I finished my eight-week writing class last week. I should have known I'd get what I paid for, as it was a local community school district class with $38 tuition fee. Why do I keep thinking I'm going to get more than what I pay for something? Add also the $20 materials fee.
The instructor was a 60-year-old lady, named Tyna (not Tina, that's Tyna, rhymes with vagina) complete with peach hair and polyester shirt, who has never published a book in her life. She has, however, been thanked by several local writers in the Acknowledgement page of their books. She photocopied these acknowledgements, highlighted them, then handed them out--charging us all the while for her pathetic pages in our materials fee. Let's not mention the pyramid scheme advertisements she also handed out, charging us for the photocopying. Unbelievable.
The class began with seven enthusiastic young writers searching for something. I'm still not certain what some of them were looking for. But the class ended with three. I would have dropped out, but I'm too cheap and refuse to pay my $58 without getting something in return. I'd at least make her read my manuscript.
Yes, she looked at my manuscript. She's not a bad copyeditor--could tell me when I had inadvertantly changed tense or had a typo. Maybe this would make it worth the money. But I couldn't stand the sheer stupidity of most of her comments. Is this why I came home irritated each night?
I normally brought a book along, read In Cold Blood or A Fine Balance beneath the stack of photocopies she was continually handing out. Yes, Tyna, I know the difference between affect and effect. I learned that in middle school. At least I had a moment to myself, without having to worry about where my daughter Bianca was, as she was safely scribbling on the dry-erase board in my husband's office eating gummi bears and yanking sodas from his office mini fridge.
I will admit I learned several things, like how to format a manuscript and what a query letter is. I could have just read Writer's Market--or bought three of them for the price of the class.
