There are people in this world who thrive on a schedule. They love order. Predictability sustains them. There is security in minutes counted and to do lists checked.
I'm not really one of these people.
Last Monday I returned to school. I didn't prepare, but instead, I just jumped in -- cold turkey, so to speak. Four days in and I've converted.
My kids (not the ones I spend the day in school with, but the ones who live in my house) don't start school until next week. They are getting a transition period. Their sleep schedules have been stolen by the school year.
But their days still belong to summer.
They are living it up with Mimi and Papa -- swimming and biking bumpy trails and adventures in the woods. Each afternoon they wrap their sweaty arms around my summer dresses and their muddy soles squash my bright-colored flats and the stories fly from their mouths, tumbling over one another. They are living summer.
At night the dirt swirls in the tub. I miss you, Mom. Each one of them, all four, have whispered these words to me this week. Perhaps they are afraid if said too loud, they will scare summer away.
I miss them too. I miss our unplanned moments. The let's see where the day takes us. The don't worry about the dishes because we can do them tomorrow. The adventure and surprise and the energy-drain that comes from a very good summer day that fills you up with joy and peace and happiness.
I don't like our adventures being confined between 4:00 pm and 7:30 pm.
Andy always takes from work and spends the final day of summer break with the kids. They call it the Last Hurrah of Summer. It is today.
So while I'm following a schedule and checking off tasks and meeting for this and collaborating for that, they will be following the whim of summer. They will say Goodbye, summer.
I wish goodbyes didn't hurt so much. Perhaps the Hello tomorrow brings will soothe my weary soul.
Showing posts with label setting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label setting. Show all posts
Monday, August 19, 2013
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
the kitchen (soLs)
It holds
peanut butter
bananas
coffee
gum
It holds
colorful plates
spatulas
sharp knives
mugs
It holds
little giggles
sweet secrets
big dreams
love
It holds
me.
peanut butter
bananas
coffee
gum
It holds
colorful plates
spatulas
sharp knives
mugs
It holds
little giggles
sweet secrets
big dreams
love
It holds
me.
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| Click on the image to share your slice or to read others. |
Thursday, July 12, 2012
laura resau interview (part 1 of 3): setting
I am so-very-excited to share these next few posts with you. A few months ago I read:
The writing and the story wrapped around my heart, and I found myself thinking about it long after I closed the cover. I wanted to know more about Laura Resau's craft and her process. So I checked out her website and blog and finally had enough courage to request an interview. Fortunately she graciously agreed.
I was struck by the way the setting felt so real. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I've never been to Mazunte, Mexico because after reading The Jade Notebook, I feel like I've lived there, right alongside the characters. This made me start thinking about the importance of setting and wondering how I can make it come alive like Laura does.
So I asked:
Check out Laura's awesome response. Not only does she give us insight into her own process, but she also lays out a several minilesson ideas I can envision using with a variety of grade levels. Not only that, but Laura's advice has been tumbling around my mind, becoming part of my writing life. I find myself trying to write stronger setting in my notebook because of her response.
I love writing setting! It’s one of the first elements that comes to me when I get a story idea— the place, mood, ambience. Most of my books are set in other countries—Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador, and France—all places where I’ve either lived or traveled. When I’m abroad, I carry spiral notebooks around with me and jot down notes about the people and places I encounter. I deliberately use all five senses in my notebook descriptions. Not only does this help ground me in the present moment, but it’s also good practice. When I’m actually writing stories, I’m already in the habit of incorporating all five senses. Vivid settings are particularly important when writing about cultures that are unfamiliar to most readers. Even for familiar settings, however, I’ve found that multi-sensory descriptions really make the story come alive for readers and pull them in.
As far as strategies for teachers, here are some things I do in my workshops with kids and teens:
First, we talk about how to write vivid settings. I usually give some examples from my own books, and the kids analyze what exactly I did in my writing to create the setting. With my guidance, the students come up with this advice:
1) Use all five senses. I tell the kids that during the revision stage, I go through and make sure I’ve used most of the five senses in every single scene.
2) Be specific. For example, instead of using a vague description like “dirty,” use specific details that show this— like a shirt covered with grease stains, or chocolate sauce, or mud.
