Use Your Words!: The Sequel

This has been a busy week so far, and it will continue to be a busy week, so this is going to be an extremely short post.  I just thought I'd show you the end result of the notebook craft project I did with the girls I watch, which I talked about in a previous post entitled "Use Your Words!"  I clipped out tons of words from magazines and newspapers.  Then I glued these words to a hard covered composition notebook and used strips of packing tape to "laminate" them. 

The girls made their own notebooks, too, but I'm not sure they'd like me posting pics of theirs on my blog.  So I'll just post pics of mine.  Sorry about the flash.  I'm a doctor writer/bad hippy/childcare provider, not a photographer.

On the front of the notebook, I used words on the top half that were writing-related.  On the bottom half, I used mostly adjectives that I would use to describe myself (including "short" and "pale").

On the back, I just used words that inspired me, made me feel hopeful, or reminded
 me of why I should keep reaching for my dreams. 

I've still got a LOT of clipped out words left over, and I have three leftover composition notebooks (I got them for dirt cheap during the NC tax free weekend).  I'll probably make more of these, when  have the time.  Who knows when THAT'S going to be.  But then, this is a fun thing to do while watching movies (if I do something with my hands while watching movies, it keeps me from wanting to eat).  Maybe it will tide me over until knitting season begins.

Use Your Words!

I've been planning a craft for the girls I watch that involves using words clipped out of magazines and newspapers.  I guess I could *try* to get them involved in the actual word clipping, but I know that would go over about as well as if I asked them to do their own laundry.  The youngest one (The Princess) wouldn't even know what I was talking about (I'm pretty sure she believes the Laundry Fairy comes and washes all her clothes and magics them back into her dresser.  Well, okay, the Laundry Fairy does exist--and her name is Mommy...and sometimes Daddy).  The oldest one (The Drama Queen) would freak out about how hard it is and act as though I were a horrible monster for even suggesting that I try to make her do it.  The middle one (The Diva) would let me know that she was perfectly capable of doing it, but that she had better things to do and wouldn't waste her time on such a trivial activity.  Long story short--I would fight a battle doomed to failure and end up cutting all the words out by myself.  So I saved myself a lot of whining and just started clipping out words.

I've been clipping words out of magazines and newspapers for about a month now.  My roommate told me I was going overboard, but I didn't listen.  Turns out, I probably did go overboard, but now I'm kind of addicted to clipping out words, so I'm still doing it even though I've got a huge ziplock bag full of words!  Every time I go to the library, I grab a handful of each of those free periodicals they have there.  And I don't feel too bad about it, because as I've clipped the words, I've read some of the stuff in there.  Some of it is actually pretty good, but most of it belongs on the bottom of a birdcage.  I have a feeling a lot of those free periodicals end up getting recycled without having ever been read.  I feel sorry for those periodicals.  They were printed for a purpose that they will never realize, stacked on the wire rack of their dreams that will never come true.  So I'm doing them a favor by putting them to some use--even if that use is viciously ripping them apart in search of "big, pretty words."

In my search for words, I've noticed that advertisers are some of the best liars in the world.  For example, do you know what the word "unique" means?  Do you know how many times I've cut the word "unique" out of different ads?  If something is unique, then it's one-of-a-kind, right?  Well, I seriously doubt that all of these similar products and services I've encountered are as "unique" as they claim.  But slap the word "unique" on a page with big, pretty letters, add a picture of a cute kid, and all of the sudden suckers are going to get sucked in.  That is, they would if every other "unique" ad didn't also have big, pretty letters and an equally adorable child.  Maybe even holding a puppy, for good measure.

Words are some of my favorite things in the world.  I like the idea that a bunch of symbols (letters) pieced together in a certain order has a meaning that we assign to it.  I like that you can put those words together into sentences that also have meanings.  I like watching toddlers learn to assign meanings to words, and I like hearing them put those words into sentences--figuring out language patterns.  I like watching kindergartners and first graders learn to write out those patterns.  I like watching them struggle with the MANY exceptions to those patterns.  It's not that I like watching them struggle so much as it's interesting to me to watch their brains try to figure out this crazy English language.  As much as the English language has been warped over the centuries, it's a wonder we have any grammatical rules left....

