My Kind of Play

Another MFA class begins, and once again I’m deep diving into story structures. I have to admit, this is my kind of play. And, it so happens, I came across a new book that is my perfect cup of tea.

Considered “a master class in novel writing,” Story Engineering,  by Larry Brooks (Writer’s Digest Books, 2011), takes a deep dive into story architecture. As Brooks offers, “…in their execution, stories are every bit as engineering driven as they are artistic in nature.” In other words, the technicality (or criticality) of the story is as fundamental as the creative.

Exploring the ongoing debate of pantsing (otherwise called organic writing) vs. plotting, Brooks offers that both strategies serve the same function: to find the heart of the story, the one that begs to be told. Pantzing tends to take the scenic route, going through revision after revision (after revision) to eventually and hopefully find that essence of story. As such, pantzing tends to be inefficient, as the writer stumbles  through various drafts that too often miss the mark.  What if there was a way to identify the core elements before  you dive into the deep end?

 Brooks calls these elements the six core competencies. Concept. Character. Theme. Story Structure. Scene Execution. Voice.  These are the essential ingredients to a successful story. 

Every creative cook understands that the “most delicious of ingredients require blending and cooking – stirring, whipping, baking, boiling, frying, and sometimes, marinating – before they qualify as edible…” It is the delicious sum of these ingredients that turns your story into a “literary feast.”

Story engineering is that recipe that brings these ingredients together in a cohesive , satisfying dish. It differs from formulaic writing in that the process of story engineering serves to bring clarity to your story, but you bring the art. A pinch of this, a dash of that, stirred not shaken, and you make the story your own.

Brooks’ detailed explorations into each of these competencies decode the abstract. He provides a practical model that gives writers a profound new understanding of story structure that is accessible, and doable. One of my favorite passages in his definition of story:

“A story has many moods. It has good days and bad days. It must be nurtured and cared for lest it deteriorate. And it has a personality and an essence that defines how it is perceived. Just like human brings.”

As Books explains, a body cannot function without a heart. So it is with stories. These certain competencies support  the heart of the story. To continue with the analogy of cooking, if an essential ingredient is missing, or soured, the resulting dish leaves behind a bad taste.

Brooks is quick to admit that a writer can have all the right ingredients, perfectly stirred, and it turns out bland. Or, to put it another way, it’s possible to assemble in perfect order that perfect body. But without that creative spark, there is no life. Think Frankenstein’s monster. 

Now that we’re all hungry, I highly recommend this book. 

 May you create the perfect feast!

--Bobbi Miller

O! The Feels!

For these summer weeks, Teaching Authors are exploring how the summer season might affect our writing, work plans and/or schedule. Don't forget, we’re also offering readers the opportunity to win an autographed copy of Patricia Karwatowicz’s HP? WHO’S HE? Be sure to read the details on Carmela’s post.

Like Esther, I simply keep on keeping on. Or, echoing Dory’s wisdom, I Just Keep Swimming.

Besides beginning my third term teaching MFA grad students and learning all this new techno-stuff, I continue to search for a new agent. Until my stories find this champion, I continue to study in hopes of mastering my craft. And to that end, let me tell you about a new discovery, Donald Maass’ book, The Emotional Craft of Fiction.

Fiction is primarily an emotional exchange. The reader stays connected to the hero because she feels the story. The reader wants to see the character succeed, or at least wants to see what happens next. The character’s motivation creates empathy between herself and the reader. After all, readers can empathize with a character’s motivation, especially if it’s similar to her own. Readers want to know why these characters are in the mess they are in. They what to know what happens to these characters. If the plot is what happens to your character, then her motivation is the force that sets the plot into motion and keeps it going. It’s why she goes after her goal in the first place.

Maass explores these emotional modes of writing, and demonstrates how to “... use story to provoke a visceral and emotional experience in readers.” According to Maass, the language of emotion makes the difference to a reader’s experience. And plot can be understood as a sequence of emotional milestones...

“Because that’s the way readers read. They don’t so much read as respond. They do not automatically adopt your outlook and outrage. They formulate their own.”

