Katie Dees post about Valencia College got me thinking about my first and best college writing instructor: Ona Barfield. Leathery skin. Tart tongue. Preferred bourbon and rode a motorcycle. She didnt lecture. Instead, she met with me one-on-one, once a week in Valencias writing lab where she routinely shredded my writing without ever nicking my soul. My prose was cocksure, emphatic and foggy as a Florida muck fire. After a semester at her sharp elbow I was convinced that I was the most mediocre writer to ever step foot on the VCC East Campus. But on my last assignment, inked up with purple, Professor Barfield became the first and only teacher in my life who told me, Have you ever considered earning a living with your pen? She taught writing, but ultimately she was in the hope business.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Nov 2014 00:58:55 +0000
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