Meet Scotti Cohn
Q. When did you start writing? What moment made you decide you wanted to write? Are there any other art forms you practice?
I started writing around age six or seven. I had a wonderful teacher in 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th grades who encouraged me to write poetry and stories. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be a writer. That truly is the only thing I ever wanted to be. Well — actually, I once thought I’d like to be a pediatrician or a veterinarian. Then I found out you had to be good in science. That was enough of a deterrent for me. Other art forms I practice include playing the piano and guitar, dancing around the room by myself to Van Halen, and putting together halfway decent Powerpoint programs (featuring images, music, and sound bites) to accompany my presentations about my books.
Q. How has writing connected you to your community? Please explain.
Like many writers, I am a bit reclusive. I’m not a “social” person in the sense that I need to have a lot of group activity and contact. Writing my children’s picture book One Wolf Howls (Sylvan Dell, 2009) heightened my awareness and reinforced concerns that I already had about animals and how we human beings treat them. For example, I had always “intended” to volunteer at our local animal shelter. After One Wolf Howls was published, I began to do that regularly. I have also become more active in supporting our local zoo, which has two red wolves. In terms of the “larger community,” I have become more involved in supporting animal welfare groups across the country.
Q. Has writing books for children changed your perspective of education? Please explain.
Writing books for children has reinforced my feelings about the importance of education and has caused me to explore the various ways we can educate children through literature. I had such an idyllic upbringing — one in which I was encouraged to read and become educated, and was given the time and support to do so. These days I am more keenly aware than ever that not every child is that fortunate.
Q. What advice would you give students and teachers who are interested in writing?
Three things you need to do: read, write, and relate — not in that order, but all three at once. The first two are pretty self-explanatory. By “relate” I mean be aware of things that speak to you, that resonate with you. Build relationships and seek deeper understanding in those areas. I believe you can write about anything that interests you as long as you are willing to become knowledgeable about it.
Q. What are some struggles and victories you have experienced as a writer?
I was not one of those “superwomen” who manage to work a full-time job, raise children, and write award-winning books all at the same time. I hardly wrote anything for myself during the years I was working full-time and raising children. I was lucky enough to find jobs that allowed me to write (public relations, for example), so I didn’t completely lose that skill. Once I was in a position where I could spend more time writing, I was fortunate enough to discover The Globe Pequot Press and an editor who really liked the proposals for adult nonfiction books I submitted to her. After being published several times by Globe, my struggle centered around getting a children’s book published. The seemingly endless cycle of submissions and rejections can really take its toll. I submitted One Wolf Howls to 22 publishers before Sylvan Dell picked it up. It was worth the wait. I love what they did with it!
Q. Your new book is about Chicago. What are you feelings about the city?
I now live in Bloomington, Illinois, but I grew up in Springfield in the 1950s and 1960s. I have fond memories of visits to Chicago during those years. I vividly recall my first ride on the “L,” Brookfield Zoo, the amazing Christmas decorations in the downtown store windows, and the house on South Ada Street where my aunt, uncle, and three cousins lived. I have been back to Chicago many times since then, and I’m always amazed by the sheer size and vitality of the city. It Happened in Chicago is dedicated to the memory of surgeon Willis J. Potts, MD, at Children’s Memorial Hospital. As an infant I was hospitalized at Children’s, and Dr. Potts played a major role in securing the quality of life that I enjoy to this day. It could easily be said that he saved my life. I am thrilled to be able to honor his memory in a small way with It Happened in Chicago.
Q. How will you make your book connect with people who live in Chicago? What message do you have to share about Chicago to those who live outside the area?
My goal with It Happened in Chicago is to encourage residents and non-residents to explore the history of this amazing city and to be aware of places and people from the past that continue to influence present-day Chicago. Everyone who purchases It Happened in Chicago at one of my presentations will receive a booklet I created that describes the location of many of the sites mentioned in the book. I may be alone in this, but I really like to stand on a spot (or close to a spot) where something hugely important happened a long, long time ago. I close my eyes and imagine what it might have been like back then. (I try not to do this in the middle of a busy intersection or in a total stranger’s backyard…)
Final Thoughts?
Yes — I enjoyed writing It Happened in Chicago so much that I’m currently writing a book called Chicago Curiosities for Globe Pequot Press. Publication is scheduled for fall 2010. Also, I just want to let folks know that there is an entire section of the state of Illinois that is not part of Chicago. Seriously. Helloooo! Here we are! (Okay, now I’m just being silly. Imagine that.) Thanks for this wonderful opportunity, Jen!
