Teens, writing, jobs
Sandra Dodd
Pam Sorooshian posted this, but it would have stayed under "sidewalk
paint" forever, so I'm bringing it to a new topic of its own.
======================================
Rosie (18 year old) is taking a political science class at the community
college and this morning the professor asked her to stay after class. He
said he'd shown her term paper to his editor (he writes textbooks) and
they really like her writing and want to know if she'd like a job doing
some writing for a comparative political systems book they're working on
over the summer.
FUNNY thing - Rosie doesn't think of herself as a good writer at ALL.
Roxana is the big writer - Rosie's opinion of her own writing ability
was pretty low (but she really only had Roxana to compare herself to,
and Roxana is a really truly gifted writer). She had been really
surprised to get 100 percent on her term paper, but I'd told her it was
a really good paper. She hasn't taken any other college courses that
require writing - this is the first. Other than this, she's written
NaNoWriMo novels and SriptFrenzy screenplays. She's had no writing
instruction of any kind. Always unschooled.
She told him she'd think about it, but told me she doesn't think she
wants to do it. I told her to ask if they'd be interested in her sister
because she be more interested in that kind of work.
-pam
====================================
This is so cool. These stories are like fireworks in the world of
the opportunities teens are offered overall in the world.
She might like to do it. It might inspire her to write about martial
arts and sign language and the treatment of children in the world.
Holly was going to quit her job at the mall after Christmas. It was
called "a Christmas job" and she figured, Christmas was over, she
should quit. But they wanted her to stay. She did, but not
enthusiastically. She thought more of it when others older than she
was quit, or were let go for incompetence (or worse). she thought
even more of it when other people came to apply to work, and now that
it's spring and there are LOTS of applications... she realizes it's
cool to have a job, I guess. And she has two. And I almost feel
guilty, because there are kids out there who would love to have ONE
job. But there are kids out there by the thousands who couldn't be
trusted as Holly is, who aren't as quick to learn, or as fun to be
around. Her boss said she's the only person who's ever worked there
who would run to do something. And it's a skateboard shop, and they
let people skateboard in the shop, and still, the employees take their
sweet slow time to do anything, except for Holly.
That story was intended to suggest that maybe Rosie has no idea how
stunningly cool it is to have been asked to help write that way.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
paint" forever, so I'm bringing it to a new topic of its own.
======================================
Rosie (18 year old) is taking a political science class at the community
college and this morning the professor asked her to stay after class. He
said he'd shown her term paper to his editor (he writes textbooks) and
they really like her writing and want to know if she'd like a job doing
some writing for a comparative political systems book they're working on
over the summer.
FUNNY thing - Rosie doesn't think of herself as a good writer at ALL.
Roxana is the big writer - Rosie's opinion of her own writing ability
was pretty low (but she really only had Roxana to compare herself to,
and Roxana is a really truly gifted writer). She had been really
surprised to get 100 percent on her term paper, but I'd told her it was
a really good paper. She hasn't taken any other college courses that
require writing - this is the first. Other than this, she's written
NaNoWriMo novels and SriptFrenzy screenplays. She's had no writing
instruction of any kind. Always unschooled.
She told him she'd think about it, but told me she doesn't think she
wants to do it. I told her to ask if they'd be interested in her sister
because she be more interested in that kind of work.
-pam
====================================
This is so cool. These stories are like fireworks in the world of
the opportunities teens are offered overall in the world.
She might like to do it. It might inspire her to write about martial
arts and sign language and the treatment of children in the world.
Holly was going to quit her job at the mall after Christmas. It was
called "a Christmas job" and she figured, Christmas was over, she
should quit. But they wanted her to stay. She did, but not
enthusiastically. She thought more of it when others older than she
was quit, or were let go for incompetence (or worse). she thought
even more of it when other people came to apply to work, and now that
it's spring and there are LOTS of applications... she realizes it's
cool to have a job, I guess. And she has two. And I almost feel
guilty, because there are kids out there who would love to have ONE
job. But there are kids out there by the thousands who couldn't be
trusted as Holly is, who aren't as quick to learn, or as fun to be
around. Her boss said she's the only person who's ever worked there
who would run to do something. And it's a skateboard shop, and they
let people skateboard in the shop, and still, the employees take their
sweet slow time to do anything, except for Holly.
That story was intended to suggest that maybe Rosie has no idea how
stunningly cool it is to have been asked to help write that way.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]