Mentored Writing

We live in a strange new world where the concept of mentor belongs only in Vogler's book or in the body and spirit of Obi Wan. It's part mystery, part mystical, and we don't tend to ask many questions regarding its place in our lives. Why would we? It's only in books, yes?

But the idea of apprenticeship has been around a long, long time -- and even today there are fields of work where one becomes an understudy or an apprentice or an intern. My father, who is a union electrician, had to be an apprentice for five years in order to earn the title journeyman.

Growth is dependent upon many variables: attitude, awareness, motivation, and, most importantly, exposure to excellence. After all, the great Vince Lombardi once said that practice doesn't make perfect -- only "perfect practice makes perfect." Unless we study, mimic, practice, fail, try again, all on repeat, we never learn to walk. Why would writing be any different?

Acquiring a Mentor: I'm probably preaching to the choir here, but I whole-heartedly believe that mentorship is a vital part of becoming a better writer. It's important to find someone who is more skilled or experienced since the entire point is growth. (Caveat: Choosing someone who is leaps and bounds ahead of you will only frustrate you. Just as a beginning chess player wouldn't sit down to a match with Bobby Fischer, I wouldn't sit down with Lois McMaster Bujold. I'd probably just quiver uncontrollably as synapses starting shorting.) The paths to finding a mentor are many and varied, and I don't think there is only one way. Below are but a few options.

• Select authors you admire and study their work.
• Get recommendations from other writers, editors, and agents regarding books on writing.
• Involve yourself with an on-line writing community and immerse yourself in the dialogue.
• Join or start a f2f writing group: "as iron sharpens iron"
• Peruse the blog/website of an author who's just been published; they're often willing to share what they've experienced on their own journey.

Becoming a Mentor: (It's a two-way street, baby.) This is probably the less accepted half of the whole mentorship cookie, but I endorse it passionately. It's a widely held belief in the education world that you don't truly learn something until you've had to explain it to someone else. Even more than that, however, I believe that within the act of mentoring lies a world of opportunity for everyone involved. Not only are you putting karma chips in your karma piggy bank, but you are learning and growing and developing through the process as well. I know it sounds paradoxical, but it's true. As you mentor, your own ideas, thoughts, and beliefs begin to solidify in a way that defies comprehension. You discover examples that stand as evidence to your knowledge and experience and journey. You also discover your weaknesses and areas of murky understanding. It's powerful.

Mentoring starts most often with friendship. And you don't announce that you're the mentor or that you're looking for someone to mentor. That's arrogant and cheesy. Often someone will seek you out. That's what happened in the teaching field for me.

• On-line social networking: within the same network where you found your mentor, it's like that you can find someone looking for a mentor.
• On-line and Face-to-Face writing groups: there are undoubtedly varying degrees of experience and skill within your own writing group.
• Blogs: it's easy to find aspiring writers and their blogs. Um. Hello. Did anyone find me yet?

I'm sure there are many more ways that mentors or mentees can be found. Any ideas?

To give credit where credit is due, I came across this concept of having and becoming a mentor in my devotions years ago. For those of you familiar with the New Testament, the idea was to find a Paul and a Timothy. The idea stuck with me because it's a powerful one, one that can and should be applied to many areas of our lives. For example, I have certainly chosen a mentor and have chosen to mentor within the education world. It's only made me a better teacher.

What is your experience? Do you have a mentor? Do you mentor others?

Bloggers: Be Well-Read; Enter the Dialogue

My favorite college professor would tell us, "Writing an literary analysis paper is, in essence, entering the existing dialogue on the topic. Pretend you're having some friends over for dinner. Just as you would listen to the various points of view sitting around your dining room table, and just as you would agree or dispute or at least consider, so do you need to read the published opinions of the subject you're analyzing. Respond to those in some fashion, and then -- most importantly -- add something. Don't just sit there, nodding your head."

Her advice has stuck with me through all these years: Be well-read; Enter the dialogue. It's occurred to me that this advice applies not only to writing literary analysis essays but also to many other writing endeavors, not the least of which is blogging.

Enter the Dialogue of the Blogosphere:

1. No man is an island: I'm sure Donne will excuse my usurpation since these words ring true in the blogging world as well. Find or create a community; seek out like-minded writers and read their blogs; leave comments. Link back to posts you agree with or disagree with or find interesting.

2. Build community: If you're a lurker -- one who reads blogs but leaves no comments -- now's the time to change. Leaving a comment, even if it's just one that says Hey, I was here, I read your post, I liked it allows others to 1) realize you exist, 2) appreciate your presence, and 3) follow you back to your own blog to read your posts. Make sure that your account is set to public and provides a link to your blog. Otherwise, no one can find you.

3. Enter the dialogue: The final part of the equation is making sure that you add to the dialogue. Create posts that enhance what has already been said by going deeper into a subject or by extending the subject wider. Or provide an alternate point of view. Or disagree entirely. But somehow comment on what's been said already (making sure to link to those bloggers' posts), then add to the conversation in some fashion.

