyme nor reason
That way madness lies
O, what men do dare!
O villain, villain, smiling damned villain!
Parting is such sweet sorrow
Done to deat
My mother's day was awesome! My kids spoil me. My son took me to see the movie: "Thor", and my daughter baked me an amazing cake with palm trees, a blue ocean and lil Jamaican dudes dancing. I am so blessed. =D
Have you been watching the new series, 'Game of Thrones'? All I can say is...WOW! What an amazing show. I can't wait to get my hands on George R.R. Martin's books...ummm, is it just me, or did that kinda sound weird. At any rate, I will read those books...oh yes, I will. =D
Anyhoo, this eerie image drew me the moment I saw it. With it's tiny bit of light desperately trying to push through ugly clouds, while all the darkness presses it back. The following came to me.
The dawn is dead.
Fed to the darkness by liars, thieves and murderers. No distinction between right and wrong - the line blurs into nothingness. They hate. They steal. They kill.
And, the darkness comes.
The night creeps and crawls and slithers into every corner, into every crevice. Searching and choking out the light. It is silent. It is invisible. It is insidious.
It comes for us.
The last of the good hearts. Too few. Weakened by the constant night. Weary. We battle what we cannot see or hear or even touch. We are fragile. We fall. We die. We are human. We fight for humanity...or what is left of it. And we can never stop.
For there is no one to blame.
We took the dawn for granted. We betrayed. We let ourselves be betrayed. We should have done more. We should have done so much more.
We failed ourselves...
My love for the fantasy genre continues to grow. <3
“I’m looking for great voice!” That’s what every editor and agent in the business keeps saying over and over. Yet, at the same time they have trouble describing voice. “I can’t describe it,” they say. “But, I’ll know it when I read it.”
But what is it? And how do we writers find our voice?
This is a complex topic. But I’ve discovered that one great way to discover the power of voice (and what it is for that matter) is to experiment with point-of-view. Choosing a point of view for your story will greatly influence the narrative voice of your novel. It’s a lot more than pronouns. It’s about perspective, and “who” is telling the story. The story of one event will be told differently depending upon the POV. Choosing to tell a story from inside a protagonist’s head (first person) or from an omniscient narrator is going to create vastly different voices.
Don’t believe me? Try the following exercise and see what happens.
Point of View Exercise:
Step One: Find two paragraphs of your present work-in-progress that includes an event with multiple characters and no dialog. (Or write two new paragraphs).
Step Two: Identify the POV you wrote those paragraphs in (i.e. first person, third person limited, omniscient etc.) and skip the step below that is the POV you originally used.
Step Three: Rewrite your paragraphs from the POV of your protagonist using first person.
Step Four: Rewrite your paragraphs from the POV of another character interacting in the scene using third person limited.
Step Five: Rewrite your paragraphs using dramatic POV.
Step Six: Rewrite your paragraphs using omniscient POV.
Step Seven: Rewrite your paragraphs from the POV of a character outside the action, who watches but doesn’t interact. Use the third person limited.
Step Eight: Now compare your paragraphs. What changed in each POV? How did the voice change? How did the diction and word choices change? How did the distance from the scene change? How does the narrator or character’s attitude change the voice?
Now tell us how it went!!!
Also, check out these other great links on voice and point of view:
I have to admit, I'm pretty proud of the set-up of my last blog and now this one. The blogger 'compose' template has been giving me trouble and I've had to use html to fix it. Now, I'm no html genius, so being able to fix the spacing, italics, and even setting up the picture properly was pretty darn amazin' for me! Yay!
Anyway, I searched around for an image to write about and came across the one below. I'm gonna try something a little different and write a fight scene. Let's see if I can do it!
She breathed short controlled breaths. Her heart pounded hard against her ribcage. Her muscles, coiled and ready. Her weapons, positioned at her sides.
The air crackled with energy, and all creatures fell silent as if they knew...
Knew what she knew...that today she would die...
She was not afraid.
