Finished teaching my morning session on plot, and I think I’m unscheduled for the rest of today, though I have to spend some time catching up on reading student manuscripts, and there are various optional activities I could attend throughout the day. Yesterday went pretty well getting here, though I did manage to slash my […]
I’m used to moving through my life to a soundtrack Read More »
Settled in at Sienna Retreat Center for a week of novel workshop. Met the students, had orientation and dinner, played an icebreaker game. Yoga in the morning, then teaching plot. Bed now.
Yoga in the morning, then teaching plot Read More »
A quick repost of a teaching thing I posted on someone else’s thread, just in case it’s helpful. I know a lot of teachers have had increased difficulty with students not doing the reading in recent years (it’s gotten worse post-pandemic). I used to assign quizzes to help with that, but both I and the
The students hate quizzes, so I’ve switched to reading journals Read More »
Hey, teachers — I think I might try sending recorded audio feedback instead of written for this round of papers. I have an iPhone — is there an app you recommend for recording short audio? Or something built into the iPhone already.
An app for recording short audio? Read More »
Zoom pic. I’m grading, reasonably diligently. The waves are lovely to listen to, but so tempting. Willpower required: high. Question to ponder — if you have masses of tedious work to wade through, is it better to do so in a beautiful location? Or is it better to be in a quiet place without distractions,
Miami Beach or a dark closet? Read More »
Plan for the day is mostly academic — I’m grading papers for the next few hours, teaching a few Zoom classes, and then probably grading papers some more, as I promised to get them back by midnight tonight. I basically HAVE to make such promises to my students, because if I don’t, I will procrastinate
Taken entirely out of context Read More »
We had a free day in my Advanced Fiction workshop yesterday, where we’d finished the first round of critiques and hadn’t started the second set yet; usually I’d do writing exercises on a day like that, but I ended up doing something new — taking a class to talk about creative nonfiction. So many of
The wanderlust has kicked in Read More »
A colleague complimented me on my outfit at work today, so you get a pic. I was particularly pleased with the J. Jill cardigan; it had a boxy cut, and this morning I took it in at the sides to give it a more fitted look; you can’t see it in the photo, but trust
I was particularly pleased with the cardigan. Read More »
All the things are due today, so it’s a very computer-focused day for me. I applied for a new fellowship at UIC, which would give me a teaching release if I received it, so I’d have more time to work on a book. Two books, actually — finishing one and starting a related other one.
Just in the last year Read More »
