Don't be afraid of your image. Or maybe you should be.

The start of the school year brings about a lot of changes for me. I have much less time for blogging, vlogging, writing, critiquing, etc. That time gets taken up by grading, lesson planning, research, preparation, and helping my own child with his homework. Despite this, it can wind up being a remarkably insightful time for me as a writer. My interaction with students and faculty bring me lots of new ideas and concepts for stories, characters, and even life in general. This week had me realize something that I used to think was limited to just teenagers, but I believe that it impacts writers a lot as well: we compromise to protect a certain image.One of the most frustrating thing that a teacher experiences is when we know that a student is intelligent and capable, but they will not take advantage of their abilities. I see this a lot in my creative writing lessons because they are not part of a graded course, so students are less inclined to put forth the effort. I always have a few students that do not want to put the thought into an assignment or answer that they could. They are capable, but they are oftentimes concerned about their reputation. They are afraid that if they show that they can be thoughtful and creative that it might ruin their image of being a class clown or that others might think that they are a nerd. It has held back some great talent, and it is a frustrating trait that I thought might exist only in middle school. I was wrong.

Writers are often writers by hobby more than by profession. This creates a situation very similar to that of middle school students. You have a professional reputation to protect, and knowing that someone might connect your writing with your profession may force you to compromise some of your ideas or plans for your story. I have been guilty of this on many occasions. The question is, should it? In an ideal world, a writer should be able to express their ideas without their art impacting their professional image. Of course, I don't have to tell anyone that we do not live in an ideal world. I am not talking about extreme cases here. I am talking about language used in the writing or perhaps some character traits. So where do you draw the line? Where do you decide that you need to compromise your art in order to protect your professionalism? Should you even consider such a thing? My thoughts on this depend upon your profession. Some professions and employers don't care if you write a book with some foul language and some unsavory characters. There is little connection with your profession and your hobby. In that case, don't compromise if you can avoid it. Other professions have little separation. What you do at any time is seen as a reflection of you as a professional. When that is the case, it is time to compromise, and keep that in mind as you write.

I am certain that several people just said some of those words that I am would recommend avoiding in some people's writing. I'm sure that the word "sellout" is flashing through several people's minds. First of all, I am writing this for amateur authors, not professionals. If you are an amateur, you have to worry about keeping food on the table. Practicality has to rear its ugly head now and again. Secondly, compromising some of your ideas can lead to a better final product. If you force yourself to rethink your approach to your story, you will often come up with some ideas that you wouldn't have even considered before when you were hooked on your original idea. Being forced to compromise can be a bridge to new approaches and a better final product. Life isn't always fair, but that doesn't mean that it can't be fruitful!

Editors notes and critiques...they're all out to get me!

Everyone who likes to be criticized, shout it out! (crickets chirp) Everyone wants to feel that they are doing something right. Even the most self-deprecating individuals (and I count myself among them) hope that they can receive a little praise for their efforts. So, as a writer, writer-hopeful, student, etc., how should we deal with criticisms from people whose opinions we value? First, I want to paraphrase from a blog that I read recently at bbnest.wordpress.com: the most important thing in writing is your voice. You need to retain your individual approach to what you do. If you fail to do that, then you are no longer the writer. You are, in fact, the ventriloquist dummy. No one in their right mind signs up for that job. That having been said, I do believe that it is important to put your ego aside when dealing with appropriate criticism and critiques from people who have knowledge and experience on their side. While you want to always retain your voice, you still want to try to grow. There is no perfect author out there, so growth is always an option.

It was not long after I found out that Pup was going to get published when I received a message from the publisher that I would receive a copy of the manuscript with editors notes on it. I was incredibly nervous. I knew that there were places that the book could use improvements, but now I was going to find out what those improvements would need to be from a professional! I pictured ink factories going into overdrive to produce enough red ink for what I was going to see. I will also admit that even though I was anxious to improve my writing, a tiny voice in my head cried out in a shrill little voice that I shouldn't change anything. It's your book! Don't let someone tell you how to write it! It was kind of funny, really. The voice sounded like a whiny little child. In the end, I treated it as such. The editorial notes that I received were very useful and honest. They mentioned things that I had never noticed from my point of view while writing and revising. Once I read these notes, I could see things from a different perspective and realized that most of those things did indeed need to be changed. I was very thankful in the end for the insights provided and feel that my story improved because of it.

That brings me to the next necessity: getting opinions that you can trust. If you receive a critique from someone who is entirely negative, look for things mentioned that are actionable, then ignore the rest. Chances are that whoever wrote the critique or provided the notes was looking for problems. I am not saying that they are mean or cruel people. I am saying that they do not know how to write notes or a critique. Some people think that if someone asks them to critique their work, then they are supposed to find all of the problems. Not so. A good critique should not only point out things that are in need of work, but also point out the positive and strong aspects of the writing so that the author can exploit those strengths to correct the weaknesses. Of course, nothing but glowing praise teaches you nothing about your writing either. Remember this if ever you are called on to critique someone's work.

So, in summary, choose those that criticize your work wisely, keep your voice, but put your ego aside. Oh, and forgive the featured image. It was a dare.

Packaging matters!

There are lots of time in education when it almost feels like "us against them." Of course, the "them" varies with the situation. Always remind yourself as an educator that for every one challenge that you face, there are always a dozen silent supporters thankful for what you are doing for them, their children, or the community. Additionally, always try to see their point of view. You see things that they don't every day, but the opposite is true as well.

Unfortunately, social media and the media in general allow for a very vocal and public opposition to schools, policies, or even individual teachers. As a social studies teacher, I don't even see this as any real problem because the freedom of speech is only useful if there is a way for people to hear you. The problem occurs when these vocal critics are ill-informed or misinformed. It is very hard to win back a good reputation for a school or teacher if it has been tarnished, and it doesn't matter if that tarnish is caused by inaccurate information. So, is there a solution to this problem?

The honest answer is "Maybe." While I haven't had much opportunity yet to test this theory, I truly believe that many of these criticisms can be headed off with proper packaging of the school, its programs, and even individual teacher's classes. It is very easy to cut off unwarranted criticism of a school if you simply provide a link to a local news article detailing how the school is already working on that problem. Consistent releases of information about school events, interesting classroom projects, etc. can also provide great packaging for a school that you only see from the inside, while most others only see it from the outside.

Naturally, this means more work for some members of the faculty. With the constant addition of more and more responsibilities, no one wants to volunteer for more burdens. However, if educators aren't their own cheerleaders, who will be? News stories don't happen on their own. Find a couple of teachers willing to learn how to write press releases. Better yet, have some teachers learn how to write press releases and pass that knowledge on to students in a journalism club. Write stories, take pictures, and flood the local papers with them. Put information on the schools website often. Inundate social media with everything that you school is doing and doing well. You don't have to be able to do a backflip to be a cheerleader for teachers.

Criticism is how we learn, and any good teacher or administrator is willing to listen to criticism that will help them grow. However, criticism about things that have already been addressed or that suppose information is factual when it isn't can harm the reputation of everyone involved. Some good packaging for your school and classroom can not only prevent unwarranted difficulties, but create more pride in your school and class as well.

Feature image via highspotinc.com