Summer Institute: Day 2

...And, we're off!  Day 2, and we already participated in our first demonstration by one of the Fellows.  TT, a fifth grade teacher, did an EXCELLENT demonstration on the Dust Bowl.  We wrote lots of different ways and really enjoyed what she showed us.  I'm a little nervous about the demonstration, but luckily I'm going in a couple of weeks, so I get to really work on it before presenting!

The day began with the Reading of the Log.  Tomorrow will be my turn, so I've been taking notes and watching all day.  H read the log, and it was all very entertaining.  I think we're going to start egging each other on to write funny logs and really come up with clever ways to deliver them.  I plan to post mine for tomorrow on NWP e-Anthology, a site for Fellows to share their Summer Institute experiences.  H prompted us to write about a food experience, and I shared the most recent memory: making a delicious lemon cake for A's going-away potluck.

After the Log, CG gave us a pep-talk/lecture about professional writing.  He encouraged us to seek ways to get published--and I really want to work toward that goal.  I've got several pieces started, and the one piece that I'm working on with my adviser, so hopefully this year I can begin submitting articles to various journals.

We had a nice session of SSW: Silent Sustained Writing.  I like that they give us lots of time to write; it also gives me some time to work on the writing for the projects that I have going.

I tinkered around with my "Kitchen" piece a lot the first night, so I shared it during Author's Chair time, the last block in the schedule for Fellows to share something they've been working on.  It's interesting and scary and exciting to read stuff to my fellow participants, but I'm glad for the opportunity.

The days go by so quick, and I just feel my head filling with ideas and the itch to write again.  It's amazing how writing makes you want to write more...