Dawn had come and she knew this was the day of days. She knew they would come for her. The wind tossled her hair wildly around her face and her eyes burned with malice she would not allow herself to deny. She would hate, and it would consume her, and she would use it.
She placed one foot in front of the other and headed towards him, her blades heavy in her hands, making her muscles burn. She ignored their weight, conscious only of them being an extension of her arms. She rotated one wrist, arcing the weapon in a circle, then repeated the move with the other.
He watched her, his lips curled in a sardonic, malicious grin.
How she hated that smile.
Close enough now to smell the stink of him, she dropped into a fighting stance. Her blades at the ready.
His smile grew larger, showing a row of broken, ragged, rotting teeth. He raised his large, menacing b
I would like to remind everyone of the writing contest that continues. Write a first page and or the first two lines of a story and submit it for consideration. If there are more than 10 submissions in a month for each (First Page and First Lines), a separate prize will be given for a full first page and one for the first two lines. Prizes are as follows:
$5 off a future NJSCBWI event for the first two lines.
$10 off a future NJSCBWI event for the first page.
Prizes can not be used for any previously booked event, the summer networking dinners or for a First Page Session, but they can be used at the NJSCBWI conference in June to purchase raffle tickets, bid on editor critiques, additional critiques you might decide to purchase before the conference starts or a future mentoring workshop.
If you are planning on attending the conference, then you reslly should think about taking a few minutes to submit soemthing.
Winners will be announced and the winning entry posted on this blog. You do not have to be from New Jersey to enter or win. To submit, please make sure you put Free Fall Friday and that Friday’s date in the subject line and send it to [email protected]
Here’s Betsy:
Kathy sent me this picture and I loved it immediately. What spoke to me first were the colors in the painting, the contrast between the girl and the person watching her, and the blueness of her eyes highlighted against the green mask. I can’t imagine not feeling some emotional reaction to this picture, which almost requires little studying. One glimpse and I was jotting down a number of story beginnings. The image is, for me, that evocative.
What does it do for you? What images spring to mind? What is the story behind the girl with the mask? Why is she being watched, and does she know she is under surveillance?
These are all questions for you to consider. I hope that you do. Stretch your imagination, put on some classical music, and go to town. Let your writing take you somewhere new, and share it with us. Remember to keep sending us your first sentences or first paragraphs.
Have fun!
This week, I blogged about an annual writer’s retreat known as Whispering Pines. Here are the links: http://betsydevany.wordpress.com/2011/03/28/images-of-whispering-pines/ http://betsydevany.wordpress.com/2011/04/01/ne-scbwi-whispering-pines-retreat-2011/
This picture was illustrated by Carlyn Beccia. She was featured on Illustrator Saturday On March 12, 2011. http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2011/03/12/illustrator-saturday-carlyn-beccia/
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
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So, the other day I was feeling chilled. It's not that it is actually that cold here at home, maybe it was doing this writing exercise. Cuz honestly, I was freezing after I finished this one. Needing to warm up fast, I grabbed a blanket, turned up the heat a bit and imagined I was back on the beach in Jamaica....ahhhhhh. Then I opened my eyes, looked out the window and saw the mudsoaked plains that have become my yard, and reality crashed in...ugh...
Anyway, subject change! I do so love the colours in this image! Wow! Good and evil battle overhead of men below - shows the true fragility of man...
Surely my eyes deceive me, for I see the heavens open and angels appear.
Have I died?
But that cannot be...
I can still hear the howling wind ferociously rip at us. Feel the angry waves continously toss and batter our boat. I taste salt on my lips and feel it sting my eyes. I am soaked and chilled to the bone. My muscles burn and ache so bad they are beginning to seize.
No, I have most definitely not died. Yet, death is all around me. I see bodies cast about in snarling water and broken bits of timber slam against our small vessel. I hear the cries of men who've fallen overboard. My friends...my comrades...sickness engulfs me as the waves consume them.
