TEN GUIDEPOSTS TO A GOOD WRITING INSTRUCTOR
“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”
- William Butler Yeats
Choosing a writing instructor is a big decision. Here are some guidelines and suggestions that may help you in making your decision.
1) Is the instructor qualified? Does he have what you’re seeking? One can’t teach what one doesn’t possess. Has he accomplished himself in the area that you’re seeking instruction? Don’t confuse a writing instructor with an English major. It’s one thing to quote Joyce, and another to identify with, support, and offer guidance through experience to the daily struggle of the serious working writer.
2) Is she kind? Honesty without kindness is cruelty. Of course we want our creative teachers to be straight with us, but if they can’t do it without positive reinforcement, they ought not to be teaching. Period.
3) Watch out for gurus and authorities: This is common in creative instruction. Insecure teachers often overcompensate by espousing rules and demanding that your work be done a certain way. When our creative work is judged by someone who insists on having all the answers…Run, don’t walk for the exit! One size does not fit all. There are no answers. Any instructor who confuses principles with rules is a hack.
4) Is the class tone chaotic? Rigid? Are the other students supportive, encouraging and friendly, or are they competitive and distancing? Part of the instructor’s job is to set the tone for the class. If the tone isn’t inclusive, it’s difficult to do your best work. (Some MFA programs will disagree with this assessment, as if the writer must be broken in order to triumph. That’s bullshit. Writing instruction need not be a Darwinian nightmare.)
5) Punctuality: When the instructor shows up late, it’s a bad sign. He doesn’t respect himself, and he doesn’t respect you.
6) Curiosity: There are many fundamentals to be learned, but there are no rules. If your instructor does not display an unbridled curiosity for what you’re attempting to express, she is not serving your needs.
7) Respect: An instructor’s single most important job is to teach you to trust your instincts. Our stories live fully and completely within us. When a teacher treats you with basic respect, it has a powerful effect on allowing your creative self to emerge. When a teacher is rude or dismissive, it can kill the creative channel. Along with this, your job is to discover and celebrate your voice. A teacher who encourages you to mimic the writing of another is disrespectful, and sadly all too common.
8 ) Boundaries: If you choose to leave the class, the instructor does not bully or hound you to stay. She smiles, gives you a hug and says, “Keep writing. I’m here for you if you choose to return.” Writing class is a service, not a cult.
9) Maturity: Your instructor is a grownup. He can take care of himself. In creative workshops the developing artist is going to run the gamut of emotions. It can be scary and even messy at times. The instructor is there to guide, nurture, encourage, support and cheerlead. Not the other way around! It is in the job description that the instructor do everything he or she can do to help the writer to find his voice.
Because when we truly find our voice, an instructor is someone who can…
10) …Say goodbye and send you on your way: A good instructor’s job is to make himself obsolete. You are not supposed to stay in class forever. You are supposed to find your voice and share it with the world…and if you so choose, to guide and mentor those that come after you.
A writing instructor is just that…one who instructs. She claims credit for nothing. Your work is your own. It belongs to you. Her only job is help you to become most fully the artist you were meant to be. Good luck with your search.
Until next month,
Al