In other words, as Maass suggests, you are not the author of what readers feel. You are the provocateur of those feelings.

With this in mind, Maass explores three primary paths that an author can use to create this emotional experience.

One. Report what characters are feeling, using language and images that evoke feeling. As we know, words can have multiple meanings. The denotative meaning is the explicit definition as listed in a dictionary. Childhood, for example, means the state of being a child. However, the emotional weight, or the expressiveness of language, comes from the connotative meaning. The connotation of the word impacts the tone and themes of the narrative. When Dorothy says "there's no place like home," she is referring to the emotional impact of her family. Because fiction is an emotional exchange, a writer chooses words to create a larger emotional impact. Maass calls this the inner mode, the telling of emotions.

Two. Imply the characters emotional – or inner – state through external action. Maass calls this the outer mode, the showing of emotions.

“Like billiard balls colliding … a character’s actions transfer an emotional impact to the reader, who feels it with equal force, and the reader caroms across the table.”

Three. Create an emotional dialogue between author and reader. Maass calls this the other mode, in which readers feel something that a character does not feel. The reader reacts, resists and sometimes succumbs, but  “…she can never escape the churn and flow of her own feelings.”

Just like when we don’t fully understand why we do the things we do, a character does not always understand her behavior. This confusion, however, makes your character real to the reader. Her confusion reinforces her struggle. Madeleine L’Engle (The Heroic Personality, Origins of Story, 1999) offers that the heroic personality is human, not perfect. What it means to be human is “to be perfectly and thoroughly human, and that is what is meant by being perfect: human, not infallible or impeccable or faultless, but human.” A character’s confusion is authentic. This sense of authenticity is important in keeping the reader connected to your story.

Human beings are complex, messy, flimsy, brave, heroic, cowardly and courageous and infinitely interesting. Emotions skim the surface and run deep, creating conflict and contradictions in the character’s life. When an author masters this emotional connection in her writing, it becomes the difference between a reader simply reading the story, and instead experiencing the story.

Or, that's my hope. I’m still working on it.

Story – whether in prose or verse – can do things, so Maass reminds us, that no other art form can. It engages the imagination on a deeper level. It stirs hearts and brings about change in a way that other art forms rarely achieve.

“Writing a novel is itself an emotional journey akin to falling in love, living together, hating each other, separating, reconciling, gaining perspective, accepting each other, and finally finding deep and abiding love. Writing fiction is like living…The emotional craft of fiction is a set of tools, yes, but more than anything it’s an instrument beyond the range of any book: the gracious gift of your own loving heart.”

What do you think?

-- Bobbi Miller

Wednesday Writing Workout(s): THINKING WITH INK!

Welcome to the fourth Wednesday Writing Workout created by Sheboygan, Wisconsin author, educational consultant and veteran elementary and middle school classroom teacher Michael Leannah. It’s the final WWW from his recently-released book WE THINK WITH INK (Brightside Publications, 2016) that’s made our TeachingAuthors month of May even merrier.

As I shared in my introduction to the first WWW that offered Get Acquainted exercises, the second WWW that shared Daily Practices and the third that focused on letters, words and sentences, Michael writes fiction and nonfiction for children and adults.

Tilbury House releases his picture book MOST PEOPLE in August.  Two other picture books are soon to follow: GOODNIGHT WHISPERS (Familius) and FARMER HUCKINSHUCK’S WILD RIDE (Splashing Cow Books.)  His stories have appeared in U.S. and Australian magazines.
He authored the award-winning SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE: MEMORIES OF LAUERMAN BROTHERS DEPARTMENT STORE and is the editor and contributing author of WELL! REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE AND CAREER OF JACK BENNY.

WE THINK WITH INK is a trove of lessons, projects and activities designed to increase reading and writing skills in the classroom…and beyond.  It’s an ideas book for elementary and middle school teachers seeking to merge writing instruction into science, social studies and math classes.  It’s a guide for teachers looking to help students increase self-confidence and self-esteem.  It’s also a book for students working independently on creative writing skills as well as a manual for learners young and old – i.e. me and you, our TeachingAuthors readers - who aspire to be good – even published – writers.

