A Brave Writer's Life in Brief

In 9th grade, I earned the role of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz in our high school musical. That role spurred me to become a nut about musical theater. I watched musicals, acted in them, listened to their soundtracks endlessly. I remember standing on top of our stereo console, where I could see our huge gilded full length mirror above the fireplace, belting out show tunes with my hair brush as microphone.

Even more than singing, though, I loved the stories told through musical numbers. There’s the poetry of the lyrics, the narrative, the playful way that songs create new dynamics between characters and so on. I had the good fortune of growing up outside of Los Angeles, so my mother (who was a theater major in college) took me to plays and musicals from the time I was two years old until I was old enough to take myself. Starting at 16, I went to the theater district in LA and saw A Chorus Line, The Wiz (twice!), and Pippin while in high school.

Musical theater has always signified for me a joyful treat.

I wondered if my kids, growing up as homeschoolers, were likely to discover musical theater for themselves. We had less money, less opportunity to get to the big theaters where touring companies would come. I figured they would possibly see a musical at the local high school at some point and that would be it until adulthood. I purchased Into the Woods and Sunday in the Park with George as videos to expose the kids to what I considered great shows. Then something happened on the way to high school… The kids caught the bug through a little show called Wicked.

I don’t know who told them about Wicked. What happened, though, is that a voracious appetite for musical theater was unleashed in our home and every day now, I’m pelted with show tunes coming through iPod speakers or the nearest computer’s iTunes. Caitrin can’t do math without singing “No One Mourns the Wicked” or “Seasons of Love” from Rent.

Jacob has two huge Disney posters on his walls to commemorate his passion for all music Disney, Tim Rice and Alan Menken. So far, the kids have seen live shows of Beauty and the Beast (twice), Lion King, Wicked, Little Women, Wind in the Willows, and 42nd Street. I took Johannah to see Les Miserables for her 16th birthday.

Reasons to jump on the musical theater bandwagon:

• The lyrics tell a story.
• The productions are live (though watching a recording is fun too!)
• The story lines are usually exceptionally compelling.
• The music is catchy and singable.
• Actors are multi-talented.
• Set design and transformation is magical.
• The orchestra!
• You enjoy the experience as a group.
• Cultural literacy is enhanced.

If you haven’t taken the plunge to spend the money and energy to check out musical theater, I urge you to do so! If you live in a remote location, you can watch them online. See how your kids like them. Then figure out a way to get to a live performance. You’ll be glad you did.

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I get emails that ask me about whether or not to purchase The Writer’s Jungle when the mom is not yet homeschooling. Recently on the Scratch Pad, I got the opportunity to answer in full. I thought I’d post that conversation here for those of you wondering. (Short version: save purchasing the WJ until your oldest child is 6-7 at the earliest).

From Pam, mother of a delightful three year old girl.

Pam: I have been salivating over this writing program for over a year now.

Julie: Aren’t you sweet, Pam!?

Pam: The problem is, my oldest child is only about to turn three-years-old in June! Yes, horrible, I know.

Julie: So you do know that you have a few years to go. Excellent.

Pam: But as I am looking ahead to budgeting for homeschool each year and starting off on the right foot with writing, when should I plan on purchasing and beginning to implement the Brave Writer lifestyle in our home?

Julie: Here’s my sage advice for all moms who will eventually homeschool but have the impulse to hurry the whole thing up.

Go do something you love in the meantime! Get a hobby! Take up knitting! Don’t make the mistake of “preparing for homeschool” during these precious years because you will be sooooo tempted to start them too early. You won’t be able to help yourself! All of it is so exciting and new and compelling.

Never fear. I have a suggestion to help you.

Take up writing, for yourself. It’s clear that you are hungry for stimulation (especially as it concerns your mind and future vision for how to best help your kids in their educations). So instead of reading about how to teach them to write, discover it for yourself. The more you find yourself developing your own patterns and process for writing, the better able you’ll be to sympathize and create the context for rich language development and word play necessary to the writing lifestyle.

And since I know you’ll ask, here’s a list of some terrific books to get you started:

My favorite first: Bird by Bird (Anne Lamott) I need to include the caveat that she uses cuss words in her writing, including the notorious “f” word. If that doesn’t bother you, she is hilariously funny and one of the best writing instructors by book ever.

Writing with Power by Peter Elbow is a hands down classic.

On Writing Well by William Zinsser is also considered a classic. I liked the first half best.

The Right to Write by Julia Cameron is popular today (she’s the one who started the series called The Artist’s Way). It isn’t my favorite, but it is serviceable. She spends too much time comparing her natural surroundings to her process for my taste, but I think she understands what it is to write as an adult.

Natalie Goldberg is a poet who has written a fabulous book called Writing Down the Bones. She has a Buddhist/Jewish outlook. Yeah, I know – wild! But her writing is magic, the way a poet’s often is.

So pick these up at your local library, save your money, and play!!! Play with words, write, write, write.

Meanwhile, with your three year old, promise me you’ll do the following:

• Make play-doh from scratch
• Splash water all over the kitchen floor while measuring it from cups to bowls.
• Read aloud from library books every day before nap time.
• Tickle your little one’s tummy any time you can.
• Take walks at the local park or nature center and hold her hand and then swing her around in a big circle.
• Sing songs to her until she sings them back (lullabyes are just critical at this stage – find some good ones and sing them most nights – they never forget).
• Snuggle on the couch while watching TV.

In other words: don’t miss this incredibly liberating phase where your biggest job is to make this little person, this adorable little girl-person love being in your presence 24/7. That’s you only job! So enjoy it.

Pam: Obviously we would start with handwriting practice which would evolve into copywork, but there are other aspects of the program (from reading the table of contents and looking at the Brave Writer lifestyle information) that could be implemented from very early on, right?

Julie: True, but so what? Seriously. Wait. I think you’ll be happier long term. And you know what? By the time your child is 6-7, I’ll probably have revised it again anyway.

Pam: So, should I make the purchase and begin reading and studying — when she is three, four, five, six or wait until later?

Julie: Wait! Do all this other stuff. And keep reading the blog for ideas, for teatime inspiration, for games and word play, for philosophical orientation so that you’ll be grounded and trust your motherly instincts.

Then in the meantime, carve out personal time (get that husband to help you get out of the house alone) and do your own writing. Become a writer! That is the best advice I can give you.

Go for it! You’re such a good mom, I can tell.