Scotti Cohn
It Happened In Chicago interviews Jen Cullerton Johnson
Read the full interview below or click here
Meet Jen Cullerton Johnson!
My guest today is Jen Cullerton Johnson — a writer, educator, and urban environmentalist who lives and works in Chicago. Cullerton’s published works includeSeeds of Change: The Wangari Maathai Story(Summer, Lee & Low / 2010).
On October 10, Cullerton and fellow Chicago authors Michelle Duster, Cynthea Liu, and Trina Sotira will present a writing seminar titled “Collect, Recollect, Connect!” For more information about the seminar, go to MuseWrite.
For more information about Jen Cullerton Johnson, visit her web site:http://www.jencullertonjohnson.com
Q: How old were you when you first realized that you wanted to be a writer?
Jen: My mother died when I was 9 years old and in many ways ended my childhood. Since then I have always been trying to bring back those memories of her and reconstruct her on the page. After I graduated college and moved to Buenos Aires, I was teaching but while I taught I wrote. Education and writing seemed to intertwine. It was then when I decided I would write to become a better teacher and by being a better teacher, I wrote seriously.
Q: Describe one of your earliest works. Who or what inspired you to write it?
Jen: I published many short stories for literary journals. Most of the stories centered on a character that suffered a loss of some kind—be it physical or emotional. One story called “Set the Spine Straight“, published by the Coe Review is about a boy who was born with a birth defect, and after years of being neglected in a State facility, his mother comes to bring him home. Writing that story, I felt like I was working out issues of acceptance and direction.
Currently, I am working on a full-length memoir called Yoshimura’s Ghost: Two Years in Rural Japan. The book is about living and working in Japan as the mother of a young child. It weaves in different threads of culture, education, and personal experiences. I have great hopes for this book, especially since I feel it is useful for a cross-country exchange for teachers, mothers, and writers. You can read a sample chapter published on line called, Name Brand Beauties on Sale: Teenage Compensated Dating in Rural Japan.
Q: Can you name someone whose encouragement made a significant difference as you developed into a writer?
Jen: I have many friends who are established writers. Their successes inspired me to continue. Yet, my biggest inspiration is my grandmother. She is my best reader. At 73 she became an actress and went on stage. She also has a very critical eye. I can’t pass any B.S. through her, so she keeps it real.
Of course there are writers I admire like the late Lynda Hull, Paul Celan, Toni Morrison, and political people, like Wangari Maathai, who won the Nobel Prize for her work with the environment. But mostly it is my grandmother and a few close friends who keep me motivated.
Q: Please tell us a little about your ties to Chicago.
Jen: It is family lore that my mother’s family, the Cullertons, has been in Chicago politics for over 150 years. True or not, I grew up knowing that civil service was an important and worthy career.
I have worked for Chicago Public Schools and other educational organizations as an educator, grant writer, and curriculum developer. Currently I am a teacher at a network of charter schools in the inner city.
Q: What was easy about writing Seeds of Change? What was difficult?
Jen: Seeds of Change was not difficult to write. I knew I wanted to write a book for children where they could see a real-life person doing good for the environment. I was very lucky that the life of Wangari Maathai was so inspiring. She is an amazing woman, not only for her work with the environment and the Greenbelt Movement, but for her outstanding dedication to women and children.
Also, my editor, Jennifer Fox at Lee & Low, is exceptional, always pushing for the best in text and in the writer. I am grateful that she allowed me to tell Wangari’s story in an honest and engaging way.
Q: How did you come to be a member of the group of Chicago writers at MuseWrite.com?
Jen: Last April, I posted an Off Topic Reading Opportunity. I invited SCBWI members to donate their time and read their books or talk about writing with LEARN Charter School Network, Romano-Butler Campus.
Five wonderful writers agreed to come and share their work with our students. We had a large turn out of 300 students and their families. Most of the children had never met a writer and had no idea how to connect the person to the page. It was incredible the outpourings of connections and dreams made that evening. I am and always will be grateful to Michelle Duster, Mary Jo Reinhart, Cheryl Burton, Cynthea Liu, and Trina Sotira for their generosity.
From that one evening, many good things have happened. Careers have been bolstered. Students have begun to have more interaction with the literary arts. As an educator and a writer, I could not have imagined the impact.
Three of the writers, Michelle, Trina, and Cynthea decided to work together and bring this writing experience to others. We have been very blessed to see such an awesome response. You would not believe how many people want to tell their stories but need a little help getting down a game plan. I think it is all about connection.
Q: The Muse.Write.com group will conduct a seminar in Chicago on October 10, 2009. Is there anything you’d like to say to the people who are thinking about attending?
