E.B. White...
It was May, 1992. My husband had just graduated from a Massachusetts' law school, and we decided it would be cheaper to be unemployed with student-loan debt in our home state of Pennsylvania, than in New England. I, privately, had made another decision, a promise to myself to find some way to pay the bills by writing. Writing what? I had no clue. But what I did know was that writing was the only enjoyable aspect of the public relations jobs I had held for the past six years. And I did it.
For years I pieced together jobs where the sole responsibility was writing - coupled with freelance assignments, and one tortuous year of saying - after my 3 kids were in bed - "thank you for calling Pottery Barn, can I have the customer id number on the back of your catalog?" If I identified myself as a writer, people would naturally say, "what do you write?" I would always respond "whatever anyone pays me to write." And it was true. I wrote to pay bills. The health column for a small weekly paper - I saw it as the PP& L bill. The fence in our backyard. Paid for by an edit of a horribly written state publication for senior citizens. I wrote about dentistry, about finance (you don't want to see my math SATs), about cow manure runoff, you name it....and the point is...
You gotta have faith to do this...faith in yourself to say "yes" to any request from any editor, and ultimately faith in the writing PROCESS. But this isn't magical, mystical stuff. Writing is work.
It takes practice. And, again, you have to have faith that what you are pouring out onto that paper will EVENTUALLY be molded into something worthwhile.
I laughed out loud when I read Lynn's comment "Most great writers are insecure..." No. Duh. It's the nature of the beast. BUT they push through, and the question is HOW? and How can we pass on this motivation to our students? How can we convince them to have faith in their own abilities? Because if we don't, we end up with the problems addressed by both Tobin and Lynn: Tobin's claim that bad, boring, uninspired writing is due to bad, boring, uninspired teaching (this is too simplistic), and Lynn's valid point that plagiarism is an issue.
I'm sure we'll discuss the plagiarism issue in class, but my "solution" is threefold:
1) Demystify writing.This is something people can learn how to do, much like most everyone can learn how to ride a bike. All will not be Lance Armstrong, but nearly everyone can learn to make it down the block.
2) When used appropriately, I've seen the anti-plagiarism software, such as Turnitin.com work as both a deterrent and an instructional tool (to avoid the "I didn't know" defense.)
3) A renewed emphasis on the "good readers become good writers" approach. When I consider when, where, and how I've improved my writing (and every writer is ALWAYS looking for ways to continue this process), I return to the same thought - reading good writing coupled with practice, practice, practice.
It really is incredible how much our insecurities factor into our teaching. You have had some vast experience in writing, but it seems that your heart wasn't in all of your assignments. I think these key factors are what our students come to the table with as well. I like your three "solutions," although, I think there could be an argument with your last as Lynn wrote that some of the thoughts a writer has could come from previously read materials.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say my "heart wasn't in them," I simply had a very practical approach. I certainly knew I had to write well enough in order to obtain work in the future from that particular editor, and/or get referrals. Additionally, I would be the first to admit that I bristled when an editor would change my work for the sake of making changes, simply because their job came with the title of editor. If my byline was attached to something I wrote - and even if it wasn't - every last word mattered to me. Your hear has to be in it in order to commit to the revision process.
ReplyDeleteI too think it's important to demystify writing. I think it's important for all students to understand that writing just isn't reserved for novels, poetry, and papers--it can be short, practical, fun, necessary . . . anything. I like your Lance Armstrong analogy.
ReplyDeleteI don't totally agree with Tobin that bad writing comes from bad teaching--but I do think that it greatly helps to have a teacher who is passionate about writing and loves it--and is honest about the effort it takes and that sometimes it's the process that's the best part, not the actual product.
I LOVE grammar--learning about it and teaching it, and I think the students benefited from my excitement about it. It helped them to see that what they had formerly seen as a boring and dull subject didn't have to be that way . . . and that it could help them become more confident in their revision process. They may have thought me nuts for loving our grammar units, but they had a good time, too.
Annette, I really enjoyed reading your post, and I think it's incredible that you were able to use your gift of writing as a practical way to earn a living. So often have I considered trying to write to make money here and there, but I haven't had the (excuse the expression) "balls" to do it. Just reading your personal story was an inspiration.
ReplyDeleteAnd on that note, I really liked how this week's readings (to me at least) were quite inspiring. Jess hits on a good point that having "a teacher who is passionate about writing" is helpful. But I don't think it's the only thing that helps. In fact, sometimes when I have a teacher who is passionate about Renaissance art, it really doesn't help me care that much more about Raphael's artistic genius. However, to have a teacher that is passionate about helping students understand their own capabilities as writers--now THAT is what I'm talking about. I think that part of learning writing--and teaching writing--is being comfortable enough to give and take criticism. What I mean to say is that a passionate teacher, I would hope, would allow his or her passionate to articulate that writing is about the individual and that individuals (and ideas) are unique. I think that too often students are apprehensive to write because they do not feel as though their ideas are meaningful or "correct" because they come from themselves as individuals--that they are putting themselves out there because their ideas are their own. Geesh, I hope that makes sense!
Finally, what you say about teaching grammar, I love it! Actually, I am a grammar nerd too (although this does not mean that I am 100% perfect!), and you do have a point that excitement and enthusiasm DOES go a long way! I mean, who wants to listen to a teacher in a monotone voice talk about the correct usage of "affect" and "effect." :)