“The WE THINK WITH INK approach relies heavily on the sharing and critiquing of stories,” Michael shared.  “Our goal is publication, which means that people other than those in the classroom or group will read what we write.  Booklets are put together and made available on the shelves of the school library.  Story collections are sent home for families to read.  Our writing is distributed to local coffee shops and doctors’ waiting rooms.  Our booklets/anthologies are given as gifts to friends and family.  And yes, we write with the goal of someday sending our very best work to magazine and book publishers.”

Check out today’s final WWW and once again, try your hand.

Thank you, Michael, for so generously sharing your smarts, your passion for writing and WE THINK WITH INK writing workouts with our TeachingAuthors readers these past four weeks of May!  Oh, and for making yourself available at contactmichael@gmail.com, should our readers wish to share their appreciation.

Enjoy thinking with ink!

Esther Hershenhorn

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .



Story Writing and Revision

A family sets out on a cross-country trip to California. Their car gets stuck in a ditch in Nebraska. With help, they get out of the muck and soon are on their way again. Before you know it, they arrive in California. When they cross the border, they don’t just park the car and say, “We’re here. The trip is done.” There are a million things to see and do in California. The best part of the trip is still ahead of them.

That family trip can be compared to an author writing a story. She starts with great enthusiasm, but gets stuck about halfway into it and needs help to get it going again. Eventually, she makes it to the end, but when she gets there, she isn’t done. The best part — the revision process — is yet to come.

Story Writing

It’s natural for a reader to want to try his hand at being a writer. But, as with so many things first attempted, writing isn’t as easy as it seems. Just when you’re chugging along and doing quite well, the story goes off the road, and you find yourself bogged down and discouraged.
One thing to do to get things rolling again is to tell your story from a different angle and with a different voice. If your story “The Christmas Tree Disaster” is boring and flat, get rid of the dispassionate narrator and let the exasperated mom tell the story. Or the impatient dad. Maybe the little kid watching his parents struggling with the tree would be the best choice. Or maybe the canary in the cage by the window would have fun telling it.
Who gets to tell the story? And from what point of view?

Exercise #1:

Write a description of an incident on a street in your neighborhood. Be sure to include both pleasant and unpleasant elements.
When you have finished describing the scene, put your paper aside and describe the same scene from the point of view of a small dog tied to a tree in a yard. From his vantage point, what does he see, hear, and smell? Considering a dog’s interests, what would be the focus of his description?
When you are finished with the dog’s version of the incident, put the paper aside and get started on another description of the same scene, this time as an angry man watching from a window, or an eternal optimist trying to make everyone feel good about what is happening, or a little old lady who worries about every little thing.

Sometimes telling a story from a new perspective gets the stuck parts moving again. Look around and you might see someone you’ve been ignoring who’s just dying to tell the story.


Revision

Some young writers finish the first draft of a writing assignment and say, “I’m done!” That’s like a person getting dressed in the morning and shouting, “I’m done!” after putting on one article of clothing. In both writing and in getting dressed, we are not “done” after completing just one step.
Even for skilled authors, writing is a complicated process, so there are bound to be problems with a first draft. Real writers love working on the second draft. They know there will be mistakes and have fun hunting them down.
Revision is more than editing mistakes, however. Even after all the spelling errors are corrected and the meandering sentences are tightened, we might not be satisfied. Something is lacking. We see a need to make the story more exciting, more vivid. We want some better details.

Exercise #2:

Select a scene from a story you have written. Now put your imagination to work. Write that scene again, describing what is happening as if you cannot see.
Stories that rely heavily on visual details often seem dry and lifeless. If, in your first description, you ignored the sounds that were present, tune in to them now. Before the action even starts, what can be heard? If there are no sounds, then describe the quiet.
What scents are in the air? Do any of them provide a clue as to what is about to happen? Is that a campfire in the distance? Was someone digging onions?
What can you feel? Is there a cool wind pressing against your left cheek? Is that gravel under your shoes?
Armed with this new information, go back to your original story. Can you add a few new details now? (Please don’t try to cram in all the sounds and smells and tactile sensations you uncovered.)
Not only will the new details give your story more richness, the clues they provide will make the story more interesting. Now, before a character sees the hot frying pan, she feels it; before she notices the wet dog, she smells him.

