A Poem in a Blade of Grass

I've been working with a young girl from Korea since the beginning of the school year. At first she was on a Fancy Nancy reading level and couldn't understand English very well (especially Southern English). Now we are currently reading Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring. We've read the entire Harry Potter series, The Hobbit, and a few other smaller books that she enjoyed including Savvy and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Her reading level went from kindergarten to sixth grade and she's only in fourth grade. I. Am. So. Proud.

So yesterday afternoon as we were sitting on the university's quad reading out loud to one another I stopped her. We began talking about the difference in the English language from one book to the next. When I asked her what she thought the difference was, she said older books sound prettier. I could not agree more.

While there are wonderful children's books out there that are written in modern English and include slang kids use in school now and also a few choice words, there's something to be said about going back to the basics and reading a book that causes a child to really think. 

The two of us have enjoyed the songs in Tolkien more than anything and I have had so much fun with her as we went line by line and made an entire paragraph of story from three words in a song. I explained the hidden treasure in these words.



I recently read an explanation of Whitman's "A Child Said What Is Grass?" and as we sat on the quad I had her list every word she could think of that described the grass.

Green.
Long.
Soft.
Sticky.
Full of bugs. (By the way, she prefers the library to the quad any day, what a girl!)

So I went with sticky. "Why on earth would the grass be sticky?"

"Because it's wet?"

"Yeah! So, if the grass is wet, and you've already said it's green, what does that mean?"

"It's healthy."

"Exactly. So we could just say it's sticky and let the reader know it's green and healthy. If it wasn't, it would be crunchy, right?"


I took this conversation and ran with it, explaining Whitman's lines such as, "Or I guess it is the handkerchief of the Lord/ A scented gift and remembrancer designedly dropped/ Bearing the owner’s name someway in the corners/ that we may see and remark/ and say Whose," which took us into a conversation about the tradition of handkerchiefs.

Also, "Or I guess the grass is itself a child…the produced babe of the vegetation," versus "And now it seems to me the beautiful uncut hair of graves," which told us the earth could be described as young or old depending on the image.

I'm sure you can see the point I'm getting to here; our words can cause a child to think or not think. We have gotten lazy in our writing, it is much more difficult to find good vocabulary words in a children's book, and there is less to talk about. Kids are reading for entertainment, but there is no brain food there.

So, here's the writing challenge:

Choose an object, scene, or person and describe them without being direct. Use metaphors and similes that you have completely made up and haven't borrowed from other writers. Write for 15 minutes without stopping and then go back and cross out words that aren't necessary because of the descriptions you’ve created such as "sticky" instead of "green and healthy." Post your exercises below.

ABOUT THE BLOGGER

Courtney Warren is a writer for her local newspaper, as well as a graduate student at Hollins University where she is pursuing a degree in Children’s Literature. She has a bachelor’s degree from Delta State University, the home of the Fighting Okra (which she is incredibly proud of). She loves to read just about anything placed on the shelves but has a special place in her heart for the Harry Potter series.

When she is not writing about herself in third person, she loves to write stories about middle schoolers with spunky attitudes who intend to save the world, as well as drinking Earl Grey tea from a very prissy teacup.

Check out her blog, Tea, the Spirit, & a Pen.

Teen Interview: Bonnie J. Doerr (Part I)

Anna Sattler

Welcome back, Anna!
Anna has interviewed author Bonnie J. Doerr, who is the award-winning author of eco-mysteries, including Island Sting and Stakeout. Because Bonnie's responses are so much fun and comprehensive, we're dividing the interview into two parts. Here's PART 1:

·                     What inspired your books?

There are many young people with huge hearts who actively care about each other and the world in which they live. A growing number of teens are involved in environmental stewardship. We never hear enough about these kids. They are my real inspiration. 

For years I lived in the fragile Florida Keys where environmental issues are impossible to ignore. Throughout this chain of islands, there are countless reports of mysterious assaults on wildlife and habitat. For example, recently a loggerhead sea turtle was found floating with a pneumatic spear-gun arrow protruding from its head. Fortunately, it was rescued and survived. My own stories are shaped from such sad tales.

I create heroic teens who investigate and solve ecological crimes and write these sleuths into fun, fast-paced, contemporary novels.How these kids manage to secretly investigate crime, nab treacherous criminals, deal with personal family problems, and engage in a bit of romance all at the same time is beyond me. They experience some scary, serious danger, but they always pull it off.

·                    What sparked your interest in wildlife preservation?

My father lit my passion for all things wild—animal or vegetable.  He was a Boy Scout leader who took our family on adventures across theUnited States. When we weren’t on the road, we spent weekends and summers lakeside in the Pennsylvania mountains. I had no siblings near my age, so I roamed alone imagining friendships with other living things—natural beings that were rooted, winged, finned, two-legged, four-legged, or had no legs at all. (I wasn’t on the best of terms with every six or eight-legged critter.)

These trips to the mountains usually ended with little Bonnie being frisked for live contraband before the drive home to suburbia. More than once, Mom realized she’d forgotten the inspection. So she’d pull off the road in the countryside, little Bonnie would be busted, and tadpoles, newts, or an occasional baby snake would be returned to the wild. 

Nature is the supreme creation. If we destroy it, we destroy ourselves. How can we not champion its preservation?

·                     When did you begin writing?

There’s a great deal of preparation before words are committed to the page. I spent most of my life in preparation.

