There are many odd things that a writer can learn when working on a story. In most cases, the learning is probably intentional – research for something specific that occurs in or relates to their plot or characters or setting.
In some instances, that odd thing is a word they’d never heard of before. Today, I learned one such word as I was editing a chapter. (When I sit down to start writing, I reread/edit the chapter or section that came before the scene or summary I am about to write – I find this helps me not only add in words or details that I hadn’t thought of during my last writing session, but it also helps get me into the right frame of mind for what I’m about to create.)
The word I learned today is ‘snigged.’ I stumbled across it as I was reading/editing, and my first thought was, “Why didn’t Word flag this?” My second was, “I wonder what it means – does it have anything to do with snigger?”
Well, reader, it does not have anything to do with ‘snigger’:
As my writing buddy, Jack, said, “That is a very specific word.”
For this month, I chose to focus on Creative Nonfiction stories. As with the previous six months, I have no idea what these stories are about – the goal is simply to experience new writing. Feel free to read along!
To be honest, I’m a little surprised that I’ve managed to keep going this long without missing a single day. (Full disclosure, I came close once – had gone to bed and was drifting to sleep when I remembered I hadn’t read it yet. I grabbed my phone to read it and finished the story at 11:58 p.m.) I usually read them in the morning while I eat breakfast and drink my coffee, though there have been a few days where I’ve had to roll out of bed and hit the road or there’s something else that requires my attention.
I will say that I haven’t loved every story I’ve read – but that’s not the point. None of us will love everything we read. The goal was to read new stories, experience new authors. And the important thing is that I have learned something from each story. Some of them have even given me ideas for stories I’d like to write (if only I had the time).
The best part? The slow mornings. I mentioned in a post early in the challenge that a change for me during this pandemic is a slow morning. No more turning off the alarm clock and jumping right into work. (Another bit of full disclosure – I’m not a morning person. This doesn’t mean that I’m not productive in the mornings. More so – I’m just not ready to interact with people first thing. There is a “no one calls Ami before 9 a.m. rule in my family” for this very reason. To be fair, my sister would call at 6 a.m. on her way to work because she was bored on her drive.) Before, mornings were something to get through until I was ‘fully awake.’
Now they are something to enjoy. Breakfast. Coffee. Story. I’m going to be sad when the year is over – but I’m not sure I will re-up the challenge for next year. It’s a lot of work to track down and schedule stories. But I will keep the slowness. Perhaps read a chapter in my current book or something along those lines. Only time can tell – and I’ve got sick more months of stories to read first.
My favorite story so far is still “Paper Menagerie” by Ken Liu – the story I read way back on January 14.
I recently sent an email to the police department in Madison, WI (USA). After I hit send, my first thought was…this is going to land me on a list. [strained smile]
I sent a request to the South District Office in the hopes that they might allow for a tour of their facilities – as I had just decided I wanted this district to be the location of a mystery I have been thinking about for some time and recently started writing. My MC will be a detective who has just transferred to this district. As with all my writing (aside from the YA SFF), the locations are real places, and I want them to all feel real – so that someone who has been there feels it’s authentic.
Understandably, it turns out they don’t give public tours, but the Lieutenant who responded offered to answer questions. I did send a list to her, and, again, my first thought…I’m going to land on a list or two with these… [laughs uncomfortably] She was kind in her responses, and they even gave me an idea of how to make the story work. Can’t wait to add her name to the acknowledgements. 🙂
This got me thinking, though, about that meme that goes around in various iterations – where a writer’s search history gets flagged. For my YA, I had to look up how much damage a pipe bomb causes, as well as how to make certain weapons (thankfully, since it’s SF, they aren’t weapons that work in real life). For this mystery, I’ve looked up various things about causes of death – and there will be many more searches that involve bodies and burial and blood splatters and whatnot. (Perhaps whoever might see my flagged search history will see this and realize, oh, she’s a writer!)
Thankfully, my other books/WIPs have had me looking up history and restaurants and Italian translations. 😛
Have you had to look up anything for your writing that has certainly landed you on a list or two?
I’ve been a homeowner for a little under eight years. During that time, I’ve learned a lot about replacing sump pumps (and everything that goes with them). I’ve come downstairs and, half-asleep, stepped into a giant puddle in my kitchen and learned all about broken water lines leading to refrigerators. I’ve learned how to replace things like a garbage disposal and a kitchen sink faucet – and how to improvise some fairly impressive strings of curse words in the process.
This week in homeownership, I’m learning the intricacies of making an insurance claim regarding a tree that had a bad night and is requiring the assistance of my house to hold it upright. We had a rather wicked storm rip through our entire state on Wednesday night (multiple tornados touched down; straight-line winds up to 80 mph). I thought I managed to get through unscathed – went to bed with my power still on, and from what I could see, there were only branches down in my yard.