3) Use interesting imagery. I encourage kids to explore metaphors and similes. Usually, the kids have already read one of my books, and they’ve already picked out examples of figurative language with their teachers. My book What the Moon Saw (grades 5-8) is a favorite of teachers since it’s packed with metaphors, and tends to inspire kids to use figurative language in their own creative writing.
Here are some activities I do to let the students practice this advice. (Note that I always model the activity first, eliciting responses from the entire group to make sure they get it):
1) To practice using all five senses, I hand out magazine photos of settings (beach, jungle, city, etc) and ask the kids to imagine how the scene smells, tastes, looks, sounds, and feels. They jot down their notes, and then write a setting description using all five senses and giving specific, interesting details. (Often, the kids end up beginning a story that they’re eager to continue.)
2) To practice using metaphors and similes, I give the kids a series of six or seven prompts and give them two minutes to jot down responses to each prompt (I use a little hourglass for drama.) I also hand out magazine pictures of interesting-looking people or have the students imagine a character from a story they’re already working on. Some of my prompts: If this person were an animal, what would he be? If this person were a kind of weather, what would she be? What does this person smell like? How is this person different on the inside from how she appears on the outside? You could easily adapt this activity to setting: If the landscape were a kind of clothing, what would it be? If the weather were an emotion, what would it be? If the sunset were a kind of fruit, what would it be? If the town were a dessert food, what would it be? If the surroundings were a kind of animal, what would it be?
Aren't you just itching to write? Go ahead, crack open your notebook and give it a whirl. I'm willing to bet you'll find something useful. A new way of thinking about your place, an example to use with students, an image you're really proud of. Then check back soon, because upcoming inspiration from Laura includes insider-information about her writing space and the way she weaves several plot threads together to make the story come together with depth and beauty.
I was struck by the way the setting felt so real. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I've never been to Mazunte, Mexico because after reading The Jade Notebook, I feel like I've lived there, right alongside the characters. This made me start thinking about the importance of setting and wondering how I can make it come alive like Laura does.
So I asked:
Will you talk a little about the influence of setting on your decisions as a writer? What kinds of notebook or early work do you do in order to gather the setting details for your books? Do you have a specific strategy or advice for teachers to help students develop rich settings?
Check out Laura's awesome response. Not only does she give us insight into her own process, but she also lays out a several minilesson ideas I can envision using with a variety of grade levels. Not only that, but Laura's advice has been tumbling around my mind, becoming part of my writing life. I find myself trying to write stronger setting in my notebook because of her response.
I love writing setting! It’s one of the first elements that comes to me when I get a story idea— the place, mood, ambience. Most of my books are set in other countries—Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador, and France—all places where I’ve either lived or traveled. When I’m abroad, I carry spiral notebooks around with me and jot down notes about the people and places I encounter. I deliberately use all five senses in my notebook descriptions. Not only does this help ground me in the present moment, but it’s also good practice. When I’m actually writing stories, I’m already in the habit of incorporating all five senses. Vivid settings are particularly important when writing about cultures that are unfamiliar to most readers. Even for familiar settings, however, I’ve found that multi-sensory descriptions really make the story come alive for readers and pull them in.
As far as strategies for teachers, here are some things I do in my workshops with kids and teens:
First, we talk about how to write vivid settings. I usually give some examples from my own books, and the kids analyze what exactly I did in my writing to create the setting. With my guidance, the students come up with this advice:
1) Use all five senses. I tell the kids that during the revision stage, I go through and make sure I’ve used most of the five senses in every single scene.
2) Be specific. For example, instead of using a vague description like “dirty,” use specific details that show this— like a shirt covered with grease stains, or chocolate sauce, or mud.
3) Use interesting imagery. I encourage kids to explore metaphors and similes. Usually, the kids have already read one of my books, and they’ve already picked out examples of figurative language with their teachers. My book What the Moon Saw (grades 5-8) is a favorite of teachers since it’s packed with metaphors, and tends to inspire kids to use figurative language in their own creative writing.
Here are some activities I do to let the students practice this advice. (Note that I always model the activity first, eliciting responses from the entire group to make sure they get it):
1) To practice using all five senses, I hand out magazine photos of settings (beach, jungle, city, etc) and ask the kids to imagine how the scene smells, tastes, looks, sounds, and feels. They jot down their notes, and then write a setting description using all five senses and giving specific, interesting details. (Often, the kids end up beginning a story that they’re eager to continue.)