Our boat teeters precariously on huge waves, then plunges steeply down only to be picked up again and again. The ocean, intent on devouring us too.
We are in the midst of a something truely beyond our comprehension. If I were not seeing it myself, I would scoff at the teller of this tale. Though, it is unlikely that any man will repeat these incredulous events, for They do not see us. Or, perhaps it is that we are insignificant, and not worthy of Their attention. This truth is staggering, and gives me the desire to best them...to survive.
For this story should be told...I must get through this...I must tell it. So that man will know that our Gods have failed us...
Fantasy genre is so awesome - you can do anything with it! Love it!
I'm so excited!
Angry birds has a new 'seasons' version for St. Patrick's day! They've even Irish'd up the Angry Birds theme song. Now I can slingshot angry birds and jig at the same time.
So awesome! Just sayin...
In the spirit of St. Paddy's Day, I've composed a lil ditty. (Please note: I am not Irish, merely an Irish wannabe).
Luck of the Irish,
Pots of gold and rainbows,
Leprechauns and magic,
Shamrocks and green meadows.
Fiddlin' and tappin',
Jiggin' and singin',
Good ole Irish ditties,
Fine whiskey for drinkin'.
Faeries and pixies,
Celtic religion,
Legends abound,
In every region.
Emerald green rolling hills,
Majestic oak trees,
Standing stones,
Cool ocean breeze.
Medieval castles,
Fine lords and ladies,
Deep moats and drawbridges,
Mazes and aviaries.
Clan tartan kilts,
Claddaghs and celtic knots,
Blarney stone fable,
Fathomless lochs.
So, go 'Fighting Irish',
Gotta love what they say!
'Kiss me I'm Irish',
And have a happy St. Patrick's day!
So, hey! What are you doing? Like, what are you doing right…..
…….now?
Are you sitting at your desk, feeling the warmth of the mouse under your finger as you click through your morning blog posts? Or maybe you're reading this on your smartphone. In that case, is your fingertip trailing over that tacky spot from the Diet Coke you drank yesterday? And hey—what's that noise? You don't hear it? Huh. It sounds like the garbage truck is running over someone's trashcan lid again. Cruuuuuunch. And ooooh! Who popped blueberry muffins in the oven? I'd recognize that sweet, buttery smell anywhere. My mouth is already watering for the warm, crumby goodness.
What was that? You don't smell anything? Or hear anything?
Well…I guess that's not entirely surprising. See, when you're multi-tasking with work and family and writing and life, it's hard to miss out on those little things happening around you. Little things like Touch and Sound and Smell and Taste. Things you don't even think about anymore because everyone's always in some kind of huge rush to get to the next task-at-hand. I'm not blaming you. Heck! I'm guilty of this, too.
But when you're a writer, you can't dismiss these 'little things' because these are the details that add layers of authenticity to your writing. They're the extras that make a reader go, "Oh, right! I know exactly what she's talking about here."
I'm referring to SENSES. I'm referring to SENSES other than Sight. If you noticed, I didn't mention anything about Sight in my slightly cheesy intro. It's not because I have anything against it – trust me, I don't. It's a perfectly delightful sense. I love seeing my daughter's dimple when she smiles at me first thing in the morning. But the thing about Sight is that…well, sometimes we rely on it too much when we tell our stories. A frown, a wink, a shrug of a shoulder—all necessary actions to show what's going on behind the words on the page…but is that all that's going on?
To answer this question, I have an assignment for you!
No groaning. It'll be fun. Promise! <-- See the exclamation point? Fun!
When you have a moment today or tonight or sometime this week, do me a favor:
Put on a blindfold.
Once you’ve done that, I want you to pay attention for fifteen minutes.
That’s it. (Told you it was easy!)
No, really. I don't want you to do anything except soak in every sound, touch, taste, and smell during this time period. Sit outside and do it. Sit inside and do it. Go to the mall and do it (but maybe don’t blindfold yourself at the mall unless you want security called on you). Honestly, it doesn’t really matter where you complete the exercise.
