I enjoy speaking with students about the books I’ve written
and/or published but also about the importance of reading and writing to learn,
grow intellectually, and make the world a better place. I also enjoy answering
questions posed by students during and after my talks. Sometimes I have an
answer readily available, sometimes things go slightly awry.
I was honoured to recently talk with students at Robert
Southey and Viscount Central schools. I speak about how I started writing at age eight and it grew into a lifetime of loving the written word and working as a journalist, author, editor, and book publisher. I give them some tips for reading and writing and encourage them to try to make a positive impact in the world because of what they learn while reading.
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| Mrs. Carnegie-Meere with author-publisher Deana Driver at Robert Southey School |
I tell students that there is no such thing as a dumb question, because if they don't know the answer, it's a perfect time to find out. I'd rather they ask than assume something that is incorrect.
These are some of the students' questions (and
my answers) from that day:
-
“What’s your
favourite animal?” (
I replied that I have allergies, but I guess dogs are okay. The younger kids often ask me personal questions instead
of questions related to the books I’m discussing. Or sometimes they will simply state a fact based on something they heard. After telling them of my book The Sailor and the Christmas Trees about a man named John, two or three younger students will inevitably tell me they know someone named John – which is nice, but it's not a question and I encourage them to instead ask a question starting with Who, What, When, Where, Why or How.)
-
“What’s your
favourite food?” (Chicken. I’d eat chicken for every meal every day.)
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| Mrs. Jantz with author-publisher Deana Driver at Viscount Central School |
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“What is your
favourite book that you’ve written?” (I like all of them for different
reasons. They’re all like my babies and you should never choose a favourite
baby, but I guess I'll choose
Never Leave Your Wingman because it's an inspiring true story that can be
enjoyed by almost anyone in any family. Almost everyone is affected by cancer. And
The Sailor and the Christmas Trees is
great for children and adults too. My other three books are out of print.)
-
“Is that
coat book true?” (Yes,
The Little Coat, written by Alan Buick, is a true story about a Canadian
soldier and a Dutch girl who met during the war. They gave her a coat made from
an army blanket.)
-
“Did you
see that coat?” (Yes, my husband and I saw the little coat in 2015 when it
was on display at the Military Museum in Calgary. It was on loan from the
Canadian War Museum. It’s really beautiful.)
-
“Aren’t you going to ask us what our
favourite animal is?” (Um… no, not today.)
-
“Who's
your role model?” (My mom. She was a teacher before she had children and
she encouraged me at a young age to be creative with my writing. I learned my
love of the English language and writing from her.)
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“Can you
read something from the Fun on the Farm
book?” (I read Mary Harelkin Bishop’s short story called ‘A Snack For Mom’.
At another reading that day, I read Keith Foster’s poem ‘Thanksgiving Memory’.)
-
“What
would you change about one of your books?” (That’s a question I’ve never
been asked, but most writers I know are unhappy with some part of what they’ve
written. We always want our writing to be better. Even though it's won an award and been praised endlessly by readers, I’d go back and tighten up the text of
the Never Leave Your Wingman book. I
wrote the book and published it quickly, within a year, because I was concerned
that Dionne Warner, the seven-time cancer survivor I wrote about, might die
while I was writing that book. She is still very much alive and living her life
to the fullest while fighting her ninth cancer diagnosis. The day I met Dionne
and decided to write and publish her story, I asked her what would happen to the book project if she died
while I was in the process of writing. It was a tough question but I
needed to ask it. We agreed that if we could help one person by sharing her
inspiring story, my book would go ahead. After the book was published, Dionne
told me that if she’d known me better, she would have answered, “What happens
if you die?” It was an excellent point that is typical of what her outlook on
life can teach us about how to live our lives. Live life to the fullest. No regrets.)
-
“Are you
writing anything right now?” (I’m working on two new books. Author Alan Buick,
who wrote
The Little Coat, and I are writing
short stories of Canadian war veterans who could have died had they made a different decision
or been in a different place during the war. I also want to write some true stories
about Prairie pilots and their adventures. So if you know anyone who has a story of a Canadian war
veteran or a fascinating pilot adventure, please
let me know.)
-
“I want to
do freelance writing? How do you recommend I get started?” (This was a
one-on-one question posed after one of my presentations. I told the student to
be persistent, to keep track of everything they have ever had published, even
if there was no pay for their work. You must build a resumé. When I began
freelancing in September 1983, I visited the public library twice a week and
looked at every magazine on the racks to see which ones matched my skill set
and my interests as a writer. I mailed writing samples from my journalism
career to many of these magazines and made several long-distance phone calls,
which were expensive in those days, but I received no responses. In early 1984,
I attended a burn symposium on my own, listened to the morning’s speakers, then
phoned The Medical Post in Toronto
and talked to their editor about the physician speakers and their topics. I asked
if the magazine wanted stories from this first-on-the-Prairies conference and
they agreed to accept four or five articles. This began a 30-year freelance career with that and other publications.
Be persistent, be passionate about your writing, work hard, be good at what you
do.)
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“Can you
read us some of that book about horses?” (This was not my finest moment as
a speaker. I have never read excerpts from Bryce Burnett’s humorous cowboy
poetry to a group of students, so I picked up Bryce’s latest book,
Horses, Dogs and Wives, and skimmed the pages to find a suitable poem. I saw
one that ended with “farted” and decided to keep looking. I landed on the ‘Rover’
poem instead, but I should have looked more closely at the last couple lines
first. I'd temporarily forgotten that cowboy poetry usually has a surprise ending. As I finished reading that poem, the entire group of Southey students gasped
and then laughed, while I sheepishly grinned. I later apologized to the teachers for reading what some might have considered an inappropriate poem for the students, but the teachers insisted it was fine. See the poem below for yourself. Would you have read it
to kids in Grades 6 to 9?)
Thank you to both schools for the invitations to speak and
to
Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild for subsidizing the Viscount reading. Thank you
to the students of both schools for their attention and their questions.
Mrs. Elaine Jantz, librarian at Viscount Central School, wrote about my presentation at Viscount school:
“Deana Driver came to
our school for a presentation and spoke to our students about her books,
writing and publishing. She is an awesome presenter, she kept them all engaged
and hearing the stories about how the books came to be was so enlightening and
made them even more interesting to get and read. The story about a shy,
farm girl going on to be a journalist, then writer, editor and publisher,
really inspired some of our students as to how far you can go and what you can
do if you try. She gave them great insight into how to start writing and keep
going. We very much enjoyed her visit!”
