How in the world did week #4 get here so fast? This month has been about balance. With the last WIP done and in the hands of my agent, I have spent the last few weeks journaling through my new WIP and handling a rush of work at the day job. It is the last week of classes here, so I have a pile of students all clamoring for help on their final projects. It seems that I just start to lose myself in a character exploration when some forlorn undergrad crawls into my lab, gasping for that last-minute miracle. Alas...I won't write the paper for you, kid. I have my own writing to do!
And what do you suppose is the #1 issue with the student writing I saw last week (college freshman, sophomores, and juniors)? PLAGIARISM. Scratch that. The #1 issue with student writing is that they have no idea how to THINK. I will refrain from my ever-growing tirade about NCLB and the whole teach-to-the-test mentality, but suffice it to say a significant portion of our young people cannot think, which is why so many refuse to learn the difference between researched support and plagiarism. It's devastating!
How many 1st-person narrators in YA books are thinkers? I have yet to encounter one who isn't. And of course the kids who read YA are the thinkers or they wouldn't be reading independently. So why are so many kids content to coast? Is it the pressure or fear of failure encouraged by a tyrannical system? Do they just want to make sure they have someone else to blame? Or is it just a severe lack of creativity (both in the teachers and the kids)?
It can be very deflating to keep beating the same drum, but I am shocked at how many of our college students cannot think critically or write with any sense of personal stakes. All I can say is thank God for the arts and I pray that they don't get cut from primary and secondary schools anywhere because at least that is one place where students are encouraged to push the boundaries. And thank God for those amazing teachers out there (in all subjects) who refuse to be boxed in by a test. If you teach them how to think, they will nail that test. End of story.
Oops. I guess I did fall into a bit of a mini-tirade. I'll stop there and head back into WIP country. How has your week been, wipsters? I hope the #wipmadness has been good to you.
Love your new profile pic with your pooch!
ReplyDeleteI'm on that band wagon and there are days when I feel like, "Fine, you don't want to learn, you want me to &%$ing spoon feed you? All right then." High school has been a huge eye opener for me as far as the complete and total lack of caring from at least 50% of the student population (now there are great wonderful creative, thinking kids, too)
Anyway - writing. I will never do the A-Z challenge again. It's too much even though I pre-wrote my posts. Blogging is definitely taking away from my writing. I have a lot of revising in my future but this week is prom and I'm on the prom committee so I guess I'm going to get zero done.
Next month, I'm slinking into the revision cave and other than a few promised blog interviews, I'm going to be low profile on the web. That's my goal.
Thanks! That's my Danté...devil dog with a heart the size of the cosmos!
ReplyDeleteThere's a definite culture of devaluation of education out there, too, so it's not all the government or the schools. The toughest nut of all to crack is the family attitude that learning and education have nothing to do with each other.
I can't imagine the A-Z project. I would drown! Hang in there this week! As for the prom—take good notes! Ha!
Yay, finally I remember to check-in on time!
ReplyDeleteSo my last few days have been interesting. I haven't been working *so* much on the WIP except to fine-tune the first five chapters for Strange Chemistry's open submissions call, and writing a synopsis (though I like Shari's neologism, "synospsisizing"). One week until the sumbission is due, but I'd like to be done before that. What the submissions call did do for me regardless of the results is that I moved up a few key starter-events, so I'm feeling good about that. I still have some more to do beyond that, but adding more fire to the opening chapters has helped me set a new note that I'll address soon, and I'm going to work on my submission, first.
I completely hear you about the "students not being prepared" thing. I don't work in the college's library proper anymore, but when I did, it was always that sort of madness. (Now what I do is madness of another sort.) Most students here are required to take a one-hour library literacy workshop, though.
I like that Library literacy workshop idea! I think they get complacent, thinking the internet has all the answers.
DeleteHurray for the open submissions and inspiration. I hate the "synospsisizing" thing. It's brutal. Good luck with all of it!
Last week was busy at the day job -- picked up extra shifts, which is great for the bill-paying, not so great for the writing. But I'm waiting on a couple beta-readers anyway (we'll see if my last revisions fixed the pacing problems I had with that WIP). Didn't do much new writing, but I've revised my synopsis and also read through an old ms & made myself some revision notes, which I'll spend some more time on this week.
ReplyDeleteMary Ann, I'm SO with you on the learning/education/not-teaching-kids-to-think thing. Ugh. I can really get going on this, lol. And viewing the arts as "electives", thus making them first-up on the chopping block?!? Argh! ...step away from the soapbox, Shari... heh
LOL, Shari. I know what you mean...had to pry myself off the soapbox before I got too carried away.
DeleteIt sounds as though you got a lot done this week, even if it didn't feel like it. Any time you spend thinking about writing is writing.
This last week was so busy I barely squeaked in my writing time. Between a concert, school, homework, my son's birthday, housework (bleh) and writing I didn't get much downtime in except for yesterday. Weather was gorgeous and I decided to make half the day about relaxation.
ReplyDeleteThis week I have 3 tests to study for, but I'm determined to get in 3k on the WIP and edit at least another 10 pages, along with blog stuff and polish the short story so I can send it off. Really need more hours in the day.
