Sit & Think
Lucy Yeager
March 9, 2026
March 9, 2026
Today, a seventh grader spoke to my middle school class about his process as a writer. My co-teacher and I hoped his advice would be more readily absorbed, considering he just successfully self-published an amazing book. With a nonchalant confidence, he said all of the right things without prompting:
- Write about what you love.
- Edit.
- Find little corners of time to write in your busy day, like study hall.
- Edit some more.
- AI can be a good tool for illustrations, but you have to start with your own ideas. You should give AI clear directions, like tell it to change a specific detail and to leave everything else unchanged.. AI will not get it right most of the time.
- Keep editing.
- Have fun.
- Ask someone else to look at your work with fresh eyes.
- Amazon takes all of your money if you sell through them, so use your connections at school and in your neighborhood. Get someone who is active on social media to promote your book. Connect with local bookstores.
(Don't you love this kid?)
Then, he dropped the mic...
"It's OK to sit down for 30 minutes and just think."
Just like every other day of teaching, I got more today than I gave.
How sweet is that? Love the mic drop moment!
ReplyDeleteWow, I bet the students really appreciated this talk -- I know I did! And I love his balanced view of AI! That's probably the attitude we all need to take eventually.
ReplyDeleteIt's SO okay! I love that you gave him the teaching pedestal, that he did such a great job, and that he thought to talk about thinking! Awesome!
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