Writing Class

[Chuck Stromme]

Edythe and I began a writing class, something I have never done before, last night at the downtown Eugene LCC campus. The instructor is Linda Clare and she has a LOT to say about writing. It promises to be a very good class.

One of the things she talked about is our writing environment, about how much it helps if you can dedicate even a small space to your writing and eliminate as many distractions as you can. One of our assignments is to create or improve our writing space. I write at a corner computer desk that is littered with tons of other stuff with which I amuse myself. I just did some rearranging and now there is nothing but computer screens and a small lamp in the center work area. Now I can write without the distractions and clutter of my collectibles, music and other junk sitting right in front of me. Your space doesn't have to be like mine, of course, but try to dedicate some of your space, some of the time, to your writing.

Writers write. Simple enough concept even for me. In addition to our writing assignments (a 250-word essay for the first week) she wants us to write five pages (one page = ~250 words) a week about anything and in any format. Letters, blogs, essays, any format will do and it isn't for sharing in class. It's to practice writing. Well, OK, I think I can do that and I know I need the practice.

She had lots more to say and I'll re-tell a little here from time to time. Things like the elements of creating a scene and the "cluster method" for organizing your thoughts about an essay. The last sounded like a real stretch to me but we used it in writing our first in-class assignment last night. Darned if it didn't work. I NEVER expected that.

I'll continue the class long-distance while I'm in Tbilisi for four weeks. My room has a good internet connection so that won't be a problem and she will email the assignments and I will turn them in the same way.

Taking this class gives me a number of things that are important to me: I get out of the house, I get to learn something new, I get to write, I get to do something with my darlin' wife. Instead of my life getting smaller it has begun to get larger. I think this is going to be one of those "Why didn't I do this before?" experiences.

[Chuck Stromme]

The Gabriell Rico Cluster Exercise

The idea is to help organize your thoughts before you start writing. I didn't suspect there might be ways to do this or that someone had actually thought much about it. I thought, to the extent I thought at all, that you just ponder for a while and start writing. That has always worked for me. (When the only tool you have is a hammer, all your problems look like nails. Or was it snails?)

The cluster exercise is simple. Draw a circle and write your topic in it. Draw a single ray from the edge of the circle outward. On the ray, write something about your topic. It can be something you want to be sure to include, something that your topic might lead to, doesn't matter. It's A) a thought, and B) it's about your subject. Repeat as necessary until you run out of room or thoughts. Along the way you're going to have an A-HA! moment about your topic. Really, trust me. Start writing NOW! Then write what you have to say, revisiting your cluster diagram and adding rays as they occur to you and incorporating them into your essay as and when they work for you. There's no requirement to use all your rays up. You're done when you think you're done. Now start editing, revising, changing. Keep editing as often as needed. When we learn something about editing I'll try to share it here.

This method may not always work. What does? However, since having it explained to me I am 2-for-2 using it. Seems worth knowing about.

[Stephanie Southerland]

Thank you for the second-hand endorphins I got just by reading this! :)

[Chuck Stromme]

Oh sure, you HAD to expose my only character flaw, didn't you.

Our first HW assignment is to write a 1-page essay "about something you LOVE or HATE". I am not yet comfortable with being told what to write about or how much or by when. Guess I'd better get used to it though.

How do you decide? My experience has been that topics occur to me by magic, then I write. On occasion an entire essay appears to me at once, then all I need to do is copy the thoughts onto paper and start editing. The instructor's way is the diametric opposite.

I thought I would give you a pre-release read of the assignment. The galleys, if you prefer. I used the previously-mentioned cluster exercise and darned if it didn't work again. There may be something to the idea of learning from people who actually know what they're teaching.
__________

Weeding


I love weeding our garden. My back doesn’t always love it with me, but no mind.

Working in the garden takes me out of the house. The house is where I brood. You can’t brood in the garden, God won’t allow it. No sooner do I take out the first few weeds than already I see progress. It’s better than it was. Immediate gratification is good for me. Endorphins, those mysterious chemicals that convert activity to feelings, emerge from the shadows of my mind. They blink in the light, surprised to be called upon today, and they begin to do whatever it is they do. I was once an adrenaline junky, now it is enough to feel good about my time in the garden. I get to feel good today. Thanks, endorphins.

You don’t have to be clever to weed. No planning needed, no outline, no Rico Cluster Exercise. All you have to do is show up and start. The cats watch. The dog does too, but only for a minute. Dogs need more stimulus than the cats and I. Fresh air, sometimes sunshine, progress, endorphins. Maybe I should teach a class.

My darlin’ wife likes fewer weeds but she never asks me to weed. I’m grateful. I like pleasing her, though you might not know from how seldom it happens. Weeding does that. Sometimes she brings me lemonade on a hot day. It’s a glorious treat and I learn not to take those special moments for granted. After a lifetime of brooding it’s nice to occasionally walk in the sun.