Just my house lending a helping hand. Or…roof.
Cut to waking up at 3:30 a.m. to discover my power had indeed gone out. And then, once the sun came up, I discovered that poor tree. I feel incredibly fortunate that I am ok and that all of my people are accounted for and safe (though really wishing I hadn’t had that grocery pickup Wednesday morning…).
I’d also be ok going a few months without learning anything new in the realm of homeownership…
I have a confession. In 2009, I didn’t know who Lynda Barry was – I had yet to be introduced to her work. But I was back in Green Bay, a year out of grad school, and desperate to once again be surrounded by writers and artists. So when it was brought to my attention that the nationally renowned cartoonist was giving a creativity workshop at UWGB, and I discovered that I was able to nab a spot as a UWGB alumna, I jumped at the opportunity. And I’m forever grateful (if for no other reason than finding another book-sniffing kindred spirit).
Though she was born in Richland Center, WI, Barry spent most of her life in Seattle. Known as the class cartoonist, Barry met the same challenge many of us likely have – a parent who didn’t understand our love of books or writing or creating – and insisted that we instead get a “good steady job.” Also like many of us, she didn’t listen.
If you learn nothing else from Lynda Barry, learn that.
While attending school at Evergreen State College, the editor of her school newspaper put out a call stating that he would “print anything that anyone submitted” – and Barry rose to the challenge, attempting to push the envelope as far as she could, trying to come up with things that she was certain they wouldn’t publish. Barry even submitted the cartoons by sliding them under the office door at night and with the pseudonym Ernie Pook (the comic series that would later also feature Arna, Arnold, Freddie, and Marlys). True to his word, though, the editor printed them.
The editor of that college paper? Matt Groening. (Yep, that Groening, of Simpsons fame.)
At the age of twenty-three, Barry’s career took off thanks again to one Matt Groening. When writing about West Coast artists, Groening included his former classmate and friend. This gained the attention of the Chicago Reader, the first to pick up her comic – which would go on to appear in over fifty alternative weeklies, running for almost thirty years.
As though an extensive publishing career isn’t impressive enough, Barry has also been teaching since she was twenty five – her students over the years ranging from children to adults. Currently, she is an Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Creativity at UW-Madison and travels the country conducting workshops, such as the one I attended at UWGB in 2009.
As a teacher, Lynda Barry isn’t interested in theory or critique – she’s interested in where ideas come from and in helping people find their own creativity. She makes it clear that her workshops work especially well for non-writers. “‘Kids don’t plan to play…They don’t go: Barbie, Ken, you ready to play? It’s gonna be a three-act.’ Narrative, Barry believes, is so hard-wired into human beings that creativity can come as naturally to adults as it does to children. They need only to access the deep part of the brain that controls that storytelling instinct” (NY Times).
Her best piece of advice? She won’t let her students “reread their writing until the entire course has concluded. ‘While you’re writing, you’re having this experience,’ Barry explained. ‘But when you read it, all you can think about is, Is my baby defective?’ Sometimes, she said, babies just need time to open their eyes” (NY Times). I saw this in practice when during her workshop, she asked for volunteers to read pieces of their drafts out loud. She called on folks one at a time – each time coming to their side, dropping to her knees so that she could listen closely, and then always giving small words of encouragement when they were done reading. The pieces, which were works in progress, were not being critiqued – praise was given simply for the act of creating.
I love being a student. I can’t say I have always loved school, but I’ve always loved learning from people. One of the perks of being a college professor is that I get a tuition waiver at my school (we still pay fees, and if we audit, it’s another hundred bucks – but still well worth it in my eyes).
So when I started pre-writing (i.e. outlining and completing character questionnaires) for a murder/mystery I’ve been thinking about for a bit now, I couldn’t help but think – I know there’s a course for that. I’ve always loved detective procedurals on TV (Bones, Brooklyn 99, Lucifer, NCIS, Rizzoli and Isles, and White Collar), but I never know how much is reality and how much is to fit into the allotted time slot.
And I want this story to be as authentic as possible. Enter: Criminal Investigation. This will be the first of three courses I plan to take over the next three semesters, starting with this summer session. I’ve opted to audit mostly to take the pressure off (I’m a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to grades…leftover expectations from my K12 years; I also have significant testing anxiety – looking at you standardized tests.) With auditing, I have access to the class, the material, and the professor – without the added pressure of worrying about my grade. I can learn for the sake of learning.
