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#HistFicThursdays - Teaching Gothic Horror to the Next Generation

Of course, when I volunteered to write a blog for #HistFicThursdays, it was bound to be Gothic-based. All the pupils at school know now that, if they get me for English, they will be studying some Gothic Horror at some point! I have just taught my first full year of National 5, and the text I selected for the pupils’ Critical Essay (worth 20% of the overall grade) was A Warning to the Curious by the great M. R. James. There are so many fascinating things which can be said about the text: Paxton as a tragic hero; the setting of the First World War and how that is woven in throughout the text; the themes of revenge and respect for beliefs; the many examples of foreshadowing throughout… But teaching a group of teenagers to love (or, more realistically, to understand) M. R. James is not without its challenges. He writes in that wonderfully lyrical style which is key to the Gothic genre and, even for his time, he was using language which was perhaps slightly old-fashioned. Therefore, some ...
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#AuthorOfTheWeek - How I Become Inspired

Earlier today we shared our #AuthorOfTheWeek interview with Susan Crow. You can watch it here:


But, as well as this, we have a short blog here from Susan, talking about her inspiration and how her writing is an encapsulation of her inspiration.

~*~*~*~*~


From our Author of the Week:

Perhaps the most inspirational thing for me is the notion that I can make a difference with my scribblings. I have an absolute passion to improve this ailing earth. I'll never be a great speaker. I'm not a scientist. But I can, through my writings, communicate something of the wonderful richness of the natural world. Once I begin to write about the countryside, about the gardens, about the seashore and all other aspects of Nature, I just keep on writing. There's no stopping me. If I come up against something I don't know well enough, I research until I do - and I get such a buzz from doing the research. There's so much I've still to learn. If all adults shared a little of what they know about plants and animals, rocks and stars, the new generation will develop a respect and responsibility which will be this planet's good friend as it begins to heal in the years ahead. For me, that is inspiration enough.

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