Recently in writing Category

With every writing workshop, participants often ask, "How can we continue writing?" or they worry about going back to their routines where for them it is a struggle to carve out time to write.  Maybe you are in that same situation.

If you are, I am posting here a link to Laurie Halse Anderson's site:  "Write Fifteen Minutes a Day Challenge."  That's all--just fifteen minutes. Leslea Newman wrote in to Anderson's site and said she's going to use this challenge to write a poem every day for the month of August.  Andale!  

Here are some other writing tips that I have found helpful:  Macondista Beatriz Terrazas and I discussed how we like writing first thing in the morning.  Another Macondista, Joy Castro, does the same thing.  You wake up and have your writing journal, computer, paper right next to your bed or you immediately get to your writing space and take the first hour, two or three to write.  No interruptions--no excuses.  First thing.  As Beatriz says--"then you've got it out and you have the entire day ahead of you and you feel good.  You have success right away!"

I have been taking the morning to write and then the afternoon/evening to edit.  But everyone is different.  Some of you may not be morning writers.  You may be better equipped after the 9 or 10p.m. hour.  Well--do the same, just in reverse!  Orale.  

It's August 1st-- think positive!  Lots of great writing ahead.  This blog is dedicated to my fabulous Macondista writers!  I'm cheering you on Gabriela, Veronica, Laurie Ann, Anel, Barbara, Charles, Juan-Luis, Rene, y Pata!  And all of you writers out there who I do not know--I wish you good writing energies as well.

Pictured top from left to right:  Alesha Doan, Mako Fitts, Nicole Guidotti Hernández, Lori Baralt, Kathy Spillar (Ms. Executive Editor), Audrey Bilger, Irma McClaurin (Ms. Committee of Scholars), Elizabeth Kissling, Michel Cicero (Ms. Managing Editor), Amelia M.L. Montes. Pictured sitting row left to right: Pamela Redela, Marla Kohlman, Michele Kort (Ms. Senior Editor), Karina Eileraas, Jessica Stites (Ms. Asst. Managing Editor), María Ochoa.  

These are our Ms. Magazine Feminist Scholars who met in Los Angeles!  What an amazing group of women from universities and colleges across the country.  We spent this weekend together learning how to think differently about our research.  This is what I learned:

--As scholars, we need to have a more strategic approach toward accessing public readers

--Our goal is to advance public knowledge

--It's not about educating the public.  The public "is" smart.  It's about advancing knowledge vs. educating them

--Oftentimes our research, although important to scholarly audiences, is irrelevant to the general public

--Learning to write for both a scholarly audience and general public is the key 

--It is time to reclaim our positional power and reach everyone!  

And how do we do this? One of the key changes is--taking the step in actually contacting the expert/scholar to get the quote instead of searching archives for the journal article quotation --timeliness is the key in reaching readers via media outlets like Ms. Magazine, our blogs, the web, twitter. Our students are there already--we need to reach them!  And we will!  Thanks Ms. Magazine editors and to Irma McClaurin's work for this most wonderful opportunity in learning to connect with many more readers!  

Las Mujeres!  Mako Fitts, Amelia M.L. Montes, Nicole Guidotti Hernández (who just received tenure--Orale Nicole!)

Amelia M.L. Montes, Kathy Spillar (Ms. Executive Editor)

It's been a while since I've written more regularly.  My spring resolution is to stick with two entries a week, no matter how short--to keep connected to you.  Thanks as well to your lovely replies to my posts.  

Earlier this spring I was chosen as a Ms. Magazine Feminist Scholar.  What does this mean?  

Ms. Magazine launched this program because they see a need for feminist scholarship to reach a wider audience. Those of us who are in academia often find ourselves writing our articles and books which only end up being read by other academics.  This is a chance to translate our work to the mainstream public for the purpose of change!

I'm one of 24 Feminist Scholars chosen this year.  Over one hundred academics applied across the country. As one of the scholars, my charge is to write an article (and possibly more in the future) for Ms. Magazine.  For the past month, we've been meeting weekly via "webinars," learning all about the history of Ms. Magazine, how articles are queried (the query letters are called "pitches"), and the types of articles Ms. publishes.  They also (in the mail) sent us a number of past magazines so we could study and read the articles published in the last five years. In addition to learning all about magazine writing, it's been great getting to know the other feminist scholars through their research and their "pitches."  Topics include women judges and the struggles regarding judicial appointments, critiques regarding the film "Precious," how children's toy companies market products for girls such as The American Girl Doll, pesticides and the environment . . . 

I decided to connect my article to my present research on Latinas on the Great Plains/Midwest, specifically those working in the meatpacking industry.  Among the many Latina immigrants who are here, there are groups of Maya women who have formed community and have organized themselves to support and keep each other strong. These women challenge the stereotype that immigrants are helpless individuals who drain our resources and/or are more of a problem rather than a contributing member to our communities.  In actuality, "Immigrants pay more than $90 billion in taxes every year and receive only $5 billion in welfare.  Without their contributions to the public treasury, the economy would suffer enormous losses" (click here for quote citation and more information!).

On Friday, April 23rd, Arizona's Governor Jan Brewer signed legislation that requires all immigrants to carry their immigration papers at all times and also gives police/government authorities directives to search anyone who they may suspect is undocumented--racial profiling as law. The law also considers undocumented workers criminals (there is more).  

The United States has a very long (centuries long) history of fearing/hating immigrants (Irish, Italians, Jews, etc.). And when there is a recession, the immigrant becomes the scapegoat for the public's economic frustrations.  My article focuses on a specific immigrant group and how they are surviving despite these difficult and painful political events and societal misconceptions.  

In May, the Ms. Magazine Feminist Scholars will be gathering in Los Angeles to workshop their pieces. I'm sure by then, there will be more to add regarding what is happening in Arizona.