You must read Ralph Fletcher.
If you fancy yourself a writer, then you really must read Ralph Fletcher. I only wish I’d read his work when I was a kid. Here are a few insights from this marvelous text:
- What is a writer’s notebook? It’s nota diary, where you record mundane daily occurrences. It rained today. I got up early because I didn’t do my homework last night. It’s not a journal where you write about your summer vacation or the feelings you have about a character in a book, because your teacher asked you to. A writer’s notebook gives you a place to write down all the things that surprise you, that make you wonder, that give you hope.
- Write in your notebook with honesty and courage about the things you fiercely wonder about.
- Use your notebook as an incubator, “a protective place to keep your infant ideas safe and warm, a place for it to grow while it is too young, too new, to survive on it’s own.”
- Write small, using your notebook to capture important details.
- Use your notebook to write down lists. What are your favorite words? New yesr’s wishes? What writing projects do you have planned? What are the deadlines for these projects?
- Write about your memories. What was your childhood bedroom like? Did you share it with your sibling? Were there fights? What did your daddy say when he caught you in a big fib. What’s the loudest laugh you’ve ever had?
- Write about your hurst. Are you sad about your parent’s divorce? Did a good friend let you down? Did your sister blab your secrets? Did she tell on you?
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A Writer’s Notebook: Unlocking the Writer within You
