Gabriela Lemmons, a seventh and eighth grade English Language Arts Dual Language teacher, is in her third year at Landon Middle School. Prior to becoming a teacher, she worked in the publishing and printing industry and earned her MFA in creative writing from the University of Kansas. As a published author, she averaged 30 readings a year and was very active in the Latino Writers Collective, an organization in the Kansas City area which she helped found. While looking for a new profession, she discovered that Topeka Public Schools offers a dual language magnet school. From there she enrolled in Fort Hays State’s Transition to Teaching program and completed the program in May 2017.
“I
encourage students to find mentors that will support their writing. I also encourage students to seek online
resources. There are many online communities where members support writers of
specific genres, from slam poetry, science fiction, memoir, to mystery. There
are also online resources that
continuously post publishing opportunities. Don’t get discouraged by rejections. Very
likely, your submission did not meet the editor’s specific needs. What you
submit will not always match the editor’s preferences. Resubmit to another
contest; do not take a rejection as a lack of talent on your part!”
“READ! READ! READ! When you
find a mentor ask them for a list of their favorite authors. Form your own
writing clubs at your schools. At your library and within your club, read a
diversity of authors for inspiration. Don’t believe the fallacy that reading
someone else’s creative writing will hinder your own. Borrow a line of poetry
from another author and challenge yourself to create a new poem.”
“WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! Start a writing ritual;
find a cozy spot where your imagination thrives. During my most creative
periods, I would carry a small notebook to scribble curiosities or ideas. There
are always free writing workshops—sign up!”
“The best way to proofread
what you write is to read aloud. I suggest students use technology to record
themselves reading their writing. Hearing yourself read will help you decide
where line breaks are necessary. Hearing yourself read aloud will help you in
crafting better word choices.”
“Most importantly, use the five senses
to evoke sensations. In other words, ‘show, don’t tell.’ Whatever genre you
prefer, hold your reader’s attention; put the reader inside your creative
space. I learned this practice from Sandra Cisneros. I was fortunate to have
had her as a professor. When revising my poems, she would draw miniature images
of ears, noses, or lips where she felt specific lines or stanzas had not
reached their full potential. Dig deeper within your writing, use a simile or a
metaphor to connect your familiarity to your reader’s own visual, oral, or
auditory experiences.”
“Lastly, don’t give up! If you write a poem
that does not meet with your expectations, consider that your creative endeavor
might be instead a short story or a prose poem; never fear creative experimentation—trust
your instincts!”
