Anything is Possible in the Summertime by Jennifer Floyd

Summertime. 

Those three syllables are filled with endless possibilities and opportunities when it comes to writing.  Whether it’s writing early in the morning before anyone else is awake, writing in front of the air conditioner in the hot, humid afternoons, or writing in the midnight hour, there always seems to be time to write in the summer. 

I personally find that I write more late at night during summer break.  I’m not sure why, but sometimes the words written in those late hours seem to sound better and flow faster.  I don’t judge the words on the page as harshly as I do during the day.  I’m not distracted by social media, my favorite websites, or television shows.

Summertime allows us to explore new things and challenges as writers. 

This summer, my goal is to write more fiction.  In the past few years, most of my writing reflected a professional focus, but once, a long time ago, I wrote a lot of fiction. I have notebooks filled with stories in my basement and ideas for stories always seemed to be bouncing around in my head. 

I think that I stopped writing fiction after a discouraging experience in a class and as a result, fiction became a nemesis that I didn’t think that I could conquer.  However, avoiding fiction is going to change this summer.  I’m already jotting ideas in my notebook and look forward to participating in the Teach Write Focus on Fiction workshop. 

Anything is possible in the summertime and that’s what is so magical about summer writing.



Jennifer Floyd is a K-5 reading specialist in Rockbridge County, Virginia and an adjunct instructor at the University of Virginia.  She is the President of the Virginia State Reading Association.  She blogs at wahooliteracyteacher.wordpress.com and classroomnextdoor.com and can be found on Twitter @jen4literacy and on Instagram @vsrajennifer.