Since my last post, I’ve been brainstorming what to write
about this week. I keep coming up short. My problem is that there are so many
ideas, concerns, lists, and thoughts swirling through my brain right now that
it is hard to pick an area on which to focus.
Then I remembered learning about one of Don Murray’s writing
tenets (if you don’t know who Don Murray is, you soon will. I’ll talk about him
quite a bit in class, and on this blog I’m sure, throughout the year). Whenever
you get stuck, just remember: to write, you just have to say one thing.
My one thing I want you to know? Writing is not easy.
Often times people--whether they are students learning to
navigate the process of writing, or adults who feel their time to learn the
process has come and gone--get hung up on being a “bad” writer because they
don’t think they have something to say. I am guilty of this myself. It is one
of the reasons I was so hesitant to take on blogging. But then I remember the
whole point of this blog is to model writing for my students—the good, bad,
fun, difficult, and messy, as well as the feeling of relief and accomplishment
that comes along with writing something you didn’t think was going to turn out
anywhere near “good enough.” Good enough will depend on your audience and
purpose as well as on your own sense of what you feel is acceptable.
For me, the majority of what I’ve written is barely good
enough because I am my own worst critic. But I’ve learned that I have to let
that critic go so that I don’t get in my way. Saying just one thing becomes pretty difficult when you’re always
second-guessing yourself.
Because you may not feel you are measuring up to your own
idea of good enough, writing takes dedication. “You need to put your butt in
the chair” as Don Murray would say. (Two mentions in one post!) But it also takes perseverance because
even when you find that one thing to say, it often comes out pretty messy and
in need of polishing. At this stage you can either give up, claiming you are a
“bad” writer, or you can stick with it until you feel that sense of
accomplishment and relief I mentioned earlier.
As we enter into the new school year, I am hoping that if
you count yourself in the former category, we’ll be able to develop your skills
so that you can confidently become the latter. And to those of you who believe
writing is easy, great! I can’t wait to watch you challenge yourself to take
risks in your writing and push yourselves to the next level.
Get those pencils sharpened and pens poised. We have many
pages to fill, and “miles to go before [we] sleep” (Frost line 15).
Works Cited
Frost,
Robert. "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." PoemHunter.com.
N.p., 17 Jan. 2012. Web. 2 Sept. 2013.
