Cheyenne and Jacob plotting

January 30, 2008 – After a two-hour ice storm delay, we kicked off the Tales of Granville High School writing project, 10 young writers, Izzy and one old and cold writer, all gathered in the Lab. Superintendent Dan Teplesky walked me in and got things settled, and we were off. Shayna says birds have altered her life, Dylan wants to be a biologist, Molly loves chickens and sheep, and Jacob and Cheyenne are into sci-fi.
  We all like the idea of putting stories today into a book, tenatively (and probably temporarily) called “Tales from Granville High” to be published by Bedlam Farm Books in the spring or summer. Everybody talked about why they were in the class (generally, teachers made them…er, strongly encouraged them) and what they thought about writing.
  Some sharp comments about writing needing to be about things that made you feel, and that made other people feel. After an hour, everybody got comfortable and ideas began popping. Next week, the class will bring in writing samples, and begin the collective process of choosing stories for the book. We will talk about what we like and what we don’t, and cull through ideas.
  I said I thought it was critical for writers to learn how to show their work and take positive (and negative) feedback, and gassed on a bit about my own works (reluctant as I am to talk about my own writing). Nobody took me all that seriously, which was a good sign, and Izzy did his usual stellar job as writing support dog. All my dogs take computers seriously, and whenever they are turned on, gather to offer support. Next week, Lenore will join the class, if I can get her past the cafeteria.
   To make the book, stories have to show what it’s like to live in Granville, what it means to be there. We haven’t figured out how or whether sci-fi fits in.
  This is an impressive group of people, with a lot of ideas, some seminal experiences, and things to say. If we can weave these stories into a narrative whole, we might just get a book out of it. Cheyenne will do some illustrations, Crysta will take pictures (me too, of course) and Molly said she has a strong story idea buzzing around in her head. I am always surprised by the commitment and thoughfulness of teachers I meet, like the ones in Granville this morning, and I always wonder why I didn’t have teachers like that, or maybe I was just on Mars and didn’t notice. Probably. The teachers worked hard to select kids for this class, and several of them dropped by to check things out. They are welcome. I was reminded how difficult teaching is, and how dedicated many people are to doing it well.
  It was great, and I’m excited. I am always excited when a book is in the works, and I suspect a lot of strong writing will come pouring out of this crew, as diverse and interesting as they were enthusiastic.
  Next week, we will challenge one another, and start the tougher process of putting chapters together for a book.

Molly

Dylan gets writing support from Izzy, used to coddling difficult, grumpy writers