Sep 05 2008
pride (the good kind)
One of my ongoing projects this summer has been coaching a student of mine through a novel revision. Josh is a young teen, about the same age I was when I wrote Theodore Pharris Saves the Universe (which my dad’s revision comments helped shape in a big way!). His novel is a lot of fun. Throughout the summer, I’ve chopped the manuscript up into chapters and commented on each section. I send each section back for him to revise, then comment again after he’s done so. I hope he’ll continue to work with the book on his own, making it stronger as he learns more about his craft.
This morning I put the first comments on the last chapter, as well as marking two new scenes which he sent me. These represent some of his latest work. (The novel was complete when he sent it to me, but since I began coaching him, he has rewritten the ending.) I can SEE the growth in his writing so clearly. I was so proud :). He’s worked really hard, and it shows. He’s learning how to listen to the rhythms in his writing and how to bring scenes to life. I work with students every semester on short papers (usually two to three pages), but you can’t see the progression of skill quite so well as you can with a novel.
In totally other news, today I got some really cool books in the mail that I’m supposed to review for HomeschoolingToday Magazine: three on C.S. Lewis/Prince Caspian, and one on writing historical fiction based on your own family history. I’ll let you know how they are :).