Some grammatical rules seem more important to me than others.  I can't stand it when people use the wrong form of your/you're or there/their/they're, but I can live with a split infinitive (if James T. Kirk could do it on his five year mission, I can do it, too).  I also don't mind it if you end a sentence with a preposition.  And it's absolutely fine with me if you start a sentence with a conjunction (see what I did there?).  I even like passive voice if it's used effectively.  I think I'm more likely to be a grammar nazi when a broken grammar rule leads to difficulty in understanding the meaning that a writer is trying to convey.  For example, the phrase "Your pretty" leads me to ask the question, "My pretty what?"  Yet that doesn't explain why my ears bleed every time someone says, "I'm doing good" or "I'm real smart" or "He ran quick."  I guess being the daughter of two teachers--one of whom was an English teacher--caused me to pick up on how proper grammar should sound. 

I do think there's a problem with what people do with words today.  That "unique" example is part of it.  C. S. Lewis made a good point when he said, "Don't use words too big for the subject. Don't say 'infinitely' when you mean 'very'; otherwise you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite."  I do that with the word "awesome."  I use that word like I have to meet a quota.  And when I use it, I'm not even using the original meaning.  I'm using the watered-down 80's version of it.  Word meanings change over time (another thing I really like about words), but sometimes I don't think it's a good thing.  With "awesome," I keep using that word, but I do not think it means what I think it means.  I call my friends awesome.  Does that mean they fill me with awe every time I see them?  Ok...maybe...but I think it more likely that they are just great people whom I like to be around.  Maybe I should find a better word to describe my friends and save the word "awesome" for things that actually inspire awe--like God.

But I really really like the word "awesome," and I really really like using the word "awesome" because it's such an...awesome word.  You see my problem?  That--and I feel the need to repeat the word "really" to convey the really-ness of my like of the word "awesome."

You know what?  Never mind.  I'm pretty sure the English language is doomed to be a train wreck.  I'm the only one of my friends who actually types out words when I text.  I'm sure I annoy all my friends who are able to make sense out of the phrase: "Gng 2 prty @ Sue's 2mrw? 8pm. Cn u br dip?"  I mean, I cause them so much trouble by actually typing it all out: "Are you going to go to the party at Sue's tomorrow?  It's at 8pm.  Can you bring dip?"  All those extra letters to read.  It's such a waste of time!

I believe that in the future, vowels will be obsolete.  Everyone will communicate using only consonants, even whilst speaking, so that all verbal communication will be reduced to a series of grunts.  "Gd mrnng.  Hw r y?"  "Mrnng. M fn. Hw r y?"  "Gd. Nd cff."  "M t."  Yeah.  It'll be really confusing.  To fix that problem, everyone's just going to be implanted with a device that eliminates all need for verbal communication.  To save the time it would take for someone to verbally communicate a thought, the actual thought will actually be projected into another person's actual brain.  ACTUALLY!  This, of course,  will lead to several technical glitches that will eventually make everyone completely telepathic.  Everyone will know everyone else's thoughts all the time.  Then everyone in the world will become uber paranoid and will never leave their houses again.  Until one day a brave soul discovers an ancient book called a "Dictionary" and brings language back into a world that is desperately in need of a few good words.

Ooh.  That would be awesome.

The Writing Within

I haven't written a single word of a story since...oh probably Sunday night.  The reason?  I haven't had time (and that's really not just a lame excuse this time...it's the truth).  I mean, I would have time if I didn't sleep or if I decided all this exercise stuff I've been doing is for losers.  But I've worked two (or three) jobs every day this week so far, and honestly, sleep has been way more important than writing.  The rest of the week doesn't look much more promising.  I've got a LOT to do in the next three days, and I'm not sure when I'll have time to do it all.  So writing?  I might get to that...eventually.

But I'm going to let you in on a little secret.  Just because I haven't been writing anything down on paper (or typing anything up on the computer screen) doesn't mean I haven't been writing at all. 

There is a sort of magic that sometimes happens (and sometimes just...doesn't...) when a writer starts writing down things on paper.  Sometimes the words just flow out of the pen and create something wonderful, something the writer couldn't write until he/she sat down to start writing.  Sometimes I, personally, just need to feel a pen sliding across a piece of paper, or I need to feel the rhythm of my fingers clicking across a keyboard.  Sometimes I can't create until I get that physical connection of pen to paper, fingers to keyboard.

Then there are the other times, the times I've experienced this week--the times when a writer doesn't need paper.  I'mma call it...mind writing.  I find that one of my favorite places to mind write is in the shower.  I guess that's weird, but...whatever works, right?  I stand there, washing my hair, and a scene or character comes to me.  It's usually from whatever project I'm working on, and it's usually involving dialogue.  So I stand in the shower and talk to myself until I've figured out the scene or until the water gets cold--whichever comes first.

I also like to mind write while I'm running (or whatever form of exercise I happen to be doing).  I can't have conversations with myself without looking like a loony to other people on the road, so I have to internalize whatever I'm mind writing.  I'm not good at internalizing.  Lately, while running, I've been mind writing about characters who run, because I'm just THAT creative...  ...  ...  ...

