I Have Nothing To Write

During state testing week, I had only one day where I saw all of my students. I had my students write a story and several of them said they didn’t know what to write.  This student found a solution to her problem.  I keep telling students if they can't think of anything then they just need to write whatever pops into their heads  The following is printed with Chey’s permission.  She did write a proper story after this.

            I can’t find anything to write sitting in my mom’s car, where my bag was.  I’m trying to figure out something to write and maybe after my little sister and older sister are done fighting, we can leave for school.  But, I also have nothing to write.  Wait, do you hear that?  Yea, that nothing?  They’ve stopped fighting.  Awesome!  I wonder if we could leave?  I’m ready, Chantel’s ready, Kai’s ready.  Is Manny ready?  Wow, I should scratch out that baby talk but I have nothing to write about, and I need at least 650 words.  But, I have nothing to write about. 

            Oh, there goes my aunt and my cousins. “Bye.”  I’ll be back I have to fix something.  I’m back baby.  Wow sitting here with paper in my hand just sitting in a car trying to find something to write, and now I just wrote allover my arm.  Oops!

            Wow my sisters are going to be late.  It’s not my fault.  I’m ready.  I’m already in the car so now what?   I have nothing to write and my hair is messy and we’re going to be late.  Cool!  Oh crasp!  We have to do that FCAT thing and I forgot all about that, Oh and we’re getting report cards.  Oh my gooooodness.  I’m going to die.  Oh no, I hear someone coming. Oh no!  Never mind.  Ewww, I hate you people.  The people that live next to us.  I mean in front.  They are leaving.  Gone.  Now I can do something.  I realize when I wrote that I thought I would have to go.  Oh well.  Everyone is in the car now, screaming, yelling, so blah.  I live with screaming and yelling all the time.  Help me!

Driving to my older sister’s  bus stop in peace.  Finally.  Wait, never mind.  Well she’s gone.  I live with so many people it’s crazy.  I live with seven girls and they have big mouths.  It is really getting old.  But, enough about that.  I still have nothing to write about.  000-000-0000.  Mommy’s on the phone with Gammies, my granda.  She lives  far, far away.  I miss you.  Bye, love ya.

Fire station 4 has just been passed by a white van. I mean an ugly white van.I’m sorry for this dumb story.  I’ve just gotta get this finished.  Plus, I’ve got nothing to write about.

Hah! Now mom is trying to give us the “respect” talk.  Booo.  Help me again.

“Chey, daddy says he loves you”, said Kai.

“I love you too daddy. I said”

I said that by Wakeland where my sister goes to school. 

“Go mom”.  The light turns green and she finally goes.  We pulled in to my sister’s school.. Wow I see my old school, weird.  I see these little kids with their backpacks so big and them so small.  Ha, ha.  Well bye old school.  Coming to the light here and we have to turn right, go straight, curvy, school limit 20.  My mom slows down.  The lady waves and mom waves back, then turns into the school.

I’ll be back.  I’m back.  I’m in the gym listening to music so bored here.

I’ve read this all.  It doesn’t make any sense.  Sorry, I’ve wasted your time teacher but,  I have nothing to write about

Lessons Learned

This week we had state tests at school. One of my former student's asked how my new book was coming along. I replied that I'd done little writing this year because of all of the effort I had put in on lesson plans, etc. My principal was standing there and assured her I would get back into it. This kind of lit a fire under me.

Today I opened the book Hooked by Les Edgerton
I mention this because as a new writer I need to constantly work at learning more. I have never taken any college courses to teach me how to write a book. I decided one day I had to ignore what others told me and just do it. I am proud of my first book, "Steps to Courage". However, I am constantly reading things and seeing how I did things wrong. I have always felt the beginning of my book just wasn't right. By the time I published it I felt it was as good as "I" could make it. It has been through HONEST critiques and reviews of my book that I have slowly begun the process of learning to improve my writing. Several people have told me that I did more telling than showing. I also know I have a problem with being a passive writer. I keep trying to write like I was taught in school, and like I've been trained to teach kids to write. I want to change this. I must begin by reading and analyzing books like Hooked. I began by looking at a copy of my book and marking it up. My hope is that as I deconstruct my first book I will be able to avoid those mistakes in the future.

I would love to be able to give someone my book and say, "Mark it up. Be brutally honest and tell me what is wrong so I can fix it and not make the same mistakes in the future". 

There are two main reasons I need to do this. If I ever decide to traditionally publish, it must be good enough to get the attention of a publisher and editor. 
The second reason is if I decide to self-publish again, I need to make sure it is better than my first book.

I will say this much though, it sure has felt good to be back doing what I really enjoy, writing. Yes, the writing process includes reading and learning about writing and practicing what you have learned. 

So what are you waiting for?

November NaNoWriMo Update

My students are off and running.  Many have come to me and asked if they could increase their word count.  They are so excited.  I am looking forward to next year when we start our entire sixth grade with the workbooks and go from there.  They will all be participating in NaNoWriMo.

