Week 2: Reflections as Writer-in-Residence
[My apologies for infrequent blog posts. I travelled to Atlanta for a conference and then there was a campus-wide Internet connection failure.]
Although this post is a bit delayed, I can think of nothing more indicative of my second week here than just that. In short: the honeymoon is over. The good news? It still feels like part time work, but more like 60/40 compared to Week 1’s dreamy 40/60. That’s sixty percent in meetings, teaching, prepping, grading, or office hours and forty percent writing, reading, working out, submitting, and applying to residencies.
My most exciting experience had everything to do with the students. I finally got to see what they can do on the page and, hands down, they’re rocking my world. Don’t get me wrong—there are still plenty of ways I see that I can help them. But the majority of the student writing I have seen is on par with the slush piles I’m reading for various literary journals across the country. Slush piles have their atrocities and they have their gems. So far, my student work more closely resembles the gems.
Sometimes I have to stop and remind myself: They are in high school…then I go to the cafeteria and hear a table of boys playing the “penis” game (a shouting match) and it’s easy to remember.
For my part, I’ve managed to read 2 books since my arrival, submit one residency application, write one art review, write 1 short-short, start a new short story, and send out five submissions. February is going to be a big month for me: I have 3 pieces of writing being published (2 fiction, 1 creative nonfiction)! Look for blog, website, and Facebook links in the near future.