Which brings me to your blogs: I gain so much from reading your thoughts. From musings, mis-adventures, and mini-articles to victories, vices, and vanities, they all settle into my being, marinate, and filter through my subconscious in a half dozen delightful ways. Without that vital food for thought, where would I be? No doubt, stuck in the vast ocean and paddling with only one oar.

So how do you connect? In what ways do you enter the dialogue? There are so many blogs to read: how do you find the time to read, leave a comment, and then respond in some fashion?

Three Reasons Following Makes Sense

At the risk of sounding like I have a blog-crush on Anthony Pacheco, Hack Writer, I need to point to him once more as the awesome king of know-everything. Dipped in awesomesauce, even. Yeah, I know, kinda weird. But hear me out.

I was initially hesitant to put up a "Follow This Blog" sign. I felt it pretentious and weird -- and it made me feel awfully vulnerable. I mean, what if no one followed me? Yikes! But even beyond that, I always felt a little odd following someone else's blog. I felt like I was committing to a life-long relationship, and that just didn't sit right. But I ended up hanging out the sign, and Anthony's comments on that announcement set me to thinking.

Following Blogs Improves Your Readership and Your Brand Name:

1. When your picture is on someone else's blog, it's likely others will click on it. In retrospect, I realized that I often click on the pictures I see on someone else's blog. That's how I found some of you.

2. If someone doesn't have you listed on their blogroll, this is an easy way to circumvent the fact that they overlooked you. Ah yes. I have realized that I don't update my blogroll as often as I should. There are some of you that I read regularly -- but I've just forgotten to add you. Don't take it personally: just follow the blog, and your pic will be up for everyone to see.

3. Following like-minded writerly folks keeps the pressure on to continue producing high quality posts. Your name is your brand name (I learned this at the PNWA conference this summer), and it's your job to make sure others associate it with writing. We're all in this together, and this community helps keep focus, motivation, and encouragement at the forefront.

So, anyway, that's what I think. Even if you choose not to follow this blog, consider following others you read. Sometimes it feels like we're passing ships in the night, and unfortunately I've forgotten more good blogs than I've followed or added to blogroll. And if you haven't already, add this feature to your own blog. I'd love to follow you!

Note: even if you don't have a Blogger account, you can still use your Google Profile to follow others. In fact, it's a pretty good idea to have that profile updated with your current information so that people can find your blog, regardless of whether you use Wordpress or Blogspot or whatever.

Five Tips for Unlocking Writer's Block

Every writer knows the feeling. You've put it in four-wheel drive, and your tires are still spinning. Mud flips through the air, coating your windshield, and oozes down your side mirror. You groan. It didn't look that deep. or that muddy. or that messy. But here you are -- out of cell range, close to midnight, all alone. What do you do?

1. Read the hilarious but empathetic chapter on writer's block in Anne Lamott's must-have book Bird by Bird. She begins with: There are few experiences as depressing as that anxious barren state known as writer's block, where you sit staring at your blank page like a cadaver, feeling your mind congeal, feeling your talent run down your leg and into your sock. At least you don't feel quite so alone.

2. Go for a walk. This sounds asinine, and it might not work for you. But I've found that extra oxygen to the brain can work wonders. I have a five-mile loop, myself, and by the time I've finished, I'm ready to roll. I don't always remember every brilliant line or detail that I cleverly crafted, but I've had the chance to reassure myself that I haven't lost it, this precious golem I keep on a string.

3. Listen to a podcast. Not any podcast, of course, but one that inspires the writer in you. My favorite are from Odyssey: the Fantasy Writing Workshop. (If you have money, time, and writing talent, apply for their 6-week writing workshop. It looks phenomenal.) They have such writing greats as Patricia A. McKillip, Rodman Philbrick, and Jeff VanderMeer doing their guest lecturing, as well as editors like Gardner Dozois.

4. If you're really stuck, consider taking a true breather and pick up Christopher Vogel's The Writer's Journey. When you need to hit reset, take time out and re-evaluate, step back and look at the big picture, this book can help remind you of the epic structures of storytelling. This doesn't mean you're betraying your craft or concocting a cookie-cutter novel. It just means that you acknowledge a greater theme that ties humanity together and you're interested in universal truths.

5. Slog through it. Sometimes the only way to conquer Writer's Block is to bulldoze your way through it. Keep typing. Keep writing. Keep your fingers moving. Force yourself to sit there and slog your way through it. Yes, it's painful. Yes, it's dirty. And, yes, you'll end up deleting most of it later on down the line. But, sometimes, it's the only way.

Sometimes you are the only one who can rescue you. You have to get out the shovel and the sandbags, and dig your way out, sprinkling down a layer of traction as you go. You'll be sweaty and muddy, but oh so exultant when your tires finally wrench free. Go forth and conquer.