Taught a good lesson today in Moscow, again with the emphasis on concrete things, actual specific objects you can hold in your hands or throw. After a few warmup exercises, I asked my students to describe a vivid memory in your life (maybe an early one), focusing on the objects in it more than the meaning or significance of it. At the end, ponder WHY you remember it. Doesnt need to be dramatic. After theyd worked for about five minutes, I told them to make sure the memory STARTED with the object as quickly as possible. So shouldnt have written, I remember the feeling of . . . or I remember the day when . . . or even I remember sitting . . . I was looking for memories that began with I remember the dog bed Queenie slept on before she died . . . Everyone loved their revisions! And for once there was a specific objective for their second draft: start with something you can touch! The boy who wrote about the death of Queenie began to cry as he read what hed written, and the room was filled with a stunned and silent awe.
Posted on: Tue, 06 May 2014 16:06:35 +0000
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