Cow Tipping Press Day 5

Today was our 5th and last class! How time flies! Today was free write which meant participants could write in any genre that was comfortable and enjoyable for them and the word of the day was "market". We talked about the many meanings of the word market especially the meaning of selling or advertising something.

We then read "How to Market to Me" by River Clegg.  The group found it kind of amusing, although at times a little confusing. We talked about how humor like poetry can be subjective, that there isn't necessarily good or bad humor, but that some pieces appeal to some people and others to others.

The writing prompt was to write a "How to Guide" or a humorous piece. We brainstormed ideas for how-to guides:

1) How to get where I am now
2) How to present yourself
3) How to be an Amy (the name of our teacher)
4) How to be as cute as me
5) How to sell items in a market

Shelagh wrote about a funny creature called a spider cat, part spider, part cat. Mary wrote about how to write stories, how to find different ideas, and the different types of writing one can do. Nathan described one of his favorite tv shows, a humorous game show. Mike described his fiance and the highs and lows of being in a relationship.

We next read "Here We Aren't So Quickly" by Jonathan Safran Foer which is a piece in which the author moves quickly through a lifetime in a few pages, but doesn't talk about huge moments, but rather the little moments. The group felt this was a somewhat difficult piece to comprehend because it jumped around and talked about what people were/weren't, did and didn't do. We talked about how this kind of writing can be complicated and uncomfortable because it is not linear. We also talked about what did the author mean when he said the father was "drowning in his own body", did it mean pneumonia, did it mean drowning in his own emotions? Sometimes like poetry it can be hard to know what someone is trying to say. I found this article on what this piece meant to someone and their interpretation of what it means.

The writing prompt was to try to tell one's life story with little moments. We brainstormed what some little moments might be like when someone was little and couldn't pronounce their brother's name, or when someone's brother bought a cockatoo.

Shelagh wrote a beautiful piece about some of the little moments in her life. Mike wrote about his life from childhood to getting engaged. Nathan wrote a story of a graduation night and some moments during this event. Mary wrote about different types of cars and what makes them great.

Amy decided to switch from reading an excerpt from "A Wrinkle in Time" to reading and listening to the lyrics of the song "You Were Born" by Cloud Cult. The group really loved the calming, gentle music and lyrics. We discussed how "born to chase the light" might mean following your dreams and that it seemed to be about loving one another and caring for your family. Our writing prompt was a big one-Writing about why we were born, what our purpose was. Nathan wrote about love and the origin of life. Shelagh wrote that her purpose was to smile and bring joy, to come up with unique names for things, and be as caring as possible. Mike wrote that he was born to be a write, a husband, a good brother, a son, and a good adoptive dad.

Next week, anyone who wants to can come to Hayden Heights Library at the same time and meeting room and I'll talk about MN Writes/Reads. On 3/29 we'll have our Author Reading party, same time and place.