An Unsolicited Opinion From Dear Old Dad

My brothers and I often joke about the self titled "Unsolicited Opinions From Dear Old Dad" that my father regularly bestows on us. If I ever get around to writing something substantial, this will most definitely be the title of my work. I would list some of these one-liners here, but I’d rather save them until I attempt to publish them in their entirety. Believe me, it will be worth the wait. I’m telling you I could fill the Grand Canyon two times over with all the “unsolicited opinions” I've received from my father over the years. Don’t get me wrong, the advice is good, and it comes from the unique perspective of my father, who is one of the smartest people I know. I know everyone thinks that about their dad, but I really believe it. Any man that spends nine years in undergraduate school, obviously likes academia!

Why am I bringing this up? Well, one of those unsolicited opinions went something like this, “People will judge you based on the way you write." I certainly have found this to be true, further proving the point that my dad is of genius-level intelligence. If you recall, the premise of this blog was to keep me entertained. It has recently occurred to me that people may be judging me on the way I write, and of course that is perfectly expected.

I’m not sweating this at all because of the following reason. I have been treating this blog as my own form of “drunk-dialing.” Drunk-dialing occurs after one has had a few too many rum and cokes and proceeds to call someone they may otherwise never considered calling. The only evidence of a drunk-dial then appears the next day on the outgoing call section of your cell phone. It is right there starring you in the face; undeniable evidence that you did indeed call that person at 2:15 in the morning. I have never partaken in this sort of activity, this information is solely based on what my friends have told me. (I’ll stick to that.)

Essentially this blog is my own form of drunk-dialing. I sit at the computer when I’m bored and decide to write something down. (Don’t worry, I’m not drinking rum and cokes at the time.) After I read it over once, I decide to post it. The next day, I go back and read it. Nine times out of ten, I’m thinking, “Why did I post that?” Then I remember! I’m writing this blog for my own self-gratifying purposes! I warned you all from the beginning that this blog was self-serving. I’m sure you’ve figured that out by now, especially if you’ve read this much.

Let me explain. In my creative writing classes, we begin each class with something called an AW, or Automatic Writing. It is a free writing exercise. The AW usually consists of a question or comment related to what we are studying. They are warm-up writing exercises in which the writer begins writing and continues to write, nonstop, for a specific length of time. During this time, the writer does not worry about mistakes; he or she does not stop to correct errors or check spelling. The purpose of automatic writing is for the writer to generate ideas quickly and to get them down on paper. I’d like to think that free writing is an effective learning tool. I hope it helps my students increase fluency, and increase the impulsive part of writing that can be so rewarding. I think teachers have to foster the right environment for students to feel safe and creative. I usually give the students 5-10 minutes to write at the beginning of each class.

Believe me, I know there is a place for grammar, sentence structure and mechanics in the creative writing classroom, but I also think I have to nurture their creative side as well.
I’ve noticed that some of my students write a one-word answer and then shut their AW journal and put their head down on their desk. Some other students are writing vigorously and enthusiastically until the moment I tell them to stop. I figured that some of the students were just not interested, and didn’t care to do the work. Then I began to notice that many of my A and B students were the ones who wrote the short responses in their journals, and then moved on to something else. I would often walk around the room during AW time and insist that the students try to write for the entire five to ten minutes. The students that would stop early, would seem annoyed at the thought of continuing to write. The look on their faces seemed to ask, “Why are we doing this?"

Then it occurred to me that some of the students might not understand the purpose of writing for themselves. They didn’t realize that the writing was not really for me; I was not necessarily their audience. The writing was for them to experiment and think for themselves. Students are often given such detailed rubrics and boundaries that when they are asked to come up with something creative, they are at a complete loss.

Why do good students sometimes back away from writing creatively? Were they uncomfortable with the informality of it? Did they feel awkward about expressing themselves in writing? Were they afraid that I was going to think their ideas were stupid? Were they afraid of getting a bad grade? Maybe these students were playing it safe by not writing a lot. Anyways, my findings on that topic will probably bore you into oblivion, so I’ll stop there.

My point is this- sometimes you need to throw the fear of judgment out the window and just go for it. So what if you misspell a few words or your sentence structure is all out of whack? That is the risk you take when you free write. I’m not suggesting that you free write on a resume, mission statement, or formal letter, but there is something healthy and refreshing about writing for yourself and forgetting the audience altogether.

That is what I’m doing with these blog entries, except as it turns out some of you are actually reading them. Who knew?

Dad, I hope you can refrain from judging my writing until the thoroughly edited version of “Unsolicited Opinions From Dear Old Dad” is published. After all, I’m sure I’ll regret posting this tomorrow.