This class, which started Tuesday, is an eight-week course (accelerated to fit the summer session – it would usually be sixteen weeks, so we’ll be moving quickly). It will run the same time as my own courses that I’m teaching, too – so another reason to take a little pressure off. During this course, I’ll get to learn the “principles, procedures, and techniques” of investigation, as well as how activities are coordinated, the responsibilities of the investigator, and case preparation. I have no doubt this will be an excellent foundation to make sure I can “get it right.” Or, at least, to get it to be as authentic as I possibly can.
Plus I get to be a student again. (My last course for fun was back in 2013 – it’s definitely time!)
For this month, I chose stories from web exclusives and archives of Fairy Tale Review, which is an “annual literary journal dedicated to publishing new fairy tales and to helping raise public awareness of fairy tales as a diverse, innovative art form.” As with the previous five months, I have no idea what these stories are about – the goal is simply to experience new writing. Feel free to read along!
Today, Voices of Jane Adeny Memorial Schools is sitting on my bookshelf – something that started almost a decade ago when Teresa Wasonga and Andrew Otieno came to speak to in a course I was taking at the time (I was getting a couple graduate certificates for the fun of it because I had missed being a student). I had no idea the journey that would stem from that night so long ago – and I can’t put into the words the emotions I’m feeling seeing this book sit among others that I hold so dearly.
Below is the timeline from the moment I met Teresa and Andrew to this one.
Oct 30, 2012 – Teresa Wasonga and Andrew Otieno came to my Feminist Theory course to talk about the school they founded in Kenya (where they are from originally). I thought about nothing else for weeks. I proposed an idea to them about a month later that involved teaching memoir, turning the work into a collection (with the girls’ permission, of course), and using the book as a fundraiser for the school.
Spring 2013 – I participated in an independent study where I research education and writing in Kenya and then created the “Memoir Writing for Empowerment” curriculum we would implement at the school.
June 18 – July 7, 2014 – Our trip was originally scheduled for Summer 2013, but it was postponed for one year. We spent three weeks at the school implementing the curriculum and working with the students to edit/revise their work.
I spent a lot of time typing up the handwritten memoirs, fitting this in wherever I could.
July 28 – Aug 6, 2015 – Formatted and then edited the entire manuscript
Aug 6, 2015 – Oct 2019 – Handed over the manuscript to the individual who was supposed to be co-editor. The project then stalled for several years (as Randy Pausch said, “Brick walls are there to train and demonstrate your resolve, not to keep you out. Some brick walls are made of flesh.”) I was finally granted permission to take the project back and go ahead solo (in Oct 2019).
I did another round of edits – and then the pandemic threw a wrench in my ability to meet with Teresa. We were finally able to get to get together in Nov of 2021 to go over spellings of names and places (to make sure everything was spelled correctly).
12/5/2021 – Submitted proposal to the Friends of JAMS board to get approval for funds to typeset, for cover design, and to print initial run of physical copies. Was informed the board would not be meeting until February 2022. The board did approve our proposal. (However, one member requested we add updates for all of the students for where they are now. Because this would further postpone the project, potentially indefinitely, a decision was made to add updates for students we had quick contact with.)
March 2022 – The manuscript was sent to our typesetter, Kevin Moriarity (who is fantastic, by the way) on March 18, 2022. He turned this around quickly (we had a final version by March 24, 2022). The interior and cover were uploaded to KDP so that we could order a printed proof on March 28, 2022.
Printed proof arrived March 31, 2022. I spent April 1 – 4, 2022, proofreading. I sent Kevin updates each day. I checked over the final interior on April 5, 2022 (did I mention Kevin is quick?), and it was uploaded on April 10, 2022.
On April 13, 2022, my copies of Voices of JAMS arrived. One has sat on my display shelf since. I keep peeking over at it to make sure it’s really there. 🙂
Still doesn’t feel real.
All proceeds from this book will go directly to the Friends of JAMS scholarship fund. The Kindle version is priced at $9.99; the paperback is priced at $15. If you are interested in helping further, please consider also donating directly to the Friends of Jams scholarship fund.
Your Donation
Provides:
$50
A year of school supplies for one student (calculator, writing materials, notebooks)
$100
Full set of school uniforms for a student
$250
Solar battery to power a campus building
$500
Textbooks for a student for 4 years
$800
Full Sponsorship for 1 year for one student (tuition, room & board, school supplies, uniforms, books)
Below is the Afterword for Voices of Jane Adeny Memorial School:
All proceeds from this book go straight into the scholarship fund to help other students acquire an education at Jane Adeny Memorial School for Girls. Each girl within these pages gave permission for their story to be included – excited about the chance to help educate others. By buying this book, you have helped to create a scholarship for a girl just like those whose stories you are holding.
We had a few bumps along the road to putting this together and getting these voices into your hands, but one of the positives that came from this extra time is that Teresa Wasonga and Jean Pierce had the opportunity to speak with some of these original students to hear their thoughts about the school now that they were at university and out in the world. Getting to listen to these interviews felt like such a gift.
