The winter months are upon us and we are all indoors a lot more than we have been. Combine that with the many months ahead of social distancing due to COVID and our teens have a lot of free and solo time ahead of them. Now is a great time to encourage them to explore and develop their writing talents. Not only is it a wonderful and very necessary life skill, writing is an excellent outlet where they can express their emotions, put their thoughts in order, do some personal problem solving, and explore ideas.
How can parents help their teen cultivate a love of writing?
1. Provide them with good books to read. Why read? Because many successful authors actually describe themselves as word lovers, particularly from an early age. Reading, especially an engaging and well written book, will lay out how themes are developed, well structured sentences and paragraphs are put together, and how the story itself is presented. A really good book can be inspiring!
Check out these great book lists from previous Foundation for Learning newsletters:
2. Give your teens a dedicated journal, like a Moleskin or other beautifully bound volume. Encourage them to write down their thoughts, questions, ideas, and dreams. Many people enjoy and find value in doing an exercise there they write anything and everything that comes into the mind, once a day (usually first thing in the morning) and to just fill up a page or two without worrying about spelling, punctuation, or structure. Just let loose and let go. It can lead to interesting ideas and discoveries about one’s self. Along these lines, Austin Kleon’s Steal Like An Artist Journal is an excellent tool for getting those creative juices going in a lightly structured but freeing way.
3. Does your teen have a favorite author? Suggest that he write a story the way that person might. In other words, to write the (author’s name here) story that hasn’t been written but that they’d like to read themselves. Or take a couple of intriguing lines from a favorite book and build a whole other story using those lines as a jumping off point. We all soak up influences during our life, especially as teens, while trying to discover who we are. Imitating and learning from a favored author is a fabulous way to pursue the enjoyment and excellence in writing.
4. Graphic novels are hugely popular among teens right now, so another way to encourage writing might be to gift him a blank book and encourage him to write his own, complete with pictures. This kind of writing is quick, it’s compact, and it’s perfect for someone who is a visual learner. And yes, graphic novels do count as literature!
5. Is your teen musical? Songwriting is about telling stories, it’s poetry, it’s a venting outlet for angsty teens, and it’s emotional and creative expression. Encourage your teen to test out his songwriting savvy. The more he writes, the better he becomes at it, so support this form of writing if that’s what grabs his interest.
6. Now here’s a tricky part: it takes a lot of guts to put so much heart, and energy onto paper. It’s scary and feels risky to share it with others, so if you are given the opportunity to see your teen’s creative work, hold back any criticism you may have. They want to hear how much you appreciate their work and maybe even love it, so check your response. It’s ok to critique, but do so without being critical. Resist the urge to correct grammar or spelling. Find something in the work that you really like and point that out. Ask questions and pay attention to replies, as it may lead the way for further discussion, but remember that this is their personal work. If they ask for help then certainly give it, but you don’t want to pick apart a piece of cathartic writing. That will quickly discourage them from continuing.
7. Most of all, enjoy your teen’s writing and the fact that they want to share it with you. Despite what it may seem sometimes, they really do care about what you think of them, their work, and their interests. Encourage their creativity to flow, in any form it takes. By expressing your enjoyment and delight with them, you are showing support and they’ll feel like they can trust their own work, their own voice, and their right of expression.
Writing is an important life skill, and it’s one way that your teen can express himself. When they write they explore, they learn to trust, they expand not only their world but their abilities as well. Encourage them, support them, and step back so they can find themselves and discover just how accomplished they can be in whatever writing path they decide to take.