I admired what my students were writing, but I think their improvement doesn't directly result from me but from being in a class, being with each other.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I was a better writer when I was teaching. I was constantly going over the basics and constantly reminding myself, as I reminded my students, what made a good story, a good poem.
If I had been a good student and an achiever, I might have been excited by a more systematic approach to writing than what I do.
I always talk to my students about the need to write for the joy of writing. I try to sort of disaggregate the acclaim from the act of writing.
My writing improved the more I wrote - and the more I read good writing, from Shakespeare on down.
For all its ups and downs and challenges, I love writing. We only grow through adversity, so I welcome the difficulties, knowing bumps in the road are my greatest teachers.
Writing is good, thinking is better. Cleverness is good, patience is better.
Teaching does allow me to keep one foot in the youthful waters I tend to occupy in my novels, so I'm thankful for that. My students also remind me on a daily basis that the stories I collected during my district attorney days are actually interesting to people who haven't had that experience.
Over the years, my students influenced me greatly, and I've learned many lessons from them. I have an immense amount of respect for them, and I think that respect for your audience is the foremost requirement for anyone who wants to write.
I feel that is more important than my work, the influence I have on my students.
I had been encouraged a lot by my parents and my sixth grade teacher, James Doyle at Main Street Elementary School. He was an early supporter of my writing ability.
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