Creative Change (10-20-08)

This week I traveled with a group of 7th and 8th grade writers to the Northwest Kansas Service Center in Oakley and their first Creative Writing Seminar. I went along as both a teacher and a sponsor, but ended up learning quite a bit along the way

Of all the things I taught once upon a time, creative writing was hands down my favorite thing. I created “writer’s workshops” and treated the teaching of writing like the teaching of wood-working. I did my best to create an environment suitable for writing, taught the kids a system for pre-writing, drafting, editing, revising, finalizing and reflection, and then gave them as much time to write as possible.

We used to produce little class magazines, and I can still remember the thrill my students felt from seeing their work in print, even it was just a home made book with photocopied pages. Over the years I strove to find other avenues for students to print their creative writing, the foremost being the annual NKESC Write Journal. I even took students to serve on the selection committee that chose the works to include in the journal.

I have always believed that in order to be an effective teacher, it is best to be able to practice what you preach, and I would join my students in writing short stories and poetry, using both my efforts and the work of the students as both positive and negative models.

And yet, for all my efforts, for all my successes, there were always some students who never seemed to comprehend what I was trying to teach. I learned that creative writing is not something you can teach, per se. You can only put the student in an environment where creativity can thrive and hope for the best.

Dr. Brett E. Weaver, Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Fort Hays State University, served as our presenter and guide through the process. He began by stating clearly, “I can not teach you how to write well. I can only teach you how not to write poorly.”

He then proceeded to present the students with a list of rules for writing short fiction. Things like “keep it simple,” “keep the number of characters to a minimum,” “keep the time frame short” and “create a clear or compelling conflict.”

Most importantly, according to Dr. Weaver, was for the protagonist to change. “The main character can not be the same at the end of the story as they were in the beginning. The events of the story must change them in some fundamental way.”

In a sense, each of the eighty or so student writers, as well as myself and the other adult sponsors, were a bit like Dr. Weaver’s protagonists. He expected us to change, to end the day different than we began it, to see the process of fiction writing in a fundamentally improved context.

Throughout the day, he had the students write and revise and then the last thing we did was listen as various student groups read what they had written. I sat enraptured as these kids, with voices quavering nervously, read aloud their writings of the day, letting us into their personalities and experiences.

Not all the kids left the seminar drastically changed, but I think the experience of listening to the teaching of a college professor and professional writer helped them more that any of us might ever realize. If anything, he certainly added to their enthusiasm while giving them a few more things to think about.

Overall, I was just impressed that so many students are so enthralled with creative writing. Whether or not a single one of these students ever become a professional writer, I cannot help but think that the world is a better place because these kids dare to dream and aspire to create.