Writing is considered a sacred act and the writer a sacred cultural figure. People use objects when trying to access this desired identity. How a person approaches and uses an object is intimately connected to family, sense of self, writing history, relation to peers, media connections, social awareness, and life story. Hence, turning to objects…

This action research study used narrative analysis to explore the role of the body in the writing process of creative writers. Specifically, the purpose of this action research study was threefold: it was first to examine how professional creative writers describe their writing process with particular attention to their perceptions of the role and…

Donald Graves's early professional books inspired Koshewa to look more deeply into student writing during the 1980s, and to value all phases of the writing process. Graves's perspective on uncovering and celebrating voice elevated Koshewa's writing instruction to a new plane. In this article, he writes about the impact that Donald Graves's work…

Painters, musicians, and writers--among others--often begin as novices by modeling the practices of their best teachers or favorite masters. The purpose of this article is to suggest that the habits of working, published writers can serve students as informal models for how processes happen behind the scene of public work. Students can examine…

Describes how to use students' journal writing as the basis for their own short stories. Includes developing story subjects by brainstorming and questioning, the basic elements of writing, the final product, and examples. (LRW)

Describes how the writer, an author of books for young adults, uses journal writing in many and varied ways: to deal with grief and confusion; capture his fascination with life; for free writing; keep quotes from people he admires; save things his friends say; keep wonderful passages from other books--a personal safe to keep precious things. (SR)

With the constant theme of the mysterious process of creativity running through its essays, this book discusses the work of some much admired 20th-century writers--Graham Greene, James Joyce, D.H. Lawrence, Henry Green, Kingsley Amis, Vladimir Nabokov, and Anthony Burgess. The book addresses the situation of the contemporary novelist, both…

This essay considers the many benefits of journal writing. It explains how one person learned, during a 26-mile commute, to talk into a tape recorder slowly, leaving sizable pauses between phrases to facilitate transcription later on; how journal writing is a way to catch moments in the day, to describe a scene or to make connections that one…

Working reflectively with the whole self entails harnessing artistic talents alongside other talents. If practice itself is an art, then reflection upon it is also an artistic process (Bleakley 1999; Winter et al. 1999). Expressive and explorative writing relies on habitual communicating medium, words, gives validity, form and coherence over time…

Originally developed as part of a project for the Department of Defense Schools (DoDDS) system, this learning package on expressive writing is designed for teachers who wish to upgrade or expand their teaching skills on their own. The package includes an overview of the project; a comprehensive search of the ERIC database; a lecture giving an…

This book presents a range of activities for writing instruction that develop different composing skills, attend to the social processes of reading and writing, involve the peer group in evaluating and responding to drafts, focus on different types and formats of writing, and stimulate these activities through diverse techniques and methods. The…