Tag: writing
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11 Things about Me as a Blogger: Slice of Life #sol19 1/31
One. I started blogging in November 2012, not coincidentally when I was at my first NCTE conference. My very first post was called Writing Advice from John Green’s Dad and my mom left my only comment. “11 Things About Me as a Blogger” will be my 1,066th blog post. Two. The title of my blog…
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On Freewriting, Quickwrites, and Writing Prompts: Slice of Life #sol18 23/31
Process Note: I got the idea for this piece from Elsie’s review of The Creativity Project, which included some thought-provoking words about writing prompts. Thanks for the inspiration! Quickwrites are the heart of every writing class I teach. We typically quickwrite 2-4 times in a class period. Quickwrites are a kind of freewriting, but they’re…
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“I Feel Like I’ve Been to Church”: Day 1 #ncte17
Every year at NCTE, I look forward to the moment when The Paper Graders’ daily learning reflection pops up in my feed. It’s such a powerful way to capture and keep learning. Every year, I want to write my own, and every year I make excuses for how tired I am at the end of…
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6 Things You Should Know About Me as a Writer: Slice of Life
I’m percolating, not procrastinating. Yes, I have a paper due, and no, I’m not writing it. Instead, I’m watching TV, going for a walk, washing dishes, cleaning my ears. Anything except writing. I used to call it procrastination and feel bad about myself, but now I know this behavior for what it is: percolation—an essential…
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What I Think I Learned: Slice of Life 31/31 #sol16
I’ve been a holdout for years with the March Slice Challenge. I look forward to it every year as a reader, and I slice sporadically throughout the year, but I’ve never been so much as tempted to sign up for daily slicing before. Mostly out of concern for my readers. I didn’t think I could…
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Here, I Write: Slice of Life 26/31 #sol16
Here, I write. In the dining room, the heart of the house. The walls are the richest chocolate brown, but I’m thinking of repainting this summer. Maybe red. I love a red room. My office, the space I created for writing, is red. It’s upstairs on the very edge of the house. You get there…
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Mid-March Slice Manifesto Slice of Life 15/31 #sol16
Today’s Slice was inspired by Christy’s March Manifesto from the 2013 Slice of Life Challenge, Ruth’s Mantra: Why I Write, and a post Ruth linked to, Jeff’s Know What You’re About. Once again, House of Hawthornes provided useful instructions on Making Chalkboard Art on Picmonkey.
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Slice Exploder: Slice of Life 2/31 #sol16
I’m driving home listening to a new-to-me podcast, Song Exploder. In 15 minutes or so, a singer-songwriter explains one of their songs–where the inspiration came from, how they wrote it, why they played these particular notes, how the song resisted them, how they overcame the resistance and created something whole and right and good. I get…
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A Writing Life Requires Bravery
Anyone who reads my blog regularly knows that I have a wee obsession with Deborah Freedman’s picture book, The Story of Fish & Snail. The art is crazy good, but it’s the message that makes it a favorite title to share with pre-service teachers: Be brave. Leap. Or, in the words of the wonderful Deborah Freedman,…
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Mornings: When a Slice Doesn’t Work #sol15
I’ve had this idea for a slice I want to write about mornings. I’ve started it a few times now. It’s supposed to be an easy piece that captures my favorite moment of the day. Brief. Sweet. The words need to skip across the page. Float. I see the piece like a butterfly, fluttering, airy,…
the dirigible plum 