Jen: I would suggest watching the Channel 7 television show,Chicagoing. We talked about the seminars and bringing writing back into our lives and our communities. I think anyone who is interested in developing their story be it fiction or nonfiction will find a place at our seminar. Cliché as it sounds, writing is a journey and those we meet along the way help us.
Writing in the Schools
Free Intro Writing Seminar, Aug 15, 2009, Chicago: COLLECT, RECOLLECT, CONNECT!
How to use personal, family, and even someone else’s history to create published books. Speakers Michelle Duster, Jen Cullerton Johnson (www.jencullertonjohnson.com), Cynthea Liu, and Trina Sotira will address all formats and genres from children’s to adult. Fiction and nonfiction. Book signing to follow.
Saturday, August 15, 2009, 3-4PM
Barnes & Noble, Webster/Clybourn
1441 West Webster Avenue, Chicago, IL 60614 View Map
Free/Validated 90 minute parking or park nearby.
Space is limited! RSVP at rsvp@musewrite.com, but walk-ins welcome.
Collect …
… recent history or current events for narrative non-fiction ideas.
by Jen Cullerton Johnson – author of Seeds of Change: The Wangari Maathai Story
(Lee & Low, 2009)
… personal journals, diaries and photos to turn your past into exciting fiction.
by Trina Sotira – Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators manuscript
consultant and young adult novelist.
Recollect …
… childhood memories as material for realistic fiction geared toward children and teens.
by Cynthea Liu – author, The Great Call of China (Speak, 2009), Paris Pan Takes
the Dare (Putnam, 2009), and Writing for Children and Teens: A Crash Course
(Pivotal, 2008)
Connect …
… personal family history to create unique non-fiction.
Michelle Duster – author, Ida In Her Own Words: The timeless writings of Ida B.
Wells from 1893 (Benjamin Williams Publishing, 2008), the first in a series of
books that will include the writings of Ida B. Wells.
Talk will be followed by book signing and an opportunity to schmooze with some of the speakers afterward.
Writing Across the Curriculum with Book Making
In May 2009, along with five other Chicago Public Schools teachers, I was awarded a small group grant to be apart of a study group called Writing Across the Curriculum sponsored by Chicago Foundation For EDUCATION (CFE).
The jest of the grant is to have students make their own books. They write, illustrate, and read their own books.
The awards dinner ceremony rook place in May at University of Illinois. During dinner, our group swapped tales at the table. Over the course of the ceremony, we had the chance share our project as well as listen to to other projects happening in Chicago Public Schools. Projects ranged from book making to singing higher mathematical equations equations to research and data. Some groups were serious-minded, others playful but all of us that evening where we shared our deep desire to learn from each other and share our knowledge.
Jump to July.
This past week, I met with our group again where we experienced first hand what we hoped our students would feel. We made our own books and read them to each other.
Although I have my ideas on book making, I think the key in this project is not only the the process of making something creative, taking a kernel of an idea and transforming it into the product but something else. I think the ownership, part, the part that brings the book to an audience.
Having read my homemade book to the members I felt proud of my work as if it were a shirt story or essay published in a literary magazine. This sense of pride, of ownership is something I want my students to feel as they create their own work.
Cell phones, i-pods, text mail are all part of our society, especially the younger sector. How they fit into education is kind of like the fable of the ugly duckling; what you see may not be what you get. At first any technology was thought suspect when brought into the classroom. Remember the arguments in the 1980s about bring computers in the classroom? Remember the arguments against Internet based universities? The little by little technology enters into the classroom, and like the white swan dazzles the crowd.
Some teachers see using cell phones to call and text students as a teaching tool. Teachers text homework assignments, study reminders, and Why not? If it helps the students achieve, then what is the problem? Other teachers think that the gadgets of the techno world are good but only in small doses. Others seem to think with the rise of technology in the classroom comes more consumerism.
Check out the link for more insights. Education Week’s Digital Directions: Making the Case for Mobile Computing
Yet whatever one teacher does, there needs to be guidelines and regulations that both teachers and students must follow so that there is no communication or abuse of technology.
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Summer
Who starts a blog about education during the summer? Why think of school when you can play at the beach, eat ice cream, and sleep in late?
Maybe the questions is why not? Why not think of education during the summer? Teaching never really ends. New teachers think the day ends at 2:45 or 4:00 depending on where you work but everyone knows the days does not end when the finl bell rings. Just like when we hear those cries, “School’s out!”– school is never really out.
Here is my first throw of thinking about education during the summer and check out what the NYT has to say about Summer School
Faculty Room 