Writing about Reading Books about Writing #2 'On Writing' - Stephen King

The bookshelf that holds my growing collection of 'books about writing' has started to bow so with renewed determination I have begun adding them to my GoodReads account - surely if I populate my 'To Read' list with their titles I am sure to read them, right?

I am drawn to books about words and the people who write them. I have been thinking about why I enjoy the genre and I have reached a conclusion - I am intrigued by the way the creative process plays out differently for each individual - and I like the life story tucked behind. What I have found in my reading so far is much more than sets of writing rules. There is a sense of the person who has grappled with imposter syndrome, self doubt, incredulity from friends, and possibly family, as well as contended with the ebb and flow of imaginative energy to embark on the creative life.

So this brings me to my latest read - Stephen King's memoir 'On Writing' which is featured on every online list of writing advice. The memoir is significantly shorter than King's works of fiction and was published in 2000, which I initially figured wasn't that long ago, but one can quickly become deluded when they reflect upon how long ago it was since they sat in a high school classroom. I read Stephen King voraciously from Year 10 through Year 12 - my late teens were the apex of my horror reading. I sometimes wish I spent some of this time reading the books all English teachers have read by the time they leave school - but alas I did not have that reading list, and I am still yet to find it - so 'K' was the section I hung around in the Laurieton Library.

I found solace in school, and reading and whilst I cannot exactly recall where I was when I was reading - was it on the school bus? Or was I lugging tomes of horror to roll call? Who knows. I just know that 'Cujo,' 'It,' 'The Shining,' 'The Stand,' 'The Dark Tower Series' and 'Black House' (which was co-written with Peter Straub) allowed me to escape into the deep to become entangled in plot lines twisting around upon themselves and to lose everything in the languishing accumulating detail that characterises many of King's works.

In reading the opening chapters of 'On Writing' I was struck by King's sense of humour but also some of the difficulties he faced at different stages in his life. Here was the tale of an author writing demons whilst gripped in the fight against his own. I think most whom have a penchant for capturing what it is they see in the mind's eye for the page, or canvas, or other medium, know that the process of creating is an act of vulnerability but one that is inherently important - 'Come to it anyway but lightly. Let me say it again - you must not come lightly to the blank page.' I took my time with 'On Writing.' I added notes to my Common Place Book and spent time ruminating over the messages to determine what could possibly apply to my writing and the way that I set up the practice of writing in the classroom.

Here's thirteen extracts that resonated with me:

1. '...stopping a piece of work just because it's hard either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea. Sometimes you have to go on when you don't feel like it...' - sage advice.

2. '...it behooves you to construct your own toolbox and then build up enough muscle so that you can carry it with you.'

3. 'Unless he is certain of doing well [the writer] will probably do best to follow the rules.' - this gem from William Strunk (The Elements of Style is on my 'To Read' list).

4. 'Paragraphs ...are maps of intent.'

5. 'If you don't like it later on, fix it then. That's what the rewrite is all about.'

6. 'At its most basic we are only discussing a learned skill, but do we not agree that sometimes the most basic skills can create things far beyond our expectations?' - I think this would make a great poster for the classroom.

7. 'If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.'

8. 'I like to get to ten pages a day, which amounts to 2000 words.' - routine and commitment a prolific writer makes.

9. 'One word at a time.'

10. '...you must be able to describe it, and in a way that will cause your reader to prickle with recognition.'

11. 'Talk, whether ugly or beautiful, is an index of character; it can also be a breath of cool, refreshing air in a room some people would prefer to keep shut up.'

12. 'The most important things to remember about back story are that a) everyone has a history and b) most of it isn't very interesting.'

13. '... you can, you should, and if you're brave enough to start, you will.'

As King states, 'Life isn't a support system for art. It's the other way around' for without art, what is there?

Atwell's 'In the Middle'

I usually leave a star rating on Goodreads as I use it, not to find books, but to challenge myself to read more so it is scan the barcode on the book, record pages read, get out. Except for Nancie Atwell's 'In the Middle' - I read all of the reviews after I finished reading the text and then added something of my own because it is not often that a book that is predominantly about the teaching of writing (no romance, dystopian landscapes, or political satire here!) can have such a profound impact on the way that I saw myself as an educator and the way the story Atwell's school, the Center for Teaching and Learning, altered my thinking in the most profound way. 

My Review: I love reading Atwell's publications. She's a marvellous story teller and the depth of her explanation for each aspect of reading and writing workshop is so engaging and useful. I enjoyed the inclusion of student compositions (some brought tears to my eyes) and the pieces really are a testament to the methods outlined. Atwell's ideology and her engagement with her students is heartening and inspiring. She outlines how she would do things in a different context, how to work in supporting students with the requirements standardised testing, whilst always reinforcing the premise that students need regular opportunities to compose as authors and read critically and for pleasure.

Take a look!

Review Reading #3 'In the Middle, Third Edition - A Lifetime of Learning About Writing, Reading, and Adolescents' - Nancie Atwell

Review Reading #3 In the Middle - Nancie Atwell

ISBN: 978-0-325-02813-2

ISBN-10: 0-325-02813-3

Publisher: Heinemann Publishing

Publication Date: 2015

Stockists

Sample Pages

Here is my third 'Letter-Essay,' this time reflecting on 'In the Middle.'

