To wait or not to wait:

I like how Boice meshes both waiting and beginning early for a complimentary process of writing, both of which I think work well and go together better than he seems to think they do (i.e., it seems like he feels they are frenemies, when indeed they seem like natural bed-fellows to me (additionally I am going on his foreplay metaphor)). Indeed, it was mentioned early in the circle (I forgot by who, sorry!) that writing is something that happens, for writers who are trained/dedicated, earlier than not in the process, and that doesn't mean simply putting pen to paper or finger to keyboard. Even in otherwise non-writing acts, like mowing the lawn or working out or, in my case, scrounging the internet for weird news stories, the act of writing still happens because it's a form of prewriting.

A probably famous person once said, on writing, that to be a writer it is the equivalent of having a dead, deformed baby following one around, whining its sad little deformed face off. You can't ignore it, and you can't forget it. I feel that's adequate as a description, that when we go to write - even we self-proclaimed binge writers - we are constantly doing it, even if we don't put a word on the page that day. It's in the back of one's mind. I really like how Boice has those ever-present note cards with him that he uses to jot down ideas. It reminds me of my own ever-present notebook that I use to jot things down. Usually it's only for creative works, but I think that, since writing envelops the individual in all forms, in all disciplines, comparing facets of daily life, like Sam the dog, can be an effective way to teach students how to write. It's actually one of my favorite methods. I like being able to speak to students on their level and I think it's ridiculously successful to approach writing on their terms and facilitating their understanding through jargon and examples that they can relate to and that they have a stake in. For the most part, students understand writing and how to write. They can recognize it pretty easily and rejoice in it. The trick is getting them to be able to mimic good writing until it becomes natural to them, though perhaps that is my own bias on the matter?