‘Mockingbird’ Author Inspires Other Writers

By Nancy K. Crevier

Aspiring writers who are members of young adult and adult writing groups at C.H. Booth Library were treated to a special invitation-only event on Thursday, April 26, when author Charles Shields — who was visiting Newtown to discuss his biography of Harper Lee, Mockingbird, later that evening — set aside an hour and a half to share his insights on writing and his experience of writing The New York Times bestselling biography of the To Kill A Mockingbird author.

Mr Shields sandwiched the lecture in between meetings held Thursday morning with various Newtown High School English classes and an evening discussion scheduled at the high school.

For eighth grade student Justin Villamil, a member of the Young Adult Creative Writing Group at the library, attending the lecture was, “The opportunity to study from a great writer. I love writing,” he said as he waited for the talk to begin.

 “Just like you, there was a time when I was beginning and wanted to get something in print,” Mr Shields began his lecture. From there, he shared his writing journey with the 14 people present in a relaxed give-and-take atmosphere that smacked more of a visitor in a private home than a meeting room environment.

Writing, he told the group, is a risk.

“Writing is mainly craft,” said Mr Shields. “You can learn to be a better writer. It’s perseverance; it’s putting your shoulder to the grind stone. You have to take risks.”

He discovered in researching the life of Harper Lee the risks that she took as a writer.

“Her family wanted her to become a lawyer. She wanted to become a writer, not go to law school,” said Mr Shields. Following her neighbor and friend Truman Capote’s lead, Ms Lee left her comfortable southern lifestyle in 1948 to move into the Yorkville neighborhood of New York City and pursue a writing career. It was a big risk for her, he said. She worried about disappointing her family and about being disappointed, to the point that for the first eight years Harper Lee did not send out one manuscript.

“Bad news is typical on the road to getting published, though,” Mr Shields advised the writers in attendance. “You can’t let that stop you.”

Were it not for the intervention of friends who steered Ms Lee to an agent and publisher, it is possible that the Pulitzer Prize winning To Kill A Mockingbird manuscript would have languished in her desk drawer forever, said Mr Shields. Even so, the path to publication was still not simple for the woman who would spend the rest of her life known for that one novel.

“Harper Lee revised and rewrote her book three times. She changed the point of view several times,” Mr Shields said. She also, he divulged, threw the entire manuscript out the window in a fit of despair at one time.

Fortunately for the world, Ms Lee persevered, as writers must, he said, and finished To Kill A Mockingbird in 1959.

Her experience, Mr Shields said, exemplifies that writing is risky and the importance of being able to be revised and edited. “I’m always trying to improve. You need other people’s input,” he said.

In answering questions from his listeners, Mr Shields offered other bits of writing advice.

“Read good things. Don’t waste time with bad writers,” he offered. Reading good literature enhances a writer’s own skills and is often a way to “prime your engine” when writer’s block strikes. “Pull down a favorite author and start to read. It will put you in a writing mode,” he advised.

Mr Shields has found it beneficial to his own writing skills to read poetry and fiction for techniques that can be applied to his preferred genre of non-fiction writing.

To be a professional writer requires dedication, said Mr Shields. It is a full-time job, whether it is spent in front of the keyboard, researching, or re-reading and revising what has been written. “I can’t just decide to go to the mall for the day, or go to the movies. How would I get anything done?” he asked.

For a writer to determine a subject about which to write, Mr Shields said it is essential, first of all, to ask, “What is the reader going to like? Is what you’re writing clear to the reader? Remember, you must be read to be a writer,” he told the group.

He also stressed the importance of identifying who would read the writing and if the piece is marketable. Writing must also come from a passion. “Could this subject seize my interest? Will I be able to write and re-write and revise and edit this many times? These are questions you must ask yourself about a subject if you want to make a living writing,” Mr Shields said.

Finally, Mr Shields advised, “Take any opportunity to get your words in writing. Local papers, club newsletters, wherever you can. It’s a real morale booster to see your words in print. It also gives you a few clippings,” and clips, he said, are what are needed when a writer submits a query to a publisher. “Of course, at some point, you have to insist on getting paid,” Mr Shields added.

Haley Keane was one of seven young adults who attended the afternoon lecture and she was pleased with what she heard.

“It was nice that he interacted with everyone instead of just lecturing,” she said.

Mr Shields is currently working on a biography of Kurt Vonnegut, which he started prior to Mr Vonnegut’s death last month, scheduled to be published in 2009.

“I will continue on with the book, hoping he is looking over my shoulder,” Mr Shields said.

And like a good guest, he said farewell long before wearing out his welcome, and slipped out the door.