Looking for Inspiration

Not only am I working to inspire myself to write, but I’m also trying to encourage my students as well. I've been having them work on short stories and have given them the choice to choose from pieces they've already started or to start something new. I provide them time in class to do this, which allows them the opportunity to peer conference with each other and teacher conference, too. What I also find is important is to create opportunities for them to reflect on their process as a writer, whether or not writing is something they enjoy.

I’ve recently provided them with a blog, in which I have asked two specific questions to help them reflect on their writing. The first was to ask them to explain their experiences while working on their short stories, then for them to talk about the pros and cons that they have regarding the writing process. What interested me most was that, although there are some students who struggle with story ideas, there was an overwhelming amount of students who found it easy to come up with a story. It didn’t matter whether they were writing fiction or nonfiction; the results were basically the same. What they liked least, which I expected, was the editing portion of the writing process. There were several who enjoyed the peer conferences, but I’m sure it was because they received positive and constructive feedback from their peers. There is one student who simply feels that his peers are unable to provide feedback that he can use, but I expected this from him, mainly because he’s announced it freely to me before several times in class.

This student, who so dislikes peer conferences, is the one who feels that no one in class can write better than he can. Perhaps he’s right. The fact that I’m trying to get him to understand is that even the best writers out there need some kind of feedback from their peers. It’s what a writer does with it that determines the kind of writer he or she is. Unfortunately, this young one can’t seem to see farther than his own words and completely shuts everyone out. I’m hoping that the little time I have left with him, he can understand that it’s okay to get feedback from others, and perhaps try some of the suggestions they may give. Not only that, but allowing his peers to constructively criticize his work, helps them to strengthen their skills as critiques as well; a symbiotic relationship, so to speak.

While reflecting on his concern of his peers not providing him with constructive criticism, I’ve come to realize what changes I need to make at the start of next year. Although these students have been taught how to do peer conferences since the first grade, many need the refresher course on how to do it effectively. How to provide feedback that peers can actually consider using is vital. Without proper structure, students will become frustrated and the writing process becomes a negative tool rather than a useable one. It’s obvious that this activity of students reflecting on their process of writing has become as useful for me as it has for them. I guess that's what being a teacher is all about. I'm continuously learning and evolving myself while I'm helping my students do the same.

Writing is hard!

Writing is hard. I spend the day, periodically of course, thinking about what I could write about, I then sit with my laptop open before me pondering what I could write about again, yet I can’t seem to come up with anything that excites me. When I do get ideas, I’m usually in a situation that I can’t jot it down or begin writing, then when the moment arrives that I can write down a few lines to remind me for later, or when I sit before my laptop to write, my mind goes blank. Is it because my goal is larger than I’m ready for? Are my expectations too high? I can’t seem to figure out what it is that’s holding me back, but still I’m sitting here in the wee hours of the morning venting about it.

For many years, I’ve had the strong desire to write. I’ve always had that romantic image of sitting at some desk in a secluded room near a window overlooking some relaxing view of nature and writing, just writing. I guess it’s similar to the ideal vision in Chevy Chase’s movie, Funny Farm, where he and his wife move to a little town in Vermont so he can work on his writing career. The twist is that his wife ends up writing a book and getting it published while he receives failure after failure. Well, anyhow, that scene, being able to sit in a room like that and be inspired to write something fantastic is what I would love to be able to do. Then I wake up.


I also have another vision, one where I’m sitting on an enclosed porch of some large, old Victorian house surrounded on three sides with trees and overlooking a large body of water. Perhaps the ocean, but preferably a lake, mainly because I’m concerned for hurricanes and don’t want to have to deal with them. Anyhow, a comfortable, warm breeze is blowing through my sitting area and I’m at a table writing away on some fantastic novel, perhaps a new best seller. Wildlife amble by without concern for their safety and I can focus on this fantastic new book I’m writing. Then I wake up.


There’s this last image I have of the perfect place to write, and it’s in a little, one-room cabin nestled in the middle of the forest. My writing desk sits near a window overlooking all things natural, and an old-fashioned, cooking wood stove sits across the room where water is boiling for my hot cocoa, and keeping my cabin toasty and warm. There are bookshelves lining the walls of the cabin with a large, overstuffed chair in the corner with a lamp hanging over it for light. The only way to the cabin in the winter is by snowshoes and the only prints you see around the cabin are of rabbit, deer, and the occasional moose. Birds hang out by the tree right outside the window eating the seeds in the bird feeder, and chase away the squirrels that try to help themselves. It’s a great atmosphere to write that next best novel. Then I wake up, again

Hollywood has created many romanticized images for those who aspire to be a writer. Some are possible and others are far from being realistic. I may never get any of these dreams realized, but it’s something to work for. In the meantime, I’ll have to do with finding a corner in my small, one-story ranch home that I share with my hubby and two stepsons, and find the right times that allow me to write without too many distractions. Someday I’ll get my own little corner of the world.

Welcome All

Welcome to my first blog. I teach middle school language arts and am currently working on perfecting my own writing craft. I’ve written before, but only lately have I become more serious about writing. In fact, I’ve developed a philosophy that in order for me to teach writing well, I need to practice the art. It’s like attempting to teach others how to become a gourmet chef without ever having stepped into the kitchen, or having never eaten anything other than fast food. In other words, practice what I preach.

I’ve recently learned that in order to be a great writer, I need to be a great reader. I’ve always believed that the more one reads, the better a communicator they become, whether it is through speaking or writing. Your vocabulary increases, and you develop a larger sense of style when it comes to your writing. I’ve been reading lots of blogs, instructional books on writing, and autobiographies lately and have found myself thinking and writing drafts along those lines. I will eventually provide a list of the reading material that I’ve read, along with links to blogs that I have found helpful.

In one of the blogs I’ve been reading, the author states how blogging is a way for writers to practice their craft. If you take it seriously, blogging can be a way for us to stay disciplined and make sure we write on a daily basis. It could be about a number of things. I plan on using this blog to write about a variety of things that go on in my life. I won’t limit myself to only one topic, style, or genre, because writing encompasses a variety and practicing the variety only makes me a stronger writer. I may feel like writing about something funny or frustrated from the day, or I may want to describe a scene or situation I’ve experienced. Perhaps I’ll want to write it in the form of a poem, or short essay, or even as a journal entry. The point is having the freedom to write.

Whichever the case may be, blogging is a way for me to practice my craft, and perhaps meet a few people who feel the way I do along the way. Sit back, enjoy, and please feel free to comment.

~ Theresa