I’m always begging students to send in some of their work to post on Cooler. Especially the folks in the beginning classes. My summer Beginning Fiction class for instance was filled with amazing writers who only got better as the term went on and we had occasions to experiment with forms and concepts.
There are some poems posted in the main section, and here is a short exercise submitted by Logan Turner. Enjoy!
Henry
by Logan Turner (Beginning Fiction Summer 08)
The park shone with the energy of a hundred suns. Children shrieked with delight as they spun endlessly on the rusty, paint-faded merry-go-round. The noise of the trees hushing with the wind seemed to scold them, but still their tinny voices carried through the air. The breeze traveled sluggishly through the damp August air, the moisture sitting like a cloud on the backs of everyone’s necks. The sand from the park was encroaching on the grass, errant pebbles lying helplessly so far from home.
The only shade came from the old oak tree, the soggy innards from last night’s rain threatening relief-seekers like a menacing KEEP OUT sign. Despite the heat, no one went near the tree, and when strangers would ask all anyone said was “It may be shady, but it’s sure as hell dark,” as if they all had recited it from a manual. The tree looked harmless enough, though oddly still. The sun blazed, the birds chirped, the air tickled hair, but the tree did not move.
In the blink of an eye, the sun seemed to dim. The day withdrew to forty watts. First one, then two, then suddenly tens and hundreds of clouds filled the expansive sky. The bright blue afternoon turned gray, fading quickly from ash to granite. Like a throaty German Shepherd’s growl, the thunder began to rumble in the distance. Scattered raindrops started to ping to the earth and bright flashes of white-hot lightning pierced the formerly calm afternoon. With a deafening roar, a booming sizzle reached for the tree, and in one fell swoop split the mighty tree down to its roots.
The air crackled from the bolt of electricity and Tasha dropped to her knees, her hands over her ears. The storm had moved in so quickly no one had time to search for cover, and the wails of the frightened children sent all the parents into a frenzy. Mothers and fathers raced in all directions and finding their children became a blind search as the rain came down now in sheets, as if the lightning had torn right through the clouds. The water spilled down Tasha’s face, blurring her vision and streaming into her mouth as she screamed for Henry. He had been tangled up with three other boys on the merry-go-round, which now stood empty and abandoned, slowly turning with the winds of the storm. Tasha felt people brush by her but saw no child unattended, and as she searched frantically with her eyes, she dropped to her knees, her hands seeking contact with tiny four-year-old shoes. The wind whipped her words from her mouth and her eyes and hands found nothing. Unable to tell the rain from her tears, she shook with fury and panic. As she took one last look around, she saw a glimpse of Henry’s red jacket in front of the tree.
Recently, a group of us from the Advanced Writers Workshop headed to a local restaurant to continue our class conversation a little more informally. Pretty soon, we were talking about one of the Big Questions for Writers: How do you make time to write?
We’re all busy people – we have jobs and families and errands and chores and every once in a while we even have a little fun. Finding time to write in all that can be a little daunting. As someone said that night, “It’s one of those things you know you SHOULD do, like going to the gym and eating healthy and getting enough sleep, but…who has time for everything?”
But for many of us, regular writing is just as important to our health as going to the gym and eating well. We need it. So I’ll ask you: How do you make time for your writing?
For one thing, you can take a class. By setting aside that two and a half hour slot every week, you’re giving yourself the gift of weekly space and time…
...to focus on your writing. Classes like Story Workout (starts tomorrow!) and the workshops meet weekly, allowing you to make an ongoing commitment to your writing. Single session classes like Poetry, The Plot Thickens, Making Magic, and Lifewriting can all give your writing a much-needed boost, as well as keep the inspiration flowing in your free time.
What about the hours and days when you’re not in class? How do you stay inspired when you’re out of the studio, back in the hurry and fluster of daily life? Well, you can check in with other writers at StoryStudio’s new Writer’s Lounge, an online forum for all your writerly (and procrastination) needs. You can look to publications like Poets & Writers to keep you plugged in to the writing world.
Of course, just like eating well and exercising and all the other things we SHOULD be doing to stay healthy, getting our writing time in comes down to the simplest, hardest fact: there’s no magic button, no quick solution, no easy cure-all. In the end, you just have to keep showing up at that blank page again and again.
Luckily, you’re not alone. There’s a whole community of people here who are in exactly the same boat, and when all else fails, we can keep each other afloat.
Do you have other ideas and strategies? Join the discussion in the Writer’s Lounge.
Don’t forget to come out THIS Sunday, June 29, to see the historic night when StoryStudio Chicago students take the Sunday Salon by storm! (Can’t get enough of that alliteration...!) This month’s Sunday Salon will feature the reading talents of four different StoryStudio Chicago students: Rahnee Patrick, Philip Stone, Steven Sacks, and Allyson Walters. The Sunday Salon, a prose reading series that began in New York City in 2002, brings together diverse literary talents the last Sunday of every month. Check out their website for more information.
The Sunday Salon is THIS SUNDAY NIGHT, June 29, 7:30 pm at The Charleston Bar in Bucktown (2076 N. Hoyne). See you there!
Student Jessica P. sends us this message:
“I wanted to take a moment to let you know that the Life Writing class that I took last month with Jack Helbig really got me back into writing again. I’ve started a blog, Buttered Noodles, and one of my pieces was published in Gapers Block last week, which contains part of an in-class writing exercise from the Life Writing class that began with the stem “I remember when by best friend...”: Pool Hall Memories.
Thanks!”
Thank you, Jessica, for letting us know what you’re up to, and kudos on your writing!
If you’re extremely perceptive, you may have noticed it already: the new link to the Writer’s Lounge in the far right-hand corner of this page. If you’re the kind of person who loves chatting with other writers about questions of craft and routine, you’re thrilled! After all, your weekly or bi-weekly workshop is great for helping you to stay motivated and on track with your writing… for a few days, at least. But then the excitement and clarity you felt in class starts to wear off, and suddenly you can think of a thousand other things you could be doing instead of writing: paying bills, washing dishes, calling Great Aunt Margie, scrubbing the bathtub grout with a toothbrush…. If only the other writers in your workshop were around to help you stay motivated….
Enter the Writer’s Lounge.
We just launched it this week, so the conversation’s just beginning! It’s our hope that over time, the Writer’s Lounge will be a virtual extension of the StoryStudio living room: a place to meet and chat about all things writerly. Want to rave (or rant) about the latest literary darling? Need help with a sticky plot point? Have a question about a sticky point of grammar or usage (or just want to find other people who share your utter dismay at common grammatical slip-ups)? Or maybe you just want to thank the people in your workshop for helping you get past a rough spot in your manuscript. Whatever you’re looking for, head over to the Writer’s Lounge, pull up a spot on our virtual couch, and make yourself at home.