Hope everyone's doing a great job! Thanks so much for the weekly check-in - it really does help!
Awesome, Marie! We all need those relaxation days. And it sounds as though you run pretty fast all the rest of the time!
DeleteMy WIP characters are stomping around in my head today, demanding I finish their story. Not sure I'll be done with my draft by the end of the month, like I'd hoped, but I've gotten so much written the past few weeks, that I can't complan too much :)
ReplyDeleteHurray for progress! (no matter how big or small). I hope those characters are wearing ballet slippers and not clogs!
DeleteI hate that education discourages creative thinking. It took me years to get over that deficit. ^_^
ReplyDeleteThis past week I finally opened up a document and started writing my character interviews!!! I'd forgotten about this favorite tool of mine. Makes the characters voices come out loud and clear and gives me a sense of my own voice (the interviewer). ^_^ Having fun again. Finally.
We're living parallel writing lives, Mary Ann. Supposed to hear from my agent by the end of the month. Trying not to fret.
Fingers crossed for you, Angelina. I'm taking lots of notes on my MC. I really should interview her. Of course, I should probably interview the ghosts as well! ;-)
DeleteStarted thinking about a new project last week. ...started acting upon it this week. Think I'll have to borrow Angelina's character interview idea too. :)
ReplyDeleteHurray for new starts!
DeleteI hate hate hate those standardized tests and what they've done to teaching. Everything is geared toward tests. I noticed that the kids didn't come to the library much in recent years to do research or choose books, that they thought the most important elements of a story were the topic sentence and details. Huh? I NEVER had kids give me such dopey answers until recent years when testing and NCLB became so all important. You're right, we're not encouraging thinking.
ReplyDeleteThe arts are great but let's not forget debate teams, chess clubs and other after schools groups and activities that encourage thinking. I had elementary kids who also thought that "we" as in "We, the people..." was spelled Wii. Hard to believe, but sadly true.
Egads! That's frightening! I was on the speech team in high school, so I know what you mean. So many of our extra-curriculars that fill in the gaps are being cut. Aside from the pumping up test scores (based on non-learning), if it doesn't draw huge crowds willing to pay money or win you some gargantuan trophy, then it gets the shaft. It bone-head cuts like this that are dragging our achievement levels down and condemning our kids to rote exercise rather than learning and enrichment. Ugh!
DeleteI'm still around, but forgetting about things like checking in. Working really hard to get this draft done in amongst everything else that is zapping away my time. Hopefully this week!
ReplyDeleteI know how other stuff can get in the way. Here's to a fabulous, productive week!
DeleteThis article is three years old, but it's great, on how standardized tests are even affecting the poor kindergartners: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/magazine/articles/2009/08/30/pressure_cooker_kindergarten/ One of many reasons we homeschool. But I know that's not an option (or desirable) for everybody, and it sure pisses me off (and makes me sad).
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I keep forgetting to check in on Mondays, and now here we are almost at the end of the month. But the good news is, since I started querying April 1, I've gotten five requests.
And even better news in the long run, I've gotten going on the new WIP. I'm not trying to plow through word count goals - this baby is going through a different process than previous manuscripts. But I am moving forward, and pleased.
Wow! 5 requests! Congratulations, Joy! And hurray for the new WIP! My new one is going through a different process as well, so no word counts, yet. Hurray for forward motion!
DeleteI'm even later checking in this week than I was last week! I have visiting family here (wonderful grandchildren!!!) and haven't attempted much writing other than keeping up with my blogging. I'm with Jaye when it comes to blogging at the expense of my other writing. If something has to go, I feel guilty if I don't post something on schedule, so that's what gets my attention.
ReplyDeleteYour rant is justified. A lot of things about the current approach to learning frustrate me, but I'm a retired teacher and feel like I'm shouting ineffectively from the sidelines. Thank goodness there are still people like you in the ranks who believe thinking is critical!
Hope everyone has a good writing week (and weekend).
I feel as if we have this rebel group fighting the evil empire for the good of mankind... Maybe my devotion to Star Wars (as well as my age) is showing too much. ;-) Enjoy those grandchildren! And as far as I'm concerned, you can count thinking about writing as writing.
DeleteWow, it's crazy, busy here. **And I thought last week was nuts! I was able to go over a couple chapters of second edits. But mostly with all the scoring? I've been reading. This gig should be done in a couple more weeks then it's back to my sekrit project.
ReplyDeleteOh, I hope the scoring is quick and relatively painless. I know that goes though. Hang in there!
DeleteLate, but here!
ReplyDeleteOh, I do like that new pic Mary Ann, and congrats on the book going out the agent!
I have finished a draft of the short story -- which was my revised (and revised (and revised)) goal. My crit gals should come back with final edits this Fri and I'll send it out.
I'm laboring under gray emotional clouds, lack of motivation, and terror about personal life issues, so I'm going to keep my goal for this week small: figure out if I want to continue with the YA paranormal or dive into an old adult literary project.
Hugs to you all, and I wish I could be there more for you throughout your processes!!
Lora
Thanks, Lora! Hurray for the finished draft! I'm sorry about the clouds. Hang in there... Sending warm hugs and inspiration!
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