WRITER WONDERLAND
  • Blog
  • Romance Rocks
  • Goddess Fish Tour
  • About

Lessons from Substitute Teaching

10/10/2013

5 Comments

 
Picture
Writing Lessons Learned from Subbing


   Not all writers are wildly successful and raking in millions. Many are like me at the beginning of their author journey plugging every cent they make into book tours, swag and books for giveaways. In fact, I need more money finance my career.  With that in mind, I substitute teach. After a particularly grueling day, I tell myself I made enough for a book tour.



   Still, subbing was taking me away from writing. I needed to make better use of time. I decided to learn from the experience. Here are a few things I did learn.


  •  That bossy diva chick who gets on your last nerve started early.  I met several in primary school, kindergarten, and even pre-school. (It made me think of flashbacks I could do of the heroine and the diva character in their early years to establish the relationship.)
  •  Personalities form early. I watched in pre-school class, a dedicated future engineer rebuild a block home that another student kept knocking down. That other student will be a demolition expert or just annoying.  (This would be another great flashback scene.)
  • There is a truckload of new names for me to use for my characters. I took the unusual name of Caulb from a second grader for a pivotal character.
  •  Laughter isn’t always hurtful; sometimes it can be a rainbow after the storm.  I worked with one somber disabled child who never smiled until I started pushing him in a swing and he laughed. (It showed that something rare has more impact.)
  •  Mean girls start early. I observed one kindergarten girl mock her classmate until she was in tears. (I could work this into a story in a dozen ways.)
  •   Some children will love you for no more reason than you smiled at them or praised them. (This allows me to shape the children in the story too.)
  •  Others will fear you because you are an unknown quantity. (An unknown character could be a threat until proven otherwise.)
  •  Teachers come in a variety of flavors. There are the ones who write lesson plans that detail every minute then there are the ones who leave no lesson plans. (When writing about secondary characters, especially teachers, it is always a disservice to adhere to stereotypes.)
  •  Disorganization makes life hard on everyone. My job was to assist one teacher who didn’t have any of her materials ready for class. She was irritable due to not being ready and barked at the children in response. (This encouraged me to clean out my file cabinet to be a more organized writer.)
  •  Going to schools I have no clue as to their location and what I will be doing that day allows me to understand the challenges my characters face as they trod unfamiliar settings.
  •  Attitude is everything. I am not just talking about the kids here.  I walked into a room late when an assistant was trying to calm a class down. Her attitude was she didn’t expect the students to listen to her. It took a while to dial them down. (This also shows me how a situation can easily get out of hand fast.)
  •  As a sub, sometimes I don’t have anything to do because a teacher has a planning period. The best place to go when you don’t have anything to do is the library. The librarian always needs help and it helps me catch up on my children’s literature.


     By subbing, I discover a variety of people to use for characters from the positive principal who motivates students and teachers with praise to the pint-sized diva who puts her hands on her hips and instructs the boys how it is going to be.  If you’re wondering, they followed her instructions without a protest.

    Any situation can be used for writing purposes. It is one of the few professions were eavesdropping can qualify as research. Today, I write, but tomorrow I may be trying to memorize a conversation between two teens as they casually gossip in front of the sub.


5 Comments
CathyShouse
10/9/2013 11:41:47 pm

This was very insightful. Thanks!

Reply
Morgan K Wyatt
10/10/2013 05:32:12 am

Thanks. I know only know the ABC song, but I am learning signing too.

Reply
Angela Adams link
10/10/2013 04:14:55 am

I always learn something from reading your posts!

Reply
Morgan K Wyatt
10/10/2013 05:32:57 am

Hi Angela,
I suspect you know most of the songs. :)

Reply
Beth link
10/11/2013 06:54:57 am

Great message. My son is student teaching right now and I recognize some of those characters you mention. As you say, it's great fodder for stories. BTW, he had a second grade student named Perpetua. I Googled it - apparently a saint.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    ​

    Picture

    Only .99 Pre-order

    Christmas Cozies

    BOOK THREE

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    July 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    September 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    June 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    July 2012

    Categories

    All
    Abraham Menard
    Atty Eve
    Bitten By Romance
    Cathy Maxwell
    Celebrate Freedom Blog Hop
    David Caruso
    Dorien Kelley
    Emergency Call Series
    Emergency Calls Series
    Free Book Sites
    Fun Summer Reads
    Harry Potter
    Historical Romance Blog Hop
    Historical Trivia
    Incognito
    Interracial Romance
    Joan Stewart
    Johnny Depp
    J.R.R. Tolkien
    LaNora Mangano
    Lindsay Downs
    Marcus Aronson Interview
    Mature Romance
    Michael A. Rothman
    Perfect Stranger
    PJ Fiala
    Prizes
    Realistic Characters
    Reciprocity
    Scarlett O'Hara
    Secret Cravings
    S.E. Hinton
    Street Team
    Sylvia Hubbard
    Teresa Gallagher
    The Fault Is In Our Stars
    The Hunger Games

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.