Dear Reader,

In 2014 I was introduced to Nancie Atwell's work in the way of three photocopied extracts from her 1987 publication ‘In the Middle.’ It seems silly to comment but I had never experienced, in all my university readings and countless books I have sitting on my book shelf about the teaching of English, a plan so simple in its brilliance that it is without replication. I will continue to purchase books and read articles about teaching, literacy, English teaching, and writing instruction, etc. – it just seems to me that Nancie Atwell’s workshop approach provides a place for everything I have learnt to hang from (insert umbrella or coat hanger analogy here!).

I read the extracts from ‘In the Middle’ and then purchased both the 1987 and 1998 editions. I was delighted when only a short time later a third edition hit the shelves (serendipitous or what!?). I was heartened to continue this journey with Atwell. Her philosophy and methods remained at their core the same, but in the 2015 iteration Atwell relaxed some – instead of the ‘nevers’ that populated her workshop model in its earlier stages there was a call for flexibility, a trust of teachers to know when to comment on student writing and when to hold back, encouragement to utilise some of the scripts and scenarios provided in the text as a support but to continue the development of rapport with students and to assist them in working in a more student centred environment.

The teacher is not redundant in the workshop model but is more indispensable than ever. They are the ultimate guide - meeting their students’ needs directly and immediately and it is this aspect that I feel could enhance the current classroom model. Accountability has made all actions ‘transparent’ to a point. It is easy to view the quality of feedback that teachers are providing students on the grading sheets that are returned to students after a task is marked. But, I cannot see or ever really know if any of it means something to a student and the way that tasks are currently completed (task outline provided, student completes task with some support or in isolation, the tasks are handed in and marked which could take from 1-3 weeks, feedback is written by the marking teacher, the task handed back to student with a numerical mark as well as written feedback, the student looks at mark and may look at the comment briefly, students move onto the next task). The next task is of a different nature and the feedback provided on the previous task is no longer available, nor is it relevant, students start the process again, from the beginning, for the next task.

Student growth is possible in the workshop model through immediate feedback. It is, of course not possible to thoroughly read a piece and provide written feedback within a few minutes but it is possible to sit with a student to problem solve an aspect of their writing and set them on a path of experimentation with clarity and focus. Students are accountable for creating their best work, they develop efficacy and independence when composing and ultimately authority as a writer. Written feedback is provided periodically by the class teacher and it is accompanying by a short conference explaining the mark up and comments – time consuming in a regular classroom perhaps, but in workshop it is the core business of the day.

What stands out for me in Atwell’s ‘In the Middle’ is how much value is placed on student writing. A very expansive scope and sequence details what types of texts students study from K-8 so students access a wide variety of genres. Students study exemplar texts, are taught specific skills to support their work in particular genres via explicit instructional chunks – mini-lessons and then, they get down to it, and write. And write. And write. Students are on their own schedules for their composition but are given a bit of a nudge if they aren’t making progress. The teacher acts as a rudder, steering students through difficulty and confusion, answering questions whilst reinforcing protocols around the workshop. Writing is celebrated through students compiling portfolios of their best work to explain to their parents during Parent/Teacher Conferences whilst setting goals for the next semester. Students also contribute to the long running publication, ‘Acorns’ which is a compilation of student writing. This is all supported by, you guessed it, reading workshop.

All editions of ‘In the Middle’ are mammoth, especially the third edition which is absolutely jammed packed full of practical strategies, organisational templates, scripts to inform teacher/student conferences, student writing, and anecdotes. It is a beautiful story of Atwell’s teaching career to this point and the impact she has made upon both her past (including her daughter Anne who now teaches the school) and present students at the Center for Teaching and Learning. The striking honesty, ‘The teaching didn’t come easily either…,’ ‘…my uncertainty about how to about how to talk with kids about drafts of their writing…,’ gives way to poignant reflection such as; ‘freedom of choice does not undercut discipline or rigor,’ ‘I saw them take chances…,’ and ‘I watched them take time, as they wrote and planned their writing outside of school as well as in’ are a testament to change as a difficult but worthwhile journey to take and the continued success of the school and the growth in the students present reinforce what a difference it can make.

Yours,

K

AATE/ALEA National Conference Write Right: Authentic Engagement with Creative Writing

Thank you to the participants who attended our workshop today!

Title: Write Right: Authentic Engagement with Creative Writing

Presenters: LB and KB

Abstract: Through following the Atwell model and implementing the mini-lesson approach to creative writing, teachers can provide an opportunity for students to construct imaginative text in an authentic and practical fashion. Skills are taught in close-up in order to facilitate understanding and application, with an emphasis on empowerment of students to express themselves effectively as active participants in the authorial process. By focusing on discrete skills, teachers become active facilitators in assisting learners to become specialists in identifying and using sophisticated techniques in their creative writing.

Resources:

Atwell, N. (2015). In the Middle A Lifetime of Learning About Writing, Reading, and 

Adolescents. Portsmouth. Heinemann.

Derewianka, B. (2012). A New Grammar Companion. Australia: Primary English

Teaching Association Australia.

Humphrey, S., Droga, L., & Feez, S. (2012). Grammar and Meaning. Australia: Primary

English Teaching Association Australia.

Download the PowerPoint and Booklet HERE!