I said earlier that I write, and that the work in progress is large. That means a lot of research to do, information to capture, ideas to note. Keeping track of all that is quite a challenge. I've used notebooks of various sizes and configurations. They're handy for capturing something quickly, or if I need to make a sketch of something, but finding things in them can be challenging. I considered note cards, but a significant fraction of the information I capture is fractional, expands over time, gets moved from one area to another, possibly out of step with seemingly related information--in short, I have a network of information, not a neatly categorized library. Technically minded person that I am, my immediate thought was note taking software.
There are several big names in the field, primarily phone/tablet centric, though several have web platforms accessible from any browser. But none of them really suit my needs. First, I don't want to maintain a network connection just to access my notes. Second, a phone screen is not adequate to manage my notes. Or to type on. And handwriting or sketching on a phone? Forget it. Tablet? Maybe large enough, but I haven't found any with decent handwriting or sketching capabilities--I've tried a couple just to see how they worked. And voice recognition is not particularly desirable. (I'm reminded of the story of a group of writers working on a shared world anthology discussing the current (very violent) state of affairs in the series in the middle of the restaurant, suddenly realizing that everyone had gone quiet and was staring at them.)
After short experiments with three or four apps, tools, etc., I quickly saw major problems with all of them, and learned what various features meant. I realized these tools weren't going to cut it for me, so I cast my net a little wider.
I eventually found a personal wiki called TiddlyWiki (site) (Wikipedia entry). It has several major positives. It is entirely free (no subscriptions to get extra bandwidth, storage, or features). It stores all the data locally (you can link to media on the web, but notes are local). It runs in a web browser (nothing to install on any computer). It has a lot of extensions that add useful capabilities. It is very flexible. Most TiddlyWiki information I've found has been in TiddlyWikis hosted on the web, so it's obvious that if I really wanted to have access from a web browser on my phone (not), I could.
Oh, it's searchable, so if I need to find that note about topic X, it's a
lot easier to find than in those pages of tiny handwriting in a
notebook.
And a couple of writers have posted empty wikis showing how they organize information. I looked at these, and stole ideas here and there, but in the end, didn't use any one solution.
I got the base TW from the website and installed it on a flash drive and have been fiddling with it for about a week, finding extensions that add the capabilities I want, setting up notes, testing the tool and my organization structure--adjusting the organization structure a few times. Setting up more notes. I'll carry around a small (paper) notebook for taking quick notes. I'll enter them into the wiki on a regular basis. I've set up an organization structure lets me tag information to specific characters, parts of the story, etc. and to categories like "Work Pending," a to-do list of sorts. As work is completed, I change the tags to attach it to the appropriate places and move it out of pending to completed.
So, this seems to be my information management solution for the work in progress. I can see using the same tool with a similar setup for managing a thesis writing project. I'll write a post later explaining the extensions I use and how I've organized my information.
30 April 2012
23 April 2012
Attitude Adjustments
My son has several letters attached to him that classify him as different from other kids. One set of letters is AS (Asperger's Syndrome). Another set is ADHD. And another is IQ (very high). Each of these sets of letters brings different positives and negatives. For example, IQ means he often sees how to do things after one or two examples--sometimes none. On the other hand, he struggles to explain how he knows what he knows when it is intuitively obvious to him. Doesn't know the formal terms for some of the things he understands and can explain. Tests don't like kids who can't explain how they know what they know and don't know formal terms.
But my topic isn't all the pluses and minuses. My topic is my attitude about all these letters, and the attitude I sometimes see other parents of kids with letters show.
About a year ago I read a post on a blog I follow discussing an issue related to ASDs (Autism Spectrum Disorders--AS is part of that spectrum). The article was controversial because it was about the whole autism/vaccine debate. I'm not here to get into that debate.
I am here to talk about all the people who posted about their kids with autism saying their kids were defective, broken, damaged, unfit. I'm not making that up. They used exactly those words--sometimes made even harsher statements. The sad part is, these writers seemed to miss the deeper implications of what they said, how those words reflected on and affected their own attitudes toward their child, and what that attitude implied about their ability to truly help their child.
I'll note that all of these posters were anti-vaccine. Again, I'm not trying to get into that particular debate, just noting that the people who had stopped looking for someone to blame talked about their kids differently. That's my point.