I have had students who, when told to revise a first draft, reacted as if they had just climbed Mt. Everest and were being told to go back down and climb it again. “I’m not writing it again!” Sigh. Revision doesn’t mean starting over. Much of what they had written was good. But it needed to be fixed and polished a bit.
It needed revision.

Wednesday Writing Workout(S): THINKING WITH INK!

Welcome to the second Wednesday Writing Workout created by
Sheboygan, Wisconsin author, educational consultant and veteran elementary and middle school classroom teacher Michael Leannah. It’s one of four from his recently-released book WE THINK WITH INK (Brightside Publications, 2016) that make our TeachingAuthors month of May even merrier.

As I shared in my introduction to the first WWW posted May 3, Michael writes fiction and nonfiction for children and adults. Tilbury House releases his picture book MOST PEOPLE in August.  Two other picture books are soon to follow: GOODNIGHT WHISPERS (Familius) and FARMER HUCKINSHUCK’S WILD RIDE (Splashing Cow Books.)  His stories have appeared in U.S. and Australian magazines.
He authored the award-winning SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE: MEMORIES OF LAUERMAN BROTHERS DEPARTMENT STORE and is the editor and contributing author of WELL! REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE AND CAREER OF JACK BENNY.

WE THINK WITH INK is a trove of lessons, projects and activities designed to increase reading and writing skills in the classroom…and beyond.  It’s an ideas book for elementary and middle school teachers seeking to merge writing instruction into science, social studies and math classes.  It’s a guide for teachers looking to help students increase self-confidence and self-esteem.  It’s also a book for students working independently on creative writing skills as well as a manual for learners young and old – i.e. me and you, our TeachingAuthors readers - who aspire to be good – even published – writers.

“The WE THINK WITH INK approach relies heavily on the sharing and
critiquing of stories,” Michael shared.  “Our goal is publication, which means that people other than those in the classroom or group will read what we write.  Booklets are put together and made available on the shelves of the school library.  Story collections are sent home for families to read.  Our writing is distributed to local coffee shops and doctors’ waiting rooms.  Our booklets/anthologies are given as gifts to friends and family.  And yes, we write with the goal of someday sending our very best work to magazine and book publishers.”

Check out today’s WWW and try your hand, then be sure to return the next two Wednesdays in May to do the same.

Thank you, Michael, for sharing your smarts, your passion for writing and WE THINK WITH INK writing workouts with our TeachingAuthors readers!  Oh, and for making yourself available at contactmichael@gmail.com, should our readers wish to share their appreciation.

Enjoy thinking with ink!

Esther Hershenhorn

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

DAILY PRACTICES

It is good to have at least a bit of structure in the classroom, as well as in the workings of a writers’ critique group. The Daily Practices outlined below will help to “get the juices flowing” when beginning a new assignment and to keep the focus where it belongs throughout the writing session.

For much of the work described below, I encourage the use of a chalkboard or white board. It is good for all involved to hear and see the words and sentences being presented.


The Daily Question
As students enter the room, they look to see the Daily Question on the board. They take their seats and write their answers, with sharing and discussion to follow. This whole activity takes as little as five or ten minutes, but it gets the class thinking, reasoning, writing, articulating, and listening. A lot of bang for the buck.

Here are some samples of Daily Questions:

What are you looking forward to doing later today?
What is making you nervous about next week?
What happened the last time you felt proud of someone in your family?
What would your grandmother say if she could see your bedroom right now?
What makes your best friend so good?
What farm animal is like a member of your family?
Name three good things about Mondays.
Tell about something unpleasant that happened last week.
Would you rather be a wolf, a bear, or a skunk? Why?
Write the dialog between someone you know who is very old and someone you know who is very young.
Name one thing you would change about a relative or friend so that life would be better for him/her.

