A Writerly Life: Wisdom from Judith Barrington
Archive for
May 9
Author’s Corner: Frank Murphy
A Look at Process
I am often asked what my writing process looks like. At author visits, sitting on author panels, counseling an aspiring writer – this question about process always pops up. I think a good description of my professional writing experience (or process) is to say that it involves many “worlds”. Throughout the writing of a book, these “worlds” include: reading and imagining, note-taking and highlighting, Internet surfing and bookstore visits, traveling to historic sites (where I ask lots of questions and listen!). It may also include “worlds” that involve watching movies, documentaries, or even relevant TV shows. For me, all of these “worlds” expand and diminish and expand again as the process of creating a book develops (and even after I’m finished!). Some I visit for a few hours. Some I immerse myself into for days. Some of these little ‘worlds” are like a convenience store, in (I get my stuff) and out, quickly (onto the next stop). Read more
May 4
Teacher to Teacher: Why I Use Picture Books as Mentor Texts
By Lynne R. Dorfman
If you are teaching the qualities of good writing, all you need are some picture books! Why picture books? Picture books provide the models that will help students grow as writers. They have vivid vocabulary—word choice is so important! They have beautiful illustrations or photographs, adding another layer to the text to motivate and engage our struggling readers and writers. Teachers can read them aloud in one sitting, but also return to them throughout the year as mentor texts to imitate. Students can also return to picture books independently to help them take a risk and try out something new. Sometimes, students will gather a set of books by an author to study one craft move that an author has used across some of the texts he has published. Read more
Books on the Blog: The Tragedy Paper and Like Any Normal Day
by Molly Leahy
The Tragedy Paper
In her first young adult novel, The Tragedy Paper, Philadelphia’s Elizabeth LeBan invites readers to an elite boarding school for dual story-telling. Readers follow Tim Macbeth, a new student who transfers to Irving School, as well as, Duncan Meade, who inherits Tim’s dorm room and his collection of CDs narrating a personal nightmare the previous school year. Both students are linked by English teacher Mr. Simon’s legendary writing assignment known as the Tragedy Paper.
A sign reading “Enter here to be and find a friend” greets students as they enter the school, and fortunately, Duncan has a core group of friends to help him through senior year, unlike Tim. Readers may recognize a classic love triangle between Tim, his only friend Vanessa Scheller, and her jerk boyfriend Patrick Hopkins. The Irving School Bulldogs read Moby Dick and Hamlet, while their English teacher Mr. Simon challenges them to understand themes such as magnitude, and order from chaos. LaBan creates true order from chaos in her choice of narrative structure, recorded CDs that captivate Duncan who can’t stop listening to Tim’s tale, just as readers can’t stop turning pages. Read more
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