Mind writing in those few moments between turning out the light and going to sleep can be either incredibly helpful or incredibly dangerous.  It can be dangerous because I tend to forget things easily, especially when I'm tired.  So there's a good chance that anything I thought of before I go to sleep will be forgotten forever (maybe that's a good thing...?).  But mind writing before sleep can also be awesome if I'm lucky enough to be able to DREAM about what I was mind writing.  Every book I've completed so far has been, in some way, inspired by a dream.  In the case of my first book, it wouldn't exist if not for a dream (and a really ugly ring).  In my second book, I had an idea for a story, but it wasn't tied together until I had a dream that I thought would be a great scene in the book.  So yeah, I'm a really big fan of dreams.  I like to use them in my writing.  Sometimes I'll take naps just because I have some of my best dreams in the middle of the day.  I mean, I might not dream at all, but it's worth a shot.  ...and I get a nap...  Win-win.

These are some of the times/places I usually mind-write, but they aren't the only ones.  Mind writing can happen just about anywhere.  Grocery shopping.  Driving a car (scary, right?).  Eating breakfast.  Sitting in church (...don't judge me, Christians!).  Yeah.  Just about anywhere.

So if you happen to see me this week and I have a vacant expression, it might just be that I'm mind writing because I have no time for real writing.  If this is the case, proceed with caution and make no sudden movements.

Too Many Words

I nanny for three girls, the youngest of which is six years old. "The Princess," as I will refer to her in all blog postings, is about halfway through her second week of first grade. I take care of her and her sisters ("The Drama Queen" almost 12, and "The Diva" almost 9) about three afternoons a week. The older two are pretty good about doing their homework without too many problems. Sometimes they'll ask me to help them with their homework, and I realize that I am, in fact, a dunderhead when it comes to elementary and middle school mathematics (What does commutative mean? Seriously...I have to use the dictionary to do 4th grade math?), science (Laws of Motion? All I know is that I get in trouble with the law if my driving motion is too fast), geography (how am I supposed to know why it's called the Tropic of Cancer? No, I'm pretty sure you don't automatically get cancer if you go there), and pretty much everything else.

Anyway, I can easily help "The Princess" with all of her homework, since most if it is still on my level. Right now, she's just coming out of kindergarten (and a long summer break in which I did not make her practice her writing/reading enough), so she's practicing writing simple words like "a," "at," "the," "me," etc.

The past two days I've asked "The Princess" to do her homework. You'd think I was torturing the child. She comes home from school and starts complaining about how long it will take her to do her homework. She eats a snack. She stalls. She sits at the table. She stalls. She cries. She stalls. She pounds the table with her head--literally. I try to reason with her, but she doesn't seem to grasp the simple concept that if she'd just go ahead and START her homework, she would be done with it sooner. Homework that would take her about 10 minutes becomes an hour long ordeal.

The other day, I was trying to help her start her homework. I suggested she write some of her words down. It was a list of 10 words, all four letters long or less. She looked at me helplessly and dramatically exclaimed, "THAT'S TOO MANY WORDS!"

At this point, I really made her mad by busting out laughing. She demanded to know why I was laughing. I said to her as kindly as possible, "Sweetheart, I have written three grown-up chapter books. Don't tell me that this is too many words."

Anyway, I've been taking a break from writing for a while. I have about a week left of it, and then I'm going to have to start trying to get my first book published again. I'm going to have to send out query letters. I'm dreading this.

I have the temptation to look up at God helplessly and exclaim, "THIS IS TOO HARD FOR ME!" Only I'm not too mad when He laughs kindly and says, "But, sweetheart, nothing is too hard for me."

I know that I'm going to sit down to start sending my queries. I'll want to cry. I'll want to pound my fists on the table. I'll want to complain about how long it'll take me to find an agent. I'll want to make up excuses not to try. I'll want to go through every possible reason why I'll most likely not get published. "I'm an unknown writer! No agent will want me!" "My writing is unusual and probably sucks." "I don't know what I'm doing! Why did I think I could do this?" "What if aliens invade the planet and erase every copy of my book, and then steal my brain so I can't write it all over again!?"

The thing is, if I would just sit down and trust God and GET IT DONE, it wouldn't be such an ordeal for me. So I still ask for prayer. The reading break I've taken has been immensely helpful and refreshing. Now it's time to work again. There aren't too many words; I just have to be dilligent to do what needs to be done.

Lord, let not my hands be idle, nor my heart be unstirred.