One of the stories that stuck out most to me began with Teresa noting that the student they were about to speak with was one of the smartest students to have come through JAMS – and it was a fluke that landed her there. While interviewing another student for entry into the school, the girl mentioned that a friend of hers was struggling to find money to pay fees – without a scholarship, the girl noted, her friend wouldn’t be able to go to school. Where is that friend now? Well, after attending and graduating from JAMS on scholarship, Veronica is studying computer science at Multimedia University where she is one of four girls in a program of over a hundred students. Veronica is also a member of Girls Tech, an organization that she wants to help grow in an effort to empower more girls. She wants to “let them know that computers are not all about boys. It can be all about girls.” This young woman is already making an impact on the world. Without her scholarship, she would never have had the chance even to attend school.
Another student who is such a joy to listen to is Lynnet – who served as (what we in the U.S. call) the valedictorian of the first ever graduating class of JAMS. During her gap year (most students in Kenya have to wait up to a year before they are able to start at university), she returned to JAMS where she helped around the school – she baked bread, took care of the chickens, helped in the garden, wherever she was needed. In return, she was able to earn some money to save for her fees for her first year of university. Now, university degree in hand, she talks about how education has been an equalizer. Lynnet has returned once again to JAMS and now teaches alongside of the people who taught her.
In many ways, JAMS is unlike any school I have ever set foot in. In others, there are stories that are all too familiar. If not before the pandemic, certainly now – people in the U.S. have become more aware of how much some families rely on schools for things other than education. For some students, lunch at school is the only meal they eat that day. As Lynnet noted, food security had been a real issue for students such as herself. “At times, we could take two meals a day. We could even go without a meal. You wake up in the morning, there is nothing to eat. We go to school; at lunch time, when we come back [home], there is nothing to eat. At night, maybe you just get porridge, or there is no porridge.” At JAMS, students get three meals a day every single day. No time is spent worrying about when, or if, they will get their next meal.
Another way that JAMS provides safety for its students is that corporal punishment is not allowed. And yes, you did read that correctly. Corporal punishment, or caning, is still rampant in most government schools in Kenya. To say it was heartbreaking to hear students like Revela talk about the punishment she faced at other schools is an understatement: “You went to school, and you are scared from the minute you get to school. The teacher will always find something to punish you about. Sometimes it was not even your fault.” She continues by saying, “You were taught to pass, not to learn. You were taught to do well on exams. If you don’t, you are punished. It was not like you were taught to know the concept.”
From day one, Teresa was adamant that corporal punishment, truly a barrier to education, would not be allowed at JAMS. “I always believed,” Teresa said, “when you are oppressed, you become the worst oppressor. Many of these teachers have been oppressed in their own lives, and the only people they can oppress are students.” In addition to no caning, students were actually encouraged to ask questions of their teachers. At JAMS, “you’d go to school and want to go to school,” Revela stated. “You were meant to feel like you were in school to learn, and they were there to make you better.”
To truly understand what Teresa and Andrew have created at JAMS, we have to look no further than at what Pheobean had to say about the school: “JAMS to us, and to me, was and is still a place to call home. You go to JAMS, and you don’t even miss home because already you are home.”
There are two moments in particular within these interviews that I feel really do demonstrate what I witnessed during my time at JAMS. One involves the empowerment of these young women. More than learning information in books, they are learning that they can make a difference, and the confidence this realization brings is just so heartwarming. As Pheobean said, “Woman can really change the world. We can be leaders, we can be scientists, lecturers. We can do these things out here. It’s not only for men. We have the ability.” The key according to Pheobean? Education. (I also want to note a joyous moment that occurred when she was asked about her performance at university. Pheobean is studying genetic engineering in a program where there are four boys to every one girl. When Teresa asked her, “Are you doing better than some of the boys?” – Pheobean smiled so brightly and, without hesitation, responded, “Of course, yes. Almost all of them.”) The other moment, the first of many moments that brought tears to my eyes, was when Jean and Teresa asked Revela how her future might be different because she attended JAMS. She simply stated, “My future is already different.”
All proceeds from Voices of Jane Adeny Memorial School will go directly to the Friends of JAMS scholarship fund. The Kindle version is priced at $9.99; the paperback is priced at $15. If you are interested in helping further, please consider also donating directly to the Friends of Jams scholarship fund.
Your Donation
Provides:
$50
A year of school supplies for one student (calculator, writing materials, notebooks)
$100
Full set of school uniforms for a student
$250
Solar battery to power a campus building
$500
Textbooks for a student for 4 years
$800
Full Sponsorship for 1 year for one student (tuition, room & board, school supplies, uniforms, books)