As we attached letters to my son to explain his differences from other kids, I didn't worry about who to blame. Who didn't matter. I wasn't going to be able to extract any benefit from any who. If it was genetic, should I beat up myself or my wife or my grandparents? Would that change anything for the better? If it was environmental, should I spend years pursuing lawsuits and cursing the people who'd caused it? Would that help my son in the here and now--the window of time when we have the greatest opportunity to help him learn how to operate among neurotypicals without sacrificing his individuality?
No. Fix the problem, not the blame. And the problem isn't my son, or even the letters, it's certain behaviors, attitudes, approaches that result from them. And knowing the letters, I can learn approaches that can help him find an appropriate balance between conforming and being himself, ways to use his differences to his advantage.
The letters changed more than my son. They changed (and continue to change) the way I interact with my son. I needed to learn to see impending meltdowns so I could help him see them and redirect. I needed to focus on positive achievements, improvements, growth. Token economies, talking it out, behavior modification techniques, breaking it up. I spend a lot of time educating educators, have learned a lot more than I ever thought I'd know about certain laws, and am continually amazed by the sometimes brilliant, sometimes stupid people I see in schools. (Sometimes the same person is both.) All that changed (continues to change) me at least as much as it changed (continues to change) my son.
I don't claim to be anywhere near perfection, but I know I am a better father to my son today because he has all these letters attached to him. My son is not defective. He is unique like any child should be. He is not unfit for his intended purpose. Who am I to define a purpose for his life? Maybe his purpose is to make me a better person. I am not particularly concerned why my son has all these letters. He does. I'm not going to change that. It always amuses me that the people who believe vaccines cause ASD nevertheless want a vaccine that will make their kids "normal." Really? You're going to trust the same people who "broke" your kid to fix him? (It isn't going to happen anyway. Too much brain circuitry to rewrite.)
And would it be a good thing to "fix" all these problems and make everyone "normal" (whatever that is)? I think not. Who wants to be just average? Temple Grandin says the person who made the first flint spearhead wasn't some yakkity-yak sitting around the fire talking, it was the Aspie, sitting alone in the back of the cave, fascinated by the way stone flaked when he hit it just so. I bet she's right. I've read articles discussing the link between neurological difference and great minds--thinkers, scientists, artists, dreamers. I think the world would be boring if every person's brain worked the same way.
If your child has letters attached, if you think your child is broken, defective, unfit, ask yourself if it isn't your attitude that's broken. Who's going to spend a lot of time helping trash shine? I have a diamond in the rough--sometimes very rough. Polishing that diamond takes a lot of care and effort and learning. But I believe it can be done. That's my attitude.
But my topic isn't all the pluses and minuses. My topic is my attitude about all these letters, and the attitude I sometimes see other parents of kids with letters show.
About a year ago I read a post on a blog I follow discussing an issue related to ASDs (Autism Spectrum Disorders--AS is part of that spectrum). The article was controversial because it was about the whole autism/vaccine debate. I'm not here to get into that debate.
I am here to talk about all the people who posted about their kids with autism saying their kids were defective, broken, damaged, unfit. I'm not making that up. They used exactly those words--sometimes made even harsher statements. The sad part is, these writers seemed to miss the deeper implications of what they said, how those words reflected on and affected their own attitudes toward their child, and what that attitude implied about their ability to truly help their child.
I'll note that all of these posters were anti-vaccine. Again, I'm not trying to get into that particular debate, just noting that the people who had stopped looking for someone to blame talked about their kids differently. That's my point.
As we attached letters to my son to explain his differences from other kids, I didn't worry about who to blame. Who didn't matter. I wasn't going to be able to extract any benefit from any who. If it was genetic, should I beat up myself or my wife or my grandparents? Would that change anything for the better? If it was environmental, should I spend years pursuing lawsuits and cursing the people who'd caused it? Would that help my son in the here and now--the window of time when we have the greatest opportunity to help him learn how to operate among neurotypicals without sacrificing his individuality?
No. Fix the problem, not the blame. And the problem isn't my son, or even the letters, it's certain behaviors, attitudes, approaches that result from them. And knowing the letters, I can learn approaches that can help him find an appropriate balance between conforming and being himself, ways to use his differences to his advantage.
The letters changed more than my son. They changed (and continue to change) the way I interact with my son. I needed to learn to see impending meltdowns so I could help him see them and redirect. I needed to focus on positive achievements, improvements, growth. Token economies, talking it out, behavior modification techniques, breaking it up. I spend a lot of time educating educators, have learned a lot more than I ever thought I'd know about certain laws, and am continually amazed by the sometimes brilliant, sometimes stupid people I see in schools. (Sometimes the same person is both.) All that changed (continues to change) me at least as much as it changed (continues to change) my son.
