An Actress, an Author, and an English Teacher: Advice to Young Writers

          There's a short article in the new issue of The Week (March 7, 2014) about the insecurities of British actress Emily Mortimer, daughter of the late and famous lawyer and author, John Mortimer.  She attributes her chronic feelings of self-doubt to the circumstances surrounding her admission to an exclusive private school in London.  It seems she was on the "wait list" until her father took the headmistress out to lunch:  "I'm sure he told her what an attractive, wonderful woman she was and put his hand on her knee, or something, and then I got in."  Making matters worse, "I got him to write all my essays," which was fine, she reported, until the final grades came in.  One of her teachers said that her stories were good, "but that they lack that vital spark of imagination"--which made her father so mad that he had to be restrained from taking the matter up with school officials.
        The anecdote is amusing of course, and perhaps even true, but Emily Mortimer's teacher does make one wonder about English teachers in general.  I spent a lifetime being one, and what I observed was that very few of my colleagues ever wrote a word--and yet felt fully competent to teach writing.  It doesn't compute.  Would you want to learn about car mechanics from someone who never worked on cars?
          My advice to young writers:  keep writing and trust your instincts.  They are probably a better guide than your teachers.
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