My short story class began today at Hubbard Hall’s Freight Depot, the class filled up last year, and there is a waiting list, but we held it to eight or nine, it is hard to give the individual attention I like to give if the class is larger. It is a compelling class, intelligent, motivated, supportive and encouraging of one another. Some have been taking my classes for two years, I am flattered that they have returned.
It is a class of encouragement, the point is not to tell them what they don’t do well but what they do do well. And that is a lot, it is a remarkable group of people, I was fairly salivating at the depth and power of their short stories. In the Fall, I am planning to return to my Art Of The Blog class, I think my town is ready for it. I even have a couple of farmers interested.
One of the students shared a powerful poem she wrote about the day her partner of many years told her he was in love with another woman, and then left an hour later. She is taking the class, she said, to find her voice. I told them everyone has a voice, and everyone has a story to tell, most people don’t believe anyone wants to hear their stories. Writers learn early on that their stories are important, they must learn to share them.
I think the system of teaching writing has always advanced the idea that writing is a rare and special gift that only a blessed few possess. It reminds me of dog training, which does the same thing. Everyone has a story to tell, everyone has a voice. If nothing else, the Internet has proven that, for better or worse.
When people tell me about the creative writing courses they have taken, it sounds like they just had an enema. Writers seem to love telling people that they can’t write well or get published. Writing well takes some time, it has never been easier to get published.
The people in my class – it is two hours long, on Saturdays – listen to one another, they support and encourage one another, and provide feedback in the most positive way. That is an ethic of every class I teach, we are not there so that people can feel bad about their work, rather so they can let their voices fly and come out into the world and live. I urge everyone to start a blog, there is no better way to develop writing skills, interact with an audience of readers and learn the discipline of writing. Blogs are still a tough sell for many people, but not for the younger students.
People who want to write carry a great deal of anxiety with them about writing, they are afraid to share and show their work. A major goal of mine is for them to get past that, and quickly. Share work is so important, it is so hard to grow and learn by yourself.
Storytelling is bursting at the seams online, and it appears in so many forms – blogs, videos, games, texting and messaging, social media sharing sites, Pinterest, Snapchat and Instagram. We talk about that as well. We need to open our minds to the young, they are innovative and creative and exploding with energy. They tell their stories all of the time, perhaps too much and too often sometimes.
I love teaching, I feel it is a way to pay back something for the good fortunate I have had to earn my living as a writer for most of my adult life. I’m away next weekend – my daughter is getting married in New York City – but the week after, everybody will bring an outline and we’ll talk about structure, narrative and plotting.
People are already asking me about the blog class in October that is exciting for me. When I first mentioned the class and taught it, many people ran for the hills. They weren’t ready, it was for geeks, it was too complex. Nuts. That attitude is changing rapidly.
Red comes, as always, he helps everyone relax and makes some new girlfriends, he already has more than Leonardo DiCaprio, he will break all of their hearts.