Of late, I have been reading Stephen King’s book: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. Despite not being a fan of horror fiction, I’ve always thought Stephen King to be a decent fellow. How I came to that conclusion, I don’t know, but what I have read thus far does nothing to dissuade me from this belief.
Besides savoring the comfort that he also loves reading and writing, I have latched on to one particular comment: his thoughts regarding a writer’s schedule. I have always loved schedules, but before I proceed, it is probably important to define what I mean by this word “schedule.”
For me, a schedule is not a timetable that tells me what to do. Rather, I create a schedule to help me outline what I am actually doing. By examining how my time is being utilized, I can ascertain whether I am spending my time on what I value or if I am using my time for things that are of no importance to me. My penchant for examining schedules arises from a feeling that our daily lives define us. What we do becomes what we are.
Recently, I taught a lesson to my middle school students about caring for oneself. And, I talked about the importance of a schedule. I noted to them that children need about 9-10 hours of sleep, that reading and being outside are healthy activities, and that connecting to family and friends supports good mental health.
Then, I set them the task of making an after-school schedule, recommending, though not requiring, that they take into consideration these suggestions.
The results of this endeavor were enlightening. The majority of children did not read. Many spent the better part of their free-time engaging with electronic devices. Many went to sleep at a very late hour.
In a few days, the teachers at my school will engage in a day of teacher-learning during which we will watch the film, “The Truth about Reading: The Invisible Crisis Hiding in Plain Sight.” Though I have not seen it, the movie will discuss the fact that swathes of students are graduating from high school unable to read beyond the 6th grade level.
With this said, let me refer back to Stephen King’s schedule. Discussing writers, King says they should aim to spend 4-6 hours a day reading and writing (if they are serious about their craft), attempting to reach 2,000 words per day. Obviously, not everyone aspires to be a writer – which is perfectly normal. If we were all writers who would complete all the other necessary and important work in this world?
Though we cannot spend as much time as an author on reading and writing, our society has determined that literacy is of value to us. The words and information in the written lexicon are more dense, varied, and numerous than that of the spoken word. What then creates this discrepancy between what we value and what is achieved?
The crux of the issue may not be what we think it is.
For a short period, when I was a doctoral student in the area of cultural anthropology, I devoted myself to the study of the means of production (how we get food, shelter, etc.) and how it shapes the daily life of the individual.
In the case of the Canadian Cree people who I was interested in, their daily way of life was, in those days, being radically altered by the intrusion of the Canadian industrial-complex as it exploited their lands for energy and resources. No longer could the Cree engage in their traditional means of obtaining their life necessities because they were not free to move about their land. This change in their means of production changed so much for them. In simplistic terms, it was a change in their daily schedule, and it had a cascade effect, altering their self-identity, their challenges, and their cultural life.
The means of production of a society are the tunes which provide the background to the songs we must sing each day. The means of production shape us in ways that we cannot necessarily define because they are assumed, a given, natural. But, what if the structures of our lives, as defined by the types of work we do, are shaping us in ways that we may not understand?
We can claim we should all go home to read books, hike in nature, and other productive and healthful activities. And, maybe some of us achieve these positive results. But, what I see is that many of us are tired. We return from our paying work drained and ready to rest.
To return to the story of our designated author of the night: Stephen King.
In the book, he tells of his early days, before his success as a writer. He and his wife had to work like drudges: he washing laundry from restaurants and hospitals (which due to the heat had become infested with maggots) and she working at Dunkin’ Donuts. He did not resent this work, but it was not the work he wanted to do. He did it to survive.
To quote my co-worker who I spoke with this morning who echoed a sentiment I hear again and again from teachers when discussing this profession we love, “This is too much. It is just not sustainable.”
Thus, when looking at the schedule of what people spend their time on, I ponder, “How is the means of production affecting us and our ability to live?”
We want children to read, and so many of them do not. Is the solution to have a new reading program? Or is the issue deeper?
I’d say: Let’s look at our schedules. What we do with our lives is what we become.
Do we have the freedom to change our schedules? Who knows. Maybe some of us do.
Stephen King became a best-selling author and that changed his life. My co-worker dreams of winning the lottery.
Me? Well, tonight, I didn’t achieve the requisite 2,000 words that King suggests, but I did hit about a thousand. And that is good enough for me.
Ciao, dear reader. Till we meet again in the blogosphere…
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