I on the other hand am working hard.  I am a little discouraged to see I am not making my daily word count.  We just had another district test come up and are looking at another one in about two weeks.  Between that and grading papers, my writing has slowed down.  So has everything else, my blogging, reading and even spendng time with my family.  My students asked me if I will be okay if I don't win NanNo and I told them yes.  I will be __?___ number of words closer to finishing my story than if I'd not joined NaNo.  I don't believe in saying I won't win.  Until the 30th, anything is a possibility.

Just a heads up for my readers.  In the next few weeks my students will be writing poetry and I will be sharing some of it with my readers.  There is a reason for this.  One it encourages my students to write more and two, I have some very talented students that I like to showcase.  Have a great week.

Countdown to NaNo

I was happy when I talked five of my students into entering NaNoWriMo.  Then I was excited when I had 16 students sign up.  I talked to each of the Language Arts teachers, Reading Teachers, and our Media Specialist.  Today I left school forty-five minutes late.  I stopped by the office on my way out and was stopped by two students who needed to sign up for NaNoWriMo.  Then they started bringing their parents and their friends  in.  By the time I left I had papers everywhere.  I went home and started the process of signing them into my virtual class and realized I have 36 kids and an email from a teacher who said they would send five of their students down tomorrow.  I need a bigger word than ecstatic to describe how I feel.  This was a type of trial this year.  We are an IB school and I was given the go ahead to have all of the sixth graders participate next year as part of their curriculum.  I informed the other sixth grade teacher.  I will encourage the 7th and 8th grade teachers to do the same but I can't handle NaNoWriMo for 800 Students.  Now I have to finish preparations for my own novel.  Oh yeah, I think I hear papers calling my name to be graded.

NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo is almost upon us.  I am excited.  In the past I have wanted to join but had other commitments such as judge for CYBILS.  This year I wasn't chosen as a judge and I took it as a sign that I needed to join NaNoWriMo.  As a teacher I have wanted to use it in my classroom.  We have a core curriculum and we are an IB school.  I've tried to figure out how to work it into my program.  I talked with my assistant principal and she backed me up on this idea.  I will be able to do it next year with ALL of my students.  This year I offered it to my students kind of late in the year.  So far I have five students that have signed up.  Austin was the first to sign up and he has been a great promoter at the school.  His exuberance spreads.  I have set my goals for writing this novel.  I have 2 in the works as far as planning goes.  I have only a few more days to decide which it will be and to get it ready to write.  I know I will need to write close to 1700 words EVERY day if I am going to reach that goal.  I will do this.  I must succeed not only for me, but for my students who are watching me.

Never Forget

I have agonized over this blog for quite some time.  Should I keep it, or get rid of it?  I was never real sure what I wanted to do with it or if I had time for it.  Every now and then something hits me and I have to go with it.  I asked myself what would be one thing I would tell my students.  It would have to be this message, "Write What You Are Passionate About".   Why?  They are always asking me why I wrote "Steps to Courage".

After 9/11 I was passionate about letting future generations of students know what it was like on that day.  As we have new generations of students who were not yet born then it becomes more important that we not only tell the events of that day, but share our knowledge of the causes.  We need to teach our children tolerance.  It is the lack of tolerance that led to this event.

I remember for the one year anniversary of 9/11 I had my middle school students write an essay about how they saw people showing compassion through adversity in the year that followed that tragic day.  I asked them not to look at the obvious, those who worked at ground zero.  I asked them to look in their neighborhoods, at school, and church and see how they and other's showed compassion.  It was important that we start it off with a discussion of how we had become a nation that had trust issues.  It was important to put into perspective how hate crimes begin and grow.  I was amazed at how my students responded.  I was amazed at how they looked at their fellow classmates and wrote about ways they saw them showing compassion.

I could not get the looks on my student's faces out of my mind after 9/11.  I could not forget Alyssa running down the hall screaming my name and begging me to turn the TV on because she had heard a plane had hit the Twin Towers.  I will never forget the questions asked and the discussion in class as we repeatedly watched the news footage of the attacks in Washington, DC and New York City and finally the plane in Pennsylvania.  My students put on a brave front trying to one up each other on what they would do if they were in the Twin Towers.  The topic became such a burning issue that it became a passion I had to research and write about.

It is important that I teach my new sixth graders, many who were not even born, about this day in our history. As a school that promotes cultural awareness it is important that we teach tolerance right in our classroom.  There are so many lessons to be learned from the 9/11 events.  How will you teach them?  What is your passion?

Great News

It is finished.  I have worked for almost three years trying to finish, and get published my book Steps To Courage.   This year I made a decision to  self-publish my book.  I sent it to a friend  of a friend to read and review.  She wrote back that she would be happy to put her name behind it.  She asked me to call her.  I still didn't understand what she meant.  I had friended her on Facebook, and I was reading books she recommended by others.  It wasn't until that phone call that I realized she was an agent and was offering to represent me.  Sometimes I feel like I am on the slow track when it comes to publishing.  She asked me if I had a second book.  Everyone thought there should be a second book.  It was already short on words.  One question made all the difference in my life.  She asked, what happened to my characters.  I spent my Spring Break writing that second half.  I've been editing for the last month and it is finished.  I received my proof and realized it still had some mistakes.  I am awaiting the time when I approve my proof and then can order my books.  I have started the promotion process.  My book trailer is ready.  Only a few more days I and will be able to put it up.