As a child, I created plots in my mind and acted them out. Didn’t we all? Most every playdate started with the words, “Pretend that you...” Proceeded with, “Pretend that I...” And then the fun began. There was a mystery to be solved. A bad guy to run from. A thief to catch. An animal to save.

When I was alone I manipulated miniature figures and assorted props to act out stories. After I went to bed at night, I often imagined I was engaged in some exciting drama. I often woke lying sideways at the wrong end of the mattress. This after sliding off blankets folded saddle style over the foot of the bed frame. Sometimes I still had my reins in hand. (Okay, they were belts I’d attached to the bedpost for a bridle.) Dang, it was hard to stay on that horse. It seems like I’ve been creating stories forever. 

But it wasn’t until I reached high school that I began writing. I reported feature stories for the school newspaper and wrote poetry—the perfect outlet for teenage angst. As for novel writing, that came much later. After I was long established in my career, about fourteen years ago, I finally reached a point where I could carve out time to seriously study the craft.

And study it, she did. Bonnie has received several awards for her work. Visit her at her blog, Bonnie Blogs Green, and her website for more information about her books and awards, and for lots of information about endangered species.

 Here's Bonnie holding one of her awards:

 

Bookmarks 2010

If you're in the Winston-Salem, NC, area this weekend, be sure to stop by their famous yearly book festival. Bookmarks 2010 features big-name authors and up-and-coming stars. On Saturday, September 11 from 10 am to 5 pm, you can see many of your favorite writers in person at ten different downtown venues.

For a brochure of the event, click here.

Here's a list of the authors who are speaking:

2010 BOOKMARKS FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

10:00 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.

Sixth Street Stage – Billy Collins
Young Readers Central – Tim Tingle
Red Room, Millennium Center Basement – Jade Teta and Keoni Teta
Speak Easy, Millennium Center Basement – Charlie Pierce
Food for Thought, Millennium Center Dock – Joan Nathan

10:30 am. – 11:15 a.m
.
Artworks – Trudier Harris
5ive and 40rty – Alexander Ewing
Urban Artware – Rachel Keener

11:00 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.

Young Readers Central – Carol Crane
Signature – Workshop with Carol Roan, “Speak Up: The Public Speaking Primer”
Red Room, Millennium Center Basement – Panel Discussion: Emerging Voices with Erica
Eisdorfer, Kathleen Grissom and Kim Wright
Blue Room - Millennium Center, Basement – Panel Discussion: The Art of Mystery with Bonnie
Doerr, John Hart and Erica Spindler

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.

Sixth Street Stage - Christopher McDougall
5ive and 40rty - Jack Riggs
Food for Thought, Millennium Center Dock – Lulu Powers

12 noon – 12:45 p.m.

Young Readers Central - Storytime (will only last approximately 20 minutes)
Artworks - Robert Leleux
Speak Easy, Millennium Center, Basement – Frank Deford
Blue Room, Millennium Center, Basement – Christopher Cardinale

12:30 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.

Young Readers Central - Melissa Conroy
Signature – Workshop with Anjail Rashida Ahmad, “The Essence of Poetry Writing: A
Workshop for Beginners”

1:00 p.m. – 1:45 p.m.

Sixth Street Stage – Diana Gabaldon
Artworks - Watts Wacker
5ive and 40rty - Patricia Phillips Marshall & Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll
Red Room, Millennium Center, Basement – Ursula Vernon
Blue Room, Millennium Center, Basement - Erica Spindler
Food for Thought, Millennium Dock – Aviva Goldfarb

1:30 p.m. – 2:15 p.m.

Young Readers Central- Irania Macias Patterson
Urban Artware - Emily Herring Wilson

2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.

Signature – Workshop with Judith Geary, “Publication Pathways 2010”
Speak Easy, Millennium Center, Basement – John Hart
Blue Room, Millennium Center, Basement - Kathy Patrick

2:30 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.

Sixth Street Stage – Patrick McDonnell
Young Readers Trade Street Stage- Linda Beatrice Brown
Artworks - Zee Edgell
Food for Thought, Millennium Dock – Fred Thompson

3:00 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.

5ive and 40rty - Wanda Urbanska
Urban Artware - Anna Fields

3:30 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.

Sixth Street Stage- Panel Discussion, Sense of Place: Diana Gabaldon, Rachel Keener and John
Kerr
Young Readers Central - Major Brian Dennis
Signature – Workshop with Andrew Leslie, “Finding Your Voice in Oral Literature: The Basics
of Storytelling”
Speak Easy, Millennium Center, Basement – Kenneth Posner

4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.

Artworks - Panel: Future of the Book and Publishing: Barry Miller, Carolyn Sakowski, Lee
Thompson and Myles Thompson
Red Room, Millennium Center, Basement – Getting Immigration Right with David Coates,
Hernando Ramírez-Santos, and Peter Siavelis

A Special Performance held by Choctaw Storyteller, Tim Tingle, will be held at the Center
for the Arts beginning at 4 p.m.


Programs will be held in the following venues:

Sixth Street Main Stage, Young Readers Central at the City Market Stands / Downtown School, 601 North Cherry Street; Artworks Gallery, 654 North Trade Street; 5ive and 40rty, 541 North Trade Street; Urban Artware, 207 West Sixth Street; Signature, 534 North Trade Street; the Red Room, the Speak Easy and the
Blue Room, the Millennium Center Basement, 101 West Fifth Street – Entrance is off of Trade
Street; Food for Thought, Millennium Center Dock – Entrance is at the back of the building.