Not quite ready to face the fact that I’m no longer a blogger, hesitantly I type in the url that I’ve been missing: https://ruthayreswrites.com. The irony of my title — Ruth Ayres Writes — when Ruth Ayres hasn’t been writing (at least not in this space) makes me roll my eyes. I sigh at the subtitle — stacking my stories so you have the gumption to shine. Yes, that’s why I’ve been writing blog posts for more than a decade. Pushing through a cringe, I count my 2018 blog… Read more I like writing + I’m not a fraud →
Dear Amy, Your words at PCTELA 18 were just what I needed. When you finished, and everyone was standing and clapping because you were amazing (even before 10 am), I… Read more Dear A.S. King… →
I talked with a young writer this week because his teacher was exasperated. He’d been working on the same draft for weeks, and my best calculations revealed he wrote almost one line in his composition book per week. He was shy and embarrassed when we started talking. (He was talking with me as part of a demon lesson. There were 25 teachers in the room and I struck a deal with him that he could bolt from the conference at any time — no questions asked. Thankfully he hung in… Read more The writer, the woman who made my breakfast sandwich, and the people around the campfire →
“Teachers have hushed for too long.” Pernille Ripp said these words in her opening keynote for the Indiana State Literacy Association. I scribbled them in my notebook and they have… Read more Hush →
I texted these words to Hannah this week. Then paused. They are true for more than a 16 year of girl. They are Truth for all of us. Don’t let… Read more Your Past Isn’t the BOSS →
This picture of my backyard from earlier this week does not capture the beautiful weight of the moment. I stood on my deck and steadied my breathing. The rainbow bridged… Read more Returning to My Roots →
[CELEBRATE This Week: 241] Brenda Power has been giving the gift of writing retreats to Choice Literacy/Lead Literacy writers for a long time. The first year, we gathered in the foothills of Ohio and we each selected a polished rock out of box. When you flipped the rock over, there was a word to live with for the retreat. We were to keep the rock with us and consider what the word meant for our lives. All but one of the rocks were normal rock colors — grey, dust, brown… Read more Writing Retreat →
[CELEBRATE This Week 240] I was talking about blogging with Pernille and asked, “Do you set your posts ahead of time?” “Nope,” she said. “It’s all first draft writing. Whatever… Read more Raw Reflection →
CELEBRATE This Week [239] Last Saturday, Sam hung his list of summer goals on the fridge. I didn’t ask him to make a list, he just did it on his… Read more Do Nothing →
Ruth Ayres Writes 