writing joy

New chat in town, #TeachWrite. Last Monday was their first twitter chat, and it was awesome. It's specific to a special group of people, us teacher writers! And, they've taken it to the next level, by offering up an invitation to write after the chat. This month the topic of conversation is JOY :-)

There are many reasons writing brings me joy, but here are just a few...

It's cool to create stuff. I didn't consider myself a writer until a few years ago, but to be a part of a group that is creating content is amazing. One of my teacher friends, Kayla just published a post about how to make your desktop look cuter. I watched her video tutorial, and then spiced mine up. All of that happened because of blogs, because of creativity, and I can't tell you how much joy my new desktop, and the conversation around it on Twitter and Instagram, has brought me!

Writing brings me joy because when it's on a blog, it's not this solitary task, it's social! I've made new friends online, and some I've even met in real life! Relationships are so important to me, so to have more friends because of writing is something I definitely treasure.

Writing is joyful because when you are writing in a public format, you see that you are not alone. When others read your work, they sometimes leave comments, and to know that you are not the only one to experience things makes you happy. I am so thankful for the interactions that have come about because of my blog.

Writing and students... My students do a lot of writing. We quick write or journal write almost daily, they publish blog posts, and of course we write more formally, too. Because I do the work with them, I'm better able to coach them at writing. I understand that it takes vulnerability to put your writing in front of someone else, to wait to have them critique it. Mem Fox said it best...

But to the point about students and writing and joy - sometimes, there are a few students who end up loving to write. Without my sharing of it with them in an authentic way, they may have never realized that. If each year even one student considers a writing life, that's enough cause for joy.

Sharing about my writing life with teachers brings me joy, too! Tomorrow I'm teaching a small PD session to a few teachers who are interested in beginning their own blog. To share something you love with others, to inspire them, to be their cheerleaders, all excellent reasons to feel joyous about writing.

How has writing brought you joy?

Be sure to check out Teach Write, their website, their twitter, and tune in the first Monday of every month for a Twitter Chat. They *even set up a remind account for text message reminders for their chat, so smart!