The answers to most of these questions will vary from day to day, so don’t be afraid to reuse the questions from time to time. Add questions of your own to the list, but do avoid questions that can be answered with a simple “Yes” or “No.” Set the expectation for students to include explanations with their answers.

It’s good to remember that some of the best writing assignments begin with discussion, so consider using the Daily Question as a launching pad for a major writing assignment. I often used the Daily Question to address difficult situations going on in the lives of my students, such as bullying or family troubles. Start with a pertinent question, allow for a discussion, then get the class writing.


Words of Wisdom (W.O.W.)

Compile a list of meaningful quotations from the famous (or not-so-famous) to be used in place of the Daily Question occasionally. (I used W.O.W. every Friday.)

Students write the quotation and a reaction to it. Do they understand what the writer is trying to say? Do they agree with the message behind the quotation? Can they think of a time in their experience when the message applied to them?

Using W.O.W. as a writing activity has many benefits. Wisdom is imparted, of course. Attitudes might start to change, and students become acquainted with some of the great thinkers in history.

Sooner or later, they begin to recognize “words of wisdom” in the books they are reading and in the movies they see. The contributions eventually start to trickle in. Someone appears with words on a scrap of paper. “My favorite singer said this after her concert the other day. Do you want to use it as a W.O.W.?”

It’s just a matter of time until students start producing original pieces of wisdom written well enough to be presented to the class when it’s time for W.O.W. That is a time of great celebration.

Here are a few W.O.W.s to get you started:

The man is richest whose pleasures are the cheapest.
— Henry David Thoreau

It is only when you see people looking ridiculous that
you realize just how much you love them.
– Agatha Christie

Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.
– Dr. Seuss

My mother had a great deal of trouble with me,
but I think she enjoyed it.
— Mark Twain

Children need love, especially when they don’t deserve it.
— Harold Hulbert

You have everything you need by the time you're 12 years
old to do interesting writing for most of the rest of your life.
– Bruce Springsteen

Often, a W.O.W. can be used as a lead-in to a writing assignment. (“Write about a time when your mother or father may have been angry
with you, but later seemed to see things differently and appreciated what you did.”)

Wednesday Writing Workout(S): THINKING WITH INK!

Yes, indeedy.  That’s Wednesday Writing WorkoutS, plural.

And that’s because Sheboygan, Wisconsin author, educational consultant and veteran elementary and middle school classroom teacher Michael Leannah has made our month of May even merrier by generously contributing 4 Wednesday Writing Workouts from his recently-released book WE THINK WITH INK (Brightside Publications, 2016).

Michael writes fiction and nonfiction for children and adults.  Tilbury House releases his picture book MOST PEOPLE in August.  Two other picture books are soon to follow: GOODNIGHT WHISPERS (Familius) and FARMER HUCKINSHUCK’S WILD RIDE (Splashing Cow Books.)  His stories have appeared in U.S. and Australian magazines.

He authored the award-winning SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE: MEMORIES OF LAUERMAN BROTHERS DEPARTMENT STORE and is the editor and contributing author of WELL! REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE AND CAREER OF JACK BENNY.

WE THINK WITH INK is a trove of lessons, projects and activities designed to increase reading and writing skills in the classroom…and beyond.  It’s an ideas book for elementary and middle school teachers seeking to merge writing instruction into science, social studies and math classes.  It’s a guide for teachers looking to help students increase self-confidence and self-esteem.  It’s also a book for students working independently on creative writing skills as well as a manual for learners young and old – i.e. me and you, our TeachingAuthors readers - who aspire to be good – even published – writers. 

“The WE THINK WITH INK approach relies heavily on the sharing and critiquing of stories,” Michael shared.  “Our goal is publication, which means that people other than those in the classroom or group will read what we write.  Booklets are put together and made available on the shelves of the school library.  Story collections are sent home for families to read.  Our writing is distributed to local coffee shops and doctors’ waiting rooms.  Our booklets/anthologies are given as gifts to friends and family.  And yes, we write with the goal of someday sending our very best work to magazine and book publishers.”

