Living Life Twice

*UPDATED May 14, 2020 FLASH DRAFTS Sometimes writing becomes overly complicated when inexperienced writers are required to over plan, or over think their writing. Frequently, they end up overwhelmed by these well intentioned  requirements. On occasions teachers may note that the volume of writing a student produces is minimal. This is where the strategy of Flash drafts may assist the inexperienced writer to deal with such issues. Let's face it, sometimes the writer just need to 'write.' There exists within them an overwhelming urge to get words and ideas onto paper before they evaporate, or fly away. Overplanning can kill the urgency to write dead in its tracks. Insistence on the use of graphic organizers can also kill the joy. Flash drafts get young writers closer to the act of writing -and it most certainly gets them there much quicker.  The Flash draft enables the writer to feel a greater sense of control over the writing elements, as it involves ...

During my recent visit to Adelaide I had some planning conversations with teachers around writing memoir as opposed to autobiography. Those conversations prompted this post... Here are some thoughts and ideas I hope will support those writers interested in delving into writing memoir pieces. What is a MEMOIR?  Memories just may be the most important possession any writer has.  They shape what we write. When we write from our own experience it often provides the writing with greater authority and accuracy. We want more than tedious recounts of trivial events. Memoir involves exploration of memories whether recent or older. it is at the intersection of heart and mind. It should help the writer discover more about themselves.  You need to connect yourself with your own unique history.  When you explore memories in your writing, pay attention to the feelings connected to it.  Exploring a memory includes looking into not only what happened but...

For the last two weeks I have been working with schools in Australia’s Northern Territory. I have had the pleasure of meeting enthusiastic young writers and their equally enthusiastic teachers.  From Darwin I have been able to visit schools close to the city such as Wagaman Primary School where I worked to 23 teachers from a collection of schools. Pre-briefing sessions were followed by classroom demonstrations and then debriefings. A day of rich writing conversations. Young writers and teachers examined my writer's notebooks and were encouraged to carry away as many ideas as their minds could carry. More scenes from Wagaman Primary School of young writers and teachers exploring notebooks. Writers share. When it comes to writer's notebooks in the classroom, teachers and kids need to reach an agreed understanding - the notebook requires regular feeding in order to remain healthy. The writer must collect a large quantity of material and it needs to be varied in natu...

In recent days I have been pondering the art of storytelling... A continuing narrative of my work in schools is to promote the idea of writers as storytellers. I have always been a person who has enjoyed sharing stories and jokes, whether from first hand experience, or relating stories gifted across a lifetime. I always encourage developing writers to tell their stories too. It is a rehearsal tool for the inexperienced writer. Telling their stories before they write not only eliminates the notion of cold starts' it frequently results in a much enhanced end product. Often a writer's story may be told many times before it emerges as written words. I often tell my stories many times before I commit them to the pages of my notebook.  It is in the telling that the story and the words are refined. The reader benefits from the repeated tellings. Each of us has stories unique to our experience. It is folly not to see value in sharing them. I once had a student comment a...

In recent weeks I have been working with a group of young writers and their teachers at Crib Point Primary School. Writers in their first year of primary school in fact. They are taking important first steps on a long and hopefully, fulfilling journey as writers.  These young writers choose their own ideas, decide what will go on each page, make changes, reread the text and ultimately decides when the writing is finished and is ready for sharing. They are making books that look and sound like the books teachers are reading to them every day. Books written by trusted authors. The multiple pages created during writing workshop help these inexperienced writer build stamina for the act of writing. How good is that? It has been most instructive to watch them embrace this learning opportunity. Their boundless enthusiasm for the task of creating their own books has been a revelation not just for me, but more importantly, their teachers. Each visit they greet me with news of the...

I have been hearing a lot about writer's block and the challenge of the blank page in my recent discussions in schools and it set me to thinking... Writers, experienced and inexperienced all face the challenge of the blank page. So let's approach the writing we choose to do with a can-do attitude. The blank page is the very reason the rehearsal of our 'first' or opening words is so vitally important.  When we rehearse those initial words, we turn up to the party bearing gifts! We bring with us a string of words to launch our writing. Words ready to splash across the page. Words to get things going. These rehearsed words provide momentum.  I very much enjoy rehearsing my words. There exists in my head a rich world of words and ideas. They entertain me and prepare me for the writing that follows. This is pre-writing. This is the build up. I consider this a vital part of  the writing process; something to share with student writers, so they can prepare th...

As I opened my suitcase of surprises, the assembled students peered forward hoping to gain an advanced sighting of the contents. I had brought a collection of Writer’s Notebooks to share with them. During my previous visit I had informed them that I would bring some notebooks to share. They had gathered some artefacts and made some preliminary lists of things that they considered potential topics for their writing, but neither the teacher, nor the students had much previous experience with Writer’s Notebooks. They quickly formed into groups of three as I distributed the notebooks. ‘I want you to be readers and researchers. I want you to be text detectives and make a note of the different types of entries you see in my notebooks. Feel free to take as many ideas as you can carry away. Writers share.'  I wanted them to see the broad influences on my writing. I told them that there are many ways to use a writer’s notebook. I further explained that what they would be seeing is ...

The writer sits down to face the blank page, only to be greeted by the dazzling whiteness of the paper. The pen is tightly gripped as the writer stares at the empty page. There is hope that time will deliver the wondrous words desperately sought. The empty lines beckon. How to begin? If you have experienced this feeling, you will have greater empathy for your students and those feelings that sometimes overwhelm them as beginning writers. They often have a broad idea regarding their writing, but have little idea where, or how, to begin. They want to produce something that effectively conveys a message, but remain unsure of how to begin the process. 'I know what I want to write about, but I don't know how to start.' We need to recognize that it is at this point we can provide meaningful support to allay such writing anxieties. Teaching students how to think of something to write, provides a way forward. This prewriting stage is the time for students to think a...