2) To practice using metaphors and similes, I give the kids a series of six or seven prompts and give them two minutes to jot down responses to each prompt (I use a little hourglass for drama.) I also hand out magazine pictures of interesting-looking people or have the students imagine a character from a story they’re already working on. Some of my prompts: If this person were an animal, what would he be? If this person were a kind of weather, what would she be? What does this person smell like? How is this person different on the inside from how she appears on the outside? You could easily adapt this activity to setting: If the landscape were a kind of clothing, what would it be? If the weather were an emotion, what would it be? If the sunset were a kind of fruit, what would it be? If the town were a dessert food, what would it be? If the surroundings were a kind of animal, what would it be?
Aren't you just itching to write? Go ahead, crack open your notebook and give it a whirl. I'm willing to bet you'll find something useful. A new way of thinking about your place, an example to use with students, an image you're really proud of. Then check back soon, because upcoming inspiration from Laura includes insider-information about her writing space and the way she weaves several plot threads together to make the story come together with depth and beauty.
As always, feel free to leave a comment. My guess is Laura will be around to check out your thoughts.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
place quick write (#teacherswrite)
The final part of today's #TeachersWrite challenge is a paragraph filled with tiny details of a place. My place (actually a character's place) is reading under a tree.
My final paragraph...
Turning the page of my book, I stretch, catching my little toe in a hole in the corner of my reading quilt. I flip over to my back, giving my thighs a break from all of the tiny quilt seams pressing into my skin. I cover my eyes with my arm, blocking the brightness from the early too-blue sky. The branches shuffle from the weeping willow, and I press deeper into the quilt. The dew tickles my toes.The quilt's old, maybe my grandma's great grandma sewed each of the tiny seams by hand. There's a million different fabrics, all cut into tiny pieces. Of course, it could have just been one of Mom's flea market finds. The breeze picks up and flutters the pages of my book, bringing me back to the story. The rooster announces morning, the bull frog responds, and Dad's truck grumbles, but I'm in colonial America, feeling the hot sun as the character tends to the garden.
Because it's the process that's important to my work as a teacher, here's how it went. Today's #TeachersWrite is a quick write about a very specific place. First a two minute quick write -- Go!
Stretched out on the old quilt that was maybe my grandma's great grandma's, or something like that, that breeze catches a few strands of my hair, flipping them into my eyes, my nose, my mouth. They tickle my ears. I turn the page. Once I'm in the story world, there's not much that can distract me. Especially here, in this place, where Mr. Darcy is about to extend grace one more time. I'm vaguely aware of the birds high in the tree above me. Dad's truck grumbles and the gravel crunches as he pulls out of the lane, on his way to meet a client. It's too early for a teenager to be up and
Time's up!
Now 1 minute on each of the senses...
Go!
SEE-- words on the page, little green leaves, grass, ant crawling across the book, pond, twigs, roots under the tree, bits of blue sky, puffy clouds, chipped finger nails, blue heron, purple lilacs, pink peonies, tulips
HEAR -- bull frogs, fish/frog splashes, bird chirps,rooster, rustling leaves, rooster, dad's truck, tea kettle, horses, rooster, ducks walking, buzzing
SMELL -- pond, fish, grass, flowers -- lilacs, peonies -- green
FEEL -- breeze, light breeze, ants crawling, mosquito, soft quilt, the seams of the quilt, pages of the book, hair tickling face, damp from morning dew, toes cold
And a rewrite...
[Paragraph posted above.]
Reflection...
Writing makes me go deeper. I learn more about character and setting and conflict simply by putting words on the page. I'm also realizing it doesn't matter how many times I think about a specific place, the more I think and write, the more I learn. Today I learned my character is an early-riser.
 |
| A photo I snapped on a walk...I like to imagine a character reading under that weeping willow tree. |
Turning the page of my book, I stretch, catching my little toe in a hole in the corner of my reading quilt. I flip over to my back, giving my thighs a break from all of the tiny quilt seams pressing into my skin. I cover my eyes with my arm, blocking the brightness from the early too-blue sky. The branches shuffle from the weeping willow, and I press deeper into the quilt. The dew tickles my toes.The quilt's old, maybe my grandma's great grandma sewed each of the tiny seams by hand. There's a million different fabrics, all cut into tiny pieces. Of course, it could have just been one of Mom's flea market finds. The breeze picks up and flutters the pages of my book, bringing me back to the story. The rooster announces morning, the bull frog responds, and Dad's truck grumbles, but I'm in colonial America, feeling the hot sun as the character tends to the garden.
