Round Tabling

The party was a great time! The costumes were fun, but we should definitely put more effort and energy into them next year! Orrrrrr...we could hold a masque in the post-Christmas time--like in the spring: Valentine's? And we could costume for that to get more practice..

As for this week, we need to plan on round tabling. Come in the a.m. as early as possible. Bring your Rogue PermaPass; let's try to start BY 8:15a, meaning, try to come a little earlier than that. If we could knock out 20 poems/day we could probably move through our stash in a week. We still have to contact the people whose poems we're willing to publish to get them to get them on our 1/3 page slips...and we need to give them ample time to get 'em back to us. These things considered, our time is slim. We've got a month...

Provided we are approved for 11/30 in the snack bar, we need to start contemplating RogueNight design and table decor--plus other activities (like the balloon pit), etc. Start spinning on these things and see what ideas you generate.

This Friday's Rogue would be an "alumni welcome" day, but Jennie posted that she can't come and I know Raul is working...probably Katrina is, too. Lately, many of us have been almost too busy to write, so I want a heads-up on who will have material this week. If we're looking at a thin week, I'd like to suggest doing an SoB bonding type meeting instead--@ SoB, perhaps, or at the new Starbucks. Ideas?

...let the work begin!

Easter

RogueBox Closes in 5...

Alright everyone, it's time to focus on getting submissions. This week is our best chance to ramp up our number of entries. YOUR PERSONAL CONTACT with writers you know is our best avