One recent evening I had the opportunity to listen as a panel of college writing professors discussed various aspects of their job – from generating interest in writing to grading to syllabus creation.
The panel spent several minutes discussing the question of where to focus beginning writers – on quantity or quality. One of the panelists stated without opposition that the focus for beginning writers must be on process and production over, but not to the exclusion of, revision.

The beginning writer should not be concerned with finding a high concept (a “great idea”) and executing it, or achieving perfection by the end of the semester on a ten-page short story or a set of three poems. Make either of these a focus – or allow the student to – and then he or she will not gain the foundation for craft but will instead develop the false concept that writing a story or poem or essay is simply another problem to be solved (like solving an algebraic equation or calculating molecular weight).
One teacher wisely has students write in volume – as much as 40,000 words over a two-semester freshman year seminar (FYS). This accomplishes two things. First, the student is a better writer at the end of that year than they were at the start. Indeed, this is inevitable for anyone who writes so many words in a year. Second, their relationship to writing is changed. It is no longer intimidating to stare at a blank page. Any mental blocks that suggest to the student that they are not a writer or that they lack “material” are eliminated. Essentially, this quantity-based approach makes a writer of the student, a collegiate who sees the value of writing as a cross-disciplinary skill.
Revision of a single piece remains important and is not to be abandoned. Revision allows the student to apply instruction, especially comments written on their paper by a professor.
Part of this mass of writing should be spent in a revision or two of a couple of pieces. However, most of the writing should be either in response to reading (a perfect alternative to the quiz) or in discovery writing – writing not to produce a fully faceted piece but to understand better some idea or observation.
By design this writing is done every day, or at least three times a week. This creates an opportunity for the beginning writer to see how scheduled and disciplined work acts as an engine for productivity.

Inside or outside the classroom everyone in the writing world sees it as fact – writing as often and as much as you can is the sole route to successful practice of the craft. Quantity is the sole route to quality*.

*If you end up talking with someone that doesn’t agree on this point, you can presume they don’t write on a regular basis, if at all. They are either a reader or a weekend writer – their writing is a hobby. Ask them how often they write, ask them about their process. This will clear it up.

This semester I am taking a course on Teaching Creative Writing. We are gaining instruction on and practicing teaching an imagined freshman Intro to Creative Writing course. We role play being college freshmen for each other as we take turns leading the “class”.
In October I will be teaching one piece of literature of my choice, and I’ll be leading one workshop of a freshman student’s writing (that piece is being provided).
Which piece of literature – short story, essay, or poem – to teach to the class?
By way of this blog post, I am opening the field to suggestions.

I have several collections of short stories/essays/poetry from which I am considering a piece (all of which, btw, I would suggest you read):
Wampeters, Foma & Granfalloons – Kurt Vonnegut
Horoscopes for the Dead – Billy Collins
Kentucky Straight – Chris Offutt
If I Loved You, I would Tell You This – Robin Black
The Bridegroom – Ha Jin

In the Vonnegut collection is a piece called “Address to the Graduating Class at Bennington College, 1970”. This is an actual address (I assume) given by KV and is a snapshot of the writer at his height. I am leaning toward it. There would be a lot to talk about regarding the piece, a lot around setting the piece in its period as well as how freshly it translates to 2014. And plenty to investigate around what hallmarks make it a great piece of writing. There are craft points to take away from the piece. For instance there is a lot to learn about the value of making provocative claims in writing that draw in your reader.

My son suggested Ray Bradbury’s “A Sound of Thunder”. I am considering it as well. This would be a classic story to teach, a well-known standard. There is a lot of benefit to that. One can research the questions that have swirled around it since its publication in 1952. The story first appeared in Collier’s and then a few years later in Playboy (June ’56). You may not recognize the title, but I’ll bet you read the story in high school. http://www.lasalle.edu/~didio/courses/hon462/hon462_assets/sound_of_thunder.htm

Regardless of which piece I pick it’ll be a hoot to try my hand at teaching lit and leading a workshop. I wasn’t an English major, so I don’t have a lot of preconceived notions of how this should go. I hope I know whether it went well or not.