My daughter, Karagin, and I went to the spa last week. It was sooooooo amazing. We got the signature pedicure. Talk about getting pampered! We arrived a 6 p.m. and didn't leave until 9 p.m.! The beautiful pedicure was just the icing on the cake. We got big fluffy robes, a leg and foot massage, numerous different kinds of treatments like deep leg and foot moisturising and hot paraffin wax treatment for the feet, just to name a couple. There's yummy snacks and tea or water, or even wine if you'd like to buy a glass. There's even these little cabanas surrounded by sheers that you can recline in while your pedicure dries. Oh! Did I mention you get a massage?! Oy! :o)
Karagin would like to make it a yearly occurence...hmmmm...I like the sound of that.
On to the writin'!
Destination unclear to the naked eye,
Floating freely, weightless in the sky.
Desire to dream infinitely unaffected,
Focus of mind intensely perfected.
Inspiration true to form,
Ideology so easily born.
A gateway to a perfect place,
Leave far behind, the human race.
Time and space a veritable blur,
Peaceful message so sweet and pure.
But back to reality, one must come,
To the place that leaves one numb.
Body mired in fire and ice,
Soul mislead by fanciful entice.
Not to be fooled by beautiful dreams,
Nothing is ever as it seems.
I haven't written a poem in a very long time, especially the rhyming kind - they're tough! I have a re-newed appreciation for poetry.
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Knowing what your family's been through recently makes this lovely poem especially poignant. Thanks so much for sharing it with us, April.
What a wonderful post -- surely you must realize YOU are a light to so many of us. Shine on, dear April and Happy Hanukkah. So happy you and your family overcame the obstacles, met the challenges, and are doing okay. The light of hope still burning bright!
I love the comforting thought of "I am here, I am here." The "triumph of light over darkness" helps me remember that these short, dark December days will start growing longer and brighter soon. In spite of the cold, light heralds the start of a brand-new year.
Happy, happy holidays to you, your family, and all the Teaching Authors!
How beautiful and comforting! And so happy your husband, best friend made it through. What a scare! Happy holidays!
Such a simple poem with such a powerful message, I am here. Happy Hanukkah to you and your family. Much to celebrate! I did the poetry exercise. Thanks! It was a refreshing workout.
Carmela, Jama, JoAnn and Iza,
Thanks for your support and loving words! I can feel those good vibes all the way on the West coast!
Margaret, I'm so glad you did the poetry exercise. I love that you called it refreshing.
My father also had a heart attack this year and is doing well. It's amazing, isn't it? Your poem is very reassuring. All best in 2013, April!
Happy holidays, April. I've been thinking about how the Sun is always there, whether or not it is visible to us. Loved your little light poem.
Hi, April--I'm back to say once again how much I like this little, basic reassurance for young ones--though we can't always see it, the light is there, with evidence all around. Loved that video, too. Thank you for joining in the Solstice edition of PF!
Yes! The light is always there, even though sometimes we are blinded by grief and can't see it. Thank you for this loveliness, April. Short poems that pack a major punch are my favorites--and yours is one!
A lovely poem of hope and reassurance...just a perfect accompaniment to the video of Shami lighting the candles. All the best to you, April!
Love that tidbit about the 5th night of Hanukkah!
Howdy, Readers, far and wide!
Be sure to hop over to Heidi Mordhorst's Juicy Little Universe post on the Solstice. Heidi's heads-up about her coming post inspired mine:
http://myjuicylittleuniverse.blogspot.com/2012/12/poetry-friday-light-darkest-night.html
Tabatha--we probably share that feeling of fragility and of the preciousness of life...thank goodness your dad is thriving!
Author Amok (aka Laura): yes, the sun is there, whether we can see her or not...
Laura...short poems with zest are my favorites, too...I often write longer ones that I wish I could cook down...
Tara and Mary Lee, so nice to see you here again!
xxx