The Duck Steps Here

This week I went to Kentucky. I stayed in a four star hotel and ate catered meals (most of which I couldn't eat more of than the salad because I am gluten intolerant) and I graded over 1,050 tests for question #1 in AP Language. Of course, at times the things those high school seniors wrote made absolutely no sense. For instance, "The duck steps here." I stared at that phrase for several seconds before I read on, convinced that some things were never meant to be understood. However, a few lines down, the student made a reference to President Truman and a light went on in my brain. Didn't President Truman say, "The buck stops here"? I looked back at the phrase, "The duck steps here" and realized that the rather messy handwriting had reversed the b and made a loopy thing at the top of the o in stops. The student had indeed meant to write "The buck stops here," but had failed to take care in forming the letters. Ah, I said to myself, there is a lesson to be learned here. Understanding is crucial to communication. I tell my students to write in a clear and concise manner for a good reason--so they can be understood. Writing with care--it's something that could save the world. Maybe more people would believe me if I could get Miss America to say it in response to her interview question.

A meeting about writing

I went to a meeting about teaching writing yesterday at the university and had a moment of dismay. Now, I don't want to get in trouble by giving the false impression that it was a bad meeting. I learned some good things and the people there were delightful. However, the moment of dismay came when the work of a contest winner was presented as a good example of excellent writing in personal narrative. It was awful. No, it was gosh-awful. It was a string of superlative adverbs and adjectives that was more an exercise in self-indulgence than crisp, clear narrative. What dismayed me even more than that piece was that several of the writing teachers gushed over over how wonderful it was, yet, later in the meeting when another personal narrative was read that sparkled with clarity and excellent word choice, only one person praised it. If teachers of writing can't tell the difference between self-indulgent, purple prose and truly excellent writing, how are they going to teach their students how to write?

Just got back from San Francisco

Yes, a friend and I presented a panel at the Conference for College Composition and Communication. It went very well and the people who attended were super enthusiastic about our presentation. It was about a DVD we put together after interviewing several people in various careers about how much they write in their jobs and some of the processes they go through to write. As you can see, writing is my life and I love to talk about it or do it. You can see the DVD on http://writeforlife.byu.edu.

It was also fun to sightsee around the old stomping grounds. Both my husband and I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, so we looked up some places we'd been. We also drove up Highway 1 on the coast. Boy did that bring back memories of playing on the beach and eating good seafood.

Writing Tips

My daughter, D3, wrote a terrific novel. She let me read the first draft and I couldn't put it down. Of course, there are problems. With a first draft there always are. But D3 did the right thing in asking people to read the manuscript and make comments. Sharing your work is the best thing you can do for your writing other than writing a lot, if you recognize that your readers will have different opinions and that some will be more skilled than others. However, if you are going for a particular age group or gender audience, it's always good to have people in that group read your manuscript, if you can. If you don't have someone you can ask to read your work, you can join one of the many on-line writers groups.

Just got the Houghton Mifflin Catalog for Spring

So, I got this flat package from Houghton Mifflin and couldn't think of what it might possibly be. When I opened it, I saw that it was their Spring Catalog and sure enough, there was my book. It's listed as coming out in June. I'm so excited! Kind of makes it seem more real.

I wish I had more time to write fiction, but I have a contract with Edwin Mellen to produce two text books and the first is due in two weeks. Sigh. That's what I spent Thanksgiving doing--re-formatting my first text book.

This one is about a visit I made to a Shakespeare Festival

I just got back from the Cedar City, Utah Shakespeare Festival where I had a fantastic time seeing professional theater. The downside was that I only got to see two plays: Fiddler on the Roof and Taming of the Shrew. Fiddler was a good production. The acting was good. The costumes were good. The set was good. The only trouble was that it was a typical production of that play. The only innovative thing in the play was the actor who played Lazer Wolf. He injected life into his part and was definitely not like the movie. The other production, however, was fantastic. They took the original Sheakespeare play of Taming of the Shrew and set it in 1946 Italy. The father with the two daughters is pretty well off with his restaurant and land. Petrucchio, who tames the shrew, was a U.S. Army captain who is a con artist. One of the suitors for Bianca, the younger daughter, is the son of an American mob boss who has come back to Italy to visit "the family." They played Frank Sinatra music and did a lot of other period things with the fantastic set and the way cool costumes. The freshness of this version of a play hundreds of years old also allowed the actors to throw themselves into their parts, with delightful results. The audience was on its feet cheering and clapping as soon as the play was finished.

So, how is seeing these plays inspiration for writing? For one thing, it is a demonstration of a principle of good writing--giving your characters enough fresh quirkiness so that they can really shine and then that energy moves your story along with zing that engages the reader. It is often said that there are only so many stories in the world and I suppose that is true to a point. However, the way those stories are presented can always be innovative and full of personality.

Hi, folks--starting a new blog where my family is

Hey, everyone--I'm moving my blog to this location to be where most of my family is. I'm copying over most of my previous posts to keep continuity. Welcome to my new site.