Red Room Where the Writers Are

Poetry and Sex Education »

     When I typed in "Poetry Education," "Sex Education" came up.   I like that.   Might attract more readers to the genre.

The Comma: 'Rumors of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated' »

So I was talking to Paula Poundstone the other night about commas …

fun afternoon in prison »

Spent yesterday afternoon writing poems with a group of men at New Folsom – aka California State Prison: Sacramento.

Art and Hope »

What is art worth to you?

Turning Those Pages »

Well we're starting to make a little noise here, anyhow.

Blog blog...not just a poem masquerading as a blog »

So I posted a weird animation I did using the antiquated MS Paint application and basic stop-action editing on my mac in Imovie.

To MFA or Not to MFA? »

In just about a week I’ll be finishing classes in my intensive two-year MFA in Writing program at the University of San Francisco.

What's on your booshelf? »

Like in this recent, popular, New York Times piece, there’s been some press lately about how important books are as a means of identifying people with similar interests and attitudes. With these new “bookshelf” applications in Facebook (as I mentioned a few weeks back), and other places, books are clearly—even in this digital age—remaining a social touchstone.

Art, Education and Hope »

Obama talks about the importance of arts in the schools, and students at a South Bronx high school talk (beautifully) about “Yes we can.”

Saving the Fundamentals »

This week I'd like to refer you to a letter I received from the President of First Book: Dear Jim,

I Made a Bad Choice »

Calling all regretful people.

Hopping to make a difference »

This has had me giggling all week:

Writing Our Way In »

When I first started writing, I tried to create a place I actually wanted to be in. It wasn't my family because my family life wasn't exciting and wacky or fun enough.

Reading. A Lost Passion? »

I love to read. My passion for books started when I was very young. My mother read to me all the time and taught me to read long before I started school.

Writing Conferences »

I just received a pamphlet in the mail entitled The Writer’s Summer for the Southampton Writers Conference sponsored by the Stony Brook Southampton MFA program in Writing and Literature.

Don’t Buy This Book »

My latest book came out last week.

Drop Everything! »

Have you run across any of those D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything And Read) programs at schools or other places?

What's Your Brain Got to Do With It? »

Turns out, a lot.

Writing about Sex »

The good news is that characters have sex.

Teaching »

I'm not sure what makes people good teachers. I know I've had good teachers, though. I've had teachers who have pissed me off so much I've excelled despite them.

What We Rely On »

So this morning, I turned on my computer, logged into my Course Compass site--the site where two of my online classes are held--and it was as if four weeks' worth of work had disappeared.

A Job Well Done »

What amazes and always impresses me is when people do something competently and well.

Letter to a Student About to Enter the Queens University Low-Residency MFA Program »

Since I haven't blogged about writing in this space yet - too busy touting my own work - I thought I'd post something today that I wrote to a f

Life Like a Book »

Even though I was a terrible student, I dreamed about going to a big university, one with old buildings covered in ivy, meandering paths, large expanses of lawn.

Is It All In The Presentation? »

I was in Marrakech once. Marrakech is the location of the summer palace of the Sultan. According to Koranic law, the sultan has to meet with his subjects each day to hear their complaints.

Heroes: Spending time with Luis Rodriguez »

I’m lucky. Close to my heart are many people I admire.

Dearest Harrison School Students »

Hi, Harrison Students, 4th through 7th grade,

Back in My Day, Sonny »

When I was in seventh grade, my parents gave me a clock for my birthday. A clock radio for my room, perfect for playing KFRC (back when it was a contemporary pop/rock kind of station).

Get Real »

When I fly from California to Ohio next week, one of my jobs will be to go into blue-collar neighborhoods and convince people that they should vote for Barack Obama.

My Rite of Passage »

I need to sleep but images of the children I met this morning haunt me. I cannot stop the rills of tears.

Leaving It Open »

"The time to give up on someone is never." A colleague once said this to a class. We were team-teaching.

TEACHER MELTDOWN DAY »

If I could actually practice all the Zen, Eastern, psychological techniques I've studied, this day would never happen at all.

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED For Teachers »

Reviewed by Hank Edson    The Road Less Traveled offers great understanding of the world and great clarity of purpose to the reader.  While many books possessed of great understanding reveal the intricate and complex, The Road Less Traveled reveals something very elementary: love.  M. Scott Peck’s definition of love is “the will to extend one’s self for the purpose of nurturing one’s own or another’s spiritual growth.”  This definitions has far reaching implications for everyone, and certainly for educators whose job is to guide the development of human beings into adulthood.   Dr. Peck’s thorough application of this definition could be described many ways.  As an educator and an individual concerned with my own growth, I would explain the implication of Dr. Peck’s definition of love in this way:  First, spiritual growth is not only the basis of a healthy psychology, but also of all growth and all aspects of life.  If an individual’s psychology is unhealthy after all, every aspect of life is affected by it.  Dr. Peck quite clearly removes any distinction between one’s psychology and one’s experience of life.  Second, Dr. Peck’s definition can be applied to provide a useful analysis of how and why some individuals develop dysfunctional psychologies.  This Dr. Peck does by explaining two basic directions in which people continuously stray from reality.

What a day! »

I realize that I'm echoing many such declarations, but...did anyone believe, only four years ago, that Democrats would go into the voting booth in 2008 and be able to choose between a woman and an

Darkness and Light »

“As human beings, we all have one foot in light, and one foot in darkness,” Spoon Jackson wrote.

help. I can not go »

I'd like to believe I am much more saddened by people whose lives fall apart than I am by crumbling stones or plaster.

Influence and Inclusion »

What a pleasure to think about influences when responding to Red Room’s invitation to include some on our author pages.