Check out today’s WWW and try your hand, then be sure to return the next three Wednesdays in May to do the same.

Thank you, Michael, for sharing your smarts, your passion for writing and WE THINK WITH INK writing workouts with our TeachingAuthors readers!  Oh, and for making yourself available at contactmichael@gmail.com, should our readers wish to share their appreciation.

Enjoy thinking with ink!

Esther Hershenhorn

P.S.

Please accept my SINCERE apologies for my laptop's

misbehavior - as evidenced by the unevenly-back-grounded

text below!  My Lenova Yoga and Blogger are not playing well

together.  We're workin' on it!

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

     In the process of writing our stories and poems, we learn from each other. We share our stories, compare notes, ask for honest opinions, help each other to improve our skills.

Any writers who work together, be it in the classroom, in a critique group, or just two friends who regularly get together to compare stories and give feedback, must develop a sense of trust. They must come to know each other quite well. To jumpstart the entire process, it is good to begin with a “Get to Know You” activity or two. In the school room, the following activities may be used during the first week or two in September. Because we are complex individuals and our feelings change over time, it is good to work in a “Get to Know You” activity once every couple of months throughout the year.

                                                            All About You

     Teachers may give this as a piece of homework on Day One and ask for it to be returned in one week. This gives participants plenty of time to analyze and describe their interests, likes, and dislikes.

Encourage students to explain their answers fully, using well-written sentences. Because the papers will later be shared (read aloud or passed around to be read silently), participants should provide information that is interesting and — to an extent that is comfortable — revealing.

Students are required to answer at least seven of the ten questions. When it is time to share, students will read their answers aloud, or have a friend or the teacher do it.

1.       In what cities have you lived?

2.      What do you like about your favorite food?

3.      What character in a book or movie do you admire?

4.      What character in a book or movie scares you?

5.      What character in a book or movie would you like to be for one hour?*

6.      What animal would you like to be for one hour?*

7.      What is your most prized possession?

8.     What’s the scariest or most dangerous thing you’ve ever done?

9.      What would you say or do if you met your favorite famous person?

10.  What do you think you’ll be doing when you’re 30 years old?

             * When asking a “What would you like to be” question, I recommend putting a time limit on it. Would I like to be a lion or a mosquito or the president of Germany, Brazil, or Zimbabwe? For an hour, maybe, but no longer than that.

                                                           Interviews

        This “Get to Know You” activity works well as an ice-breaker for students meeting for the first time, as well as a way for familiar students to get to know each other even better. I suggest using this activity several times throughout the year.

Allow time for each student to write five or six questions, which, if approached correctly, is an exercise in creative thinking by itself. The famous journalist Jim Nicholson once said, “There aren’t any boring people; there are just boring questions,” so encourage unusual questions: “Which of your relatives do you like the most?” “What is a smell you really love?” “What happened the last time you laughed your head off?”

Place the students in groups of two or three. Students will ask each other the questions and record the answers. The interviewers will then report to the class and share the information learned during the interviews.

Notes to the Teacher

Perhaps my favorite method of “Getting to Know You” involves the writing of notes back and forth between student and teacher. I found an old-fashioned rural mail box at rummage sale and used it in my classroom for this purpose. (If a real mailbox is not available, a decorated shoe box will suffice.) When students placed a note or letter inside the box, they raised the little flag on the side so I knew a delivery had been made. I respond promptly with a note passed during lunch or some such time.

In the rush of the day, students sometimes don’t have the opportunity to share news concerning personal troubles, worries, and concerns (divorce, sickness in the family, older siblings moving away, etc.). The mailbox allows students to communicate with the teacher in a way that is secret, safe, and satisfying.

I have found this simple practice of offering the chance to write “Notes to the Teacher” to be very important and meaningful. There is something very nice about a kid revealing a wounded piece of ego and hearing from his teacher in a note: “When I was your age, that happened to me too.”

     As the year goes on, “Get to Know You” activities become increasingly unnecessary, because, due to all the writing and sharing and critiquing going on in the classroom every day, members of the class naturally get to know one another better and better every day.