Because it's the process that's important to my work as a teacher, here's how it went. Today's #TeachersWrite is a quick write about a very specific place. First a two minute quick write -- Go!
Stretched out on the old quilt that was maybe my grandma's great grandma's, or something like that, that breeze catches a few strands of my hair, flipping them into my eyes, my nose, my mouth. They tickle my ears. I turn the page. Once I'm in the story world, there's not much that can distract me. Especially here, in this place, where Mr. Darcy is about to extend grace one more time. I'm vaguely aware of the birds high in the tree above me. Dad's truck grumbles and the gravel crunches as he pulls out of the lane, on his way to meet a client. It's too early for a teenager to be up and
Time's up!
Now 1 minute on each of the senses...
Go!
SEE-- words on the page, little green leaves, grass, ant crawling across the book, pond, twigs, roots under the tree, bits of blue sky, puffy clouds, chipped finger nails, blue heron, purple lilacs, pink peonies, tulips
HEAR -- bull frogs, fish/frog splashes, bird chirps,rooster, rustling leaves, rooster, dad's truck, tea kettle, horses, rooster, ducks walking, buzzing
SMELL -- pond, fish, grass, flowers -- lilacs, peonies -- green
FEEL -- breeze, light breeze, ants crawling, mosquito, soft quilt, the seams of the quilt, pages of the book, hair tickling face, damp from morning dew, toes cold
And a rewrite...
[Paragraph posted above.]
Reflection...
Writing makes me go deeper. I learn more about character and setting and conflict simply by putting words on the page. I'm also realizing it doesn't matter how many times I think about a specific place, the more I think and write, the more I learn. Today I learned my character is an early-riser.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
unexpected inspiration
I have some new characters tumbling around in my mind. (This may be the last thing I need right now with the end of the school year, trying to finish Celebrating Writers (Christi had her baby!), and finalizing my keynote.) Still, I have some characters tumbling around and I should be thankful. One of the characters is a teenage girl. She loves to read, and her favorite book is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. (This might be ironic for those who know me and my feelings regarding the "cannon" in high school English.)
Naturally I cracked open the book to reread it. (Well, technically I clicked it open on my Kindle app.) I've found myself highlighting passages (like this one) about Mr. Darcy that are revealing insights into the second character tumbling in my mind -- a guy who has moved in with the girl character's family to complete his senior year.
I've always been intrigued by books that follow another story from classic literature or mythology. I'm a little bit giddy to see the very organic nature of the story development. It's not forced or fake. I'm simply following the character. I even ordered a copy of the book in order to read it outside this summer. The character who is pushing on the edges of my mind loves reading outside around the farm. I want to read Pride and Prejudice outside on a quilt under a tree on a breezy summer day. The Kindle version just isn't going to do the trick for this kind of "research."
For now, I'm going to leave this character and her book right here. I need to focus my attention on professional writing --- the book and keynote and articles. When I make progress on one of those projects, I'll be rewarded with time to spend with my nose in a book or scribbling in my writer's notebook.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
{discover.play.build.} COLORS
I love colors. As I've been pushing myself to consider setting from many different angles, I decided to focus on the main colors of a place. I love this page in my notebook. Even more, though, I love how it pushed me to consider the place from a new set of lenses. This is always a very good thing.
Here's my notebook page:
Will you make a page in your notebook noting the most abundant colors in a particular setting? It can be splotches of colors like mine, or it can be a list of colors. Just take a few minutes to think of your setting in a different way, then jot down a few notes. I'd love to see what you come up with...please share in the comments.
Here's my notebook page:
{Discover.Play.Build.} Challenge}
Will you make a page in your notebook noting the most abundant colors in a particular setting? It can be splotches of colors like mine, or it can be a list of colors. Just take a few minutes to think of your setting in a different way, then jot down a few notes. I'd love to see what you come up with...please share in the comments.Thursday, May 3, 2012
{discover. play. build.} scents
{Discover. Play. Build.}
Return to your list of places and chose one to play with in your notebook. Create a page of smells from this place. Try to push yourself to include some abstract nouns in your scent descriptions, as well as develop a list of possible verbs to help waft the smell to your reader.
