Yesterday, an article in the Guardian raised an important question: can creative writing be taught?  The article listed opinions from various authors, many of whom believe that creative writing degrees are moot because the writing process can’t be taught.  Others believe that writing can be taught, but only by writers who have already been published because they know how to write something of publication quality.  As a writer and teacher, I’m not sure I agree with most of the authors interviewed in that article.  Here are some of my thoughts on the matter:

The best way for a writer to learn the craft is to read.  I think a lot of people underestimate the power of reading.  As a creative writing teacher, I incorporate readings from literature into all of my lectures.  My students read something–either a short story or a poem or an essay–for every class.  I believe that writers who don’t read are doing themselves and their work a disservice.

Not all great writers make great teachers.  Some of my best writing teachers have not been big-name authors.  In fact, one of my best teachers had not published her first novel until after I had taken two or three classes with her, yet she taught me more about writing than many other more prominent novelists.

While the Master’s degree can be great for some writers, you can get a lot of the same benefits on your own.  I’m a firm believer in do-it-yourself, otherwise I wouldn’t have devised the DIY MFA.  There’s no reason why writers can’t get many of the benefits of a Master’s degree, even without enrolling in school.  You can do the literature study on your own by reading with a writer’s eye, and a great deal of craft can be learned through practice.  Connecting with other writers in conferences, critique groups or online can be a great way to gain perspective on your writing.  Most importantly, just write!

What do you think?  Can creative writing be taught?

We all have goals and high hopes that things will turn out a certain way.  As writers, we hope to see our work in print someday.  We hope for agents, publishers, reviewers, and readers to love our book.  We wish for a lot of things, but it doesn’t always turn out the way we’d like.  Sometimes our projects flop, people don’t like our work or we ourselves don’t follow-through on our goals.  Sometimes we… fail.

So how do we deal with these moments of hurt and disappointment.  How do we bounce back from from failure?  Two words: Mindful Writing.  Today, take out your notebook and take a few moments to take stock of the parts of your writing life where you feel like you have failed.  You can do this as a guided exercise, following the five steps below, or you can just read through and do the exercise later.  Here’s how:

1. Notice the disappointments.  Look at your writing life and write down goals you’ve failed to meet or places where things have not turned out the way you would have liked (i.e. rejections and other disappointments).

2. Recognize the things that are outside your control.  While some things may be outside your control–you can’t control who likes your work and who doesn’t–other things you may be able to control after all.  The key is figuring out which things are things you can control and which are not.

3. Take responsibility.  Look at the things you can control and take responsibility for areas where you failed to meet your goals or contributed to the disappointment in some way.

4. Say how you will not let it happen again.  Make a list of ways in which you will not let this disappointment happen or this goal be missed again.  Come up with real strategies to help you avoid this same failure in the future.

5. Let it go.  Don’t ruminate on the disappointment, but move forward towards your goal.  These things happen so just acknowledge, accept and move on.

On a personal note, for me the biggest failure I’ve had to deal with lately was working on my WIP and making my self-imposed deadlines.  I set some rather unrealistic deadlines and it took missing two such deadlines to realize that this method of self-motivation was not working.  At first, I beat myself up for missing the deadlines, but then I realized that I need to set more realistic goals.  But I would not have made this important discovery had it not been for mindful writing.

Have you faced disappointments in your writing?  How have you managed to bounce back?

Welcome Back to YA Cafe, where book lovers can gather and chat about teen literature.  I’m your barista, along with Ghenet from All About Them Words.

Each Friday we pick from a menu of topics and share our thoughts on our respective blogs.  We’ve also got plans brewing for interviews, events and even some exciting giveaways, so stay tuned!  Join the discussion by responding in the comments, on your own blogs or on twitter using the hash tag #yacafe.
 
Today’s Special: Larger-Than-Life Settings

In some books, setting is just a backdrop for the story but in others the setting becomes almost as important as the main characters.  What is it about these settings that makes them seem larger-than-life?  And how do we as writers create settings like this?

1.  Make setting central to the story.  Settings that come to life are often a central component to the story.  One book that is a perfect example is Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan, a story could only be told in New York City.  When the setting becomes a central component to the story, it often takes on a life of its own.  In Love is the Higher Law, the powerful scene where Claire relights the candles could only happen in Union Square, in New York City.  That image of a teenage girl in Union Square, relighting candles that have gone out in the rain, still stays with me. 

2.  Drop your reader in the middle of the world.  In Sarah Beth Durst’s Ice, the story opens in the middle of the Arctic pack ice, with Cassie chasing a polar bear.  We feel the ice on her face mask.  We see the crystals swirling in the air.  Right away we are engulfed by the world of the story. 

3. Details, details, details.  Take time to build details into your story and the setting will come to life.  in Love is the Higher Law we have that moving scene where Clair is looking for the railings near Ground Zero.  That detail of those railings makes the setting come to life.  Even for someone who doesn’t live in New York City, they can identify with some of the emotion that Claire feels when she realizes those railings survived.  Here is that moment:

“As I turn to walk south, I am sure in my bones that the railings won’t be there.  As I walk closer, I think it might be possible that they’ve survived.  As I turn and see the Financial Center’s plaza, hurt but still standing, I think it’s very possible, but still I can’t believe it.  Nearer and nearer.  I see part of it is blocked off.  Then I can see it.  Right there.  I am so happy and so sad at the same time.  I am exuberant and despondent and utterly, completely beside myself.  There they are,  And I know it’s ridiculous–with so many dead, so much destroyed that I can feel so much joy over a series of metal letters affixed to a metal railing.  Life ends, and life goes on.  Words disappear and words remain.”

Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan

Ultimately, it all comes down to this: Believe in your setting.  Your reader will believe in you.

Want to hear more about larger-than-life settings?  Fellow barista, Ghenet shares her thoughts on her blog: All About Them Words.  Check it out, then tell us what you think!