I don't claim to be anywhere near perfection, but I know I am a better father to my son today because he has all these letters attached to him. My son is not defective. He is unique like any child should be. He is not unfit for his intended purpose. Who am I to define a purpose for his life? Maybe his purpose is to make me a better person. I am not particularly concerned why my son has all these letters. He does. I'm not going to change that. It always amuses me that the people who believe vaccines cause ASD nevertheless want a vaccine that will make their kids "normal." Really? You're going to trust the same people who "broke" your kid to fix him? (It isn't going to happen anyway. Too much brain circuitry to rewrite.)
And would it be a good thing to "fix" all these problems and make everyone "normal" (whatever that is)? I think not. Who wants to be just average? Temple Grandin says the person who made the first flint spearhead wasn't some yakkity-yak sitting around the fire talking, it was the Aspie, sitting alone in the back of the cave, fascinated by the way stone flaked when he hit it just so. I bet she's right. I've read articles discussing the link between neurological difference and great minds--thinkers, scientists, artists, dreamers. I think the world would be boring if every person's brain worked the same way.
If your child has letters attached, if you think your child is broken, defective, unfit, ask yourself if it isn't your attitude that's broken. Who's going to spend a lot of time helping trash shine? I have a diamond in the rough--sometimes very rough. Polishing that diamond takes a lot of care and effort and learning. But I believe it can be done. That's my attitude.
16 April 2012
Habit Forming
I neglect this poor blog horribly (in case that wasn't obvious). I started it as an experiment, an alternative "journal" for a class. Perhaps that association is the problem. Not that the class carries negative associations, but that this blog was for a class that is now long ended, and has occasionally, briefly attached itself to other classes. Right now, that's all on hiatus for various reasons. So maybe it's time to rethink the role of this medium.
I write.
In 2009, I took a creative writing workshop class at the local university. I emailed the instructor before class (as is my habit) and he said to have a story ready to workshop. I didn't at the time, but over the couple of weeks between then and the beginning of the semester, I had something started--sort of a Japanese light novel, but in English, and less random than the few I've read or seen animated. My base idea pushed me toward this style--a sort of Japanese urban fantasy story and the notion that it should be manga-like but still literate and thoughtful. (Not that there aren't literate and thoughtful manga out there.)
The story idled along for a couple of years coming in fits and spurts. Then last year it jumped from about 60k words to 200k words as the overarching story fell into place. (It has since grown even more.)
So, as I said, I write. Which brings me back to the core point of this meandering post.
Recently I read an author who talked about forming the habit of writing on a regular schedule as a means to write more. (Sounds obvious, but it's true. Look how fast the story grew when I wrote on it almost daily for a year vs. writing on it here and there for a few days a month.) So I've decided to make this blog another writing habit. At least once a week. Whatever I want to write about. Pick a topic and write a few paragraphs here. That's the current goal. I may step it up over time. I'm still writing "the story," spending at least an hour or two on it most days, and I don't want this to interfere with that.
And don't expect everything to be about writing, or the story, though so many things that seem unrelated are actually parts of the same whole.
I write.
In 2009, I took a creative writing workshop class at the local university. I emailed the instructor before class (as is my habit) and he said to have a story ready to workshop. I didn't at the time, but over the couple of weeks between then and the beginning of the semester, I had something started--sort of a Japanese light novel, but in English, and less random than the few I've read or seen animated. My base idea pushed me toward this style--a sort of Japanese urban fantasy story and the notion that it should be manga-like but still literate and thoughtful. (Not that there aren't literate and thoughtful manga out there.)
The story idled along for a couple of years coming in fits and spurts. Then last year it jumped from about 60k words to 200k words as the overarching story fell into place. (It has since grown even more.)
So, as I said, I write. Which brings me back to the core point of this meandering post.
Recently I read an author who talked about forming the habit of writing on a regular schedule as a means to write more. (Sounds obvious, but it's true. Look how fast the story grew when I wrote on it almost daily for a year vs. writing on it here and there for a few days a month.) So I've decided to make this blog another writing habit. At least once a week. Whatever I want to write about. Pick a topic and write a few paragraphs here. That's the current goal. I may step it up over time. I'm still writing "the story," spending at least an hour or two on it most days, and I don't want this to interfere with that.
And don't expect everything to be about writing, or the story, though so many things that seem unrelated are actually parts of the same whole.
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