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| Click on the image for a bigger view of my page. |
Thursday, April 26, 2012
{discover.play.build.} research a place
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| What place have you've never visited, but find intriguing? |
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| If you've never been to Cyn's website or followed her on Twitter You are missing out BIG TIME! Click the links and be ready to be engulfed in her online spaces. |
The collecting and research process will be much different to develop a setting for a story if I've never actually visited the place. But it's not impossible. Writers do it all the time. (I quickly thought of Cynthia Leitich Smith (make sure to click the link to go to her website and follow her on Twitter) and her book DIABOLICAL. She wrote scenes taking place in hell and I'm sure she's never visited there. In the notes on the back of the book she notes her research into literature to gain an understanding of the setting. To read more about this check out my post about DIABOLICAL on Two Writing Teachers.)
So all of this is inspiring today's {Discover. Play. Build.} Challenge. I can't wait to hear what you discover and document.
{Discover.Play.Build.}
Consider a place you've never visited, but find intriguing. You may want to use the list you created last week. The place can been real or fictitious (or maybe you'll want to do this twice, one for each). Spend some time learning some things about this place. Record the things you find most interesting.
Here is a page from my notebook about food in London.
This is the photo I'm printing and taping into my notebook.
How about you? What are you discovering through your play?
Thursday, April 19, 2012
{discover.play.build.} a new look at place
I've been rethinking what it means to write what you know. I've been thinking this especially in regards to setting. Part of this is because I've been drawn to books lately that make me feel like I've visited a place. The Jade Notebook by Laura Resau and Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins are two YA books that are especially inspiring to me. I think both of these authors are superb in writing setting details, making the reader feel like she's visited a new place just by reading the book. I want to write setting like these authors.
It occurred to me that I can write what I know, but set in a place I've never visited. There are ways to learn about a new place and to stretch myself as a writer even if I've never visited the place. I also realized there are many places I have experienced that are viable options for settings. So I began nudging myself to create one of my favorite kinds of lists,a list of places, but with a twist.
{Discover.Play.Build.}
Make a list of places in your notebook. Allow all kinds of places to fill your list -- dig beyond your favorite places, beyond the places you love the most, beyond places hat have appeared on your lists before. Allow big, general places a spot on your list, as well as specific places. Don't chuck an idea simply because you think it's not worthy. Really push yourself to consider places you normally wouldn't.
A peek inside my notebook...
A little of my thinking when making this list...
- Recently I've been intrigued by London. I want to learn as much as I can about the city and eventually visit. Someday I'd like to venture to live there for several months. I'm not sure where this feeling came from or even if I will feel this way next year. Regardless, London made the list.
- Since I added London to th list, I considered some of my favorite cities I have been in: Chicago, Boston, and New Orleans made the list. I added Hawaii too. Who would love staring at photos from paradise?
- Near the end of the list I considered my jobs...babysitting for a hair dresser, working at a golf course,a nd the clothing department at a book store.
- There's specific spaces -- art room and stage -- and there's' general places -- backyard and amusement park.
- I like how the list evolved bit by bit. The important thing is to push for new ideas when thinking about setting.
It only takes a few minutes to {Discover.Play.Build.} Please join!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
writing about places
Stumbled across this and thought it was fitting as we think about place as inspiration. Shimelle Layne offers 5 Ideas for Writing About Places.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
{discover.play.build.} make a map
Maps fill my notebooks. They are almost magical for me to find a story, to jump into a story, or to revise a story.
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| Map of the fictional town for my YA book. |
Maps are most useful to me as a writer when they fill the space. When I take the time to go beyond the obvious places on a map and drill down to the details, ideas begin to bubble. In this map, I added a lot of questions to it because I was trying to figure out more about the story.
Most of the maps in my notebooks are of places smaller than towns. I zoom in on parks, houses, rooms, and lockers. And sometimes they aren't even places, but things like a map of a dog, a map of my son's shirt, a map of the day.
{discover.play.build.}
Add a map to your notebook. Even if you've sketched a map before, challenge yourself to make another map of a different place. Maybe zoom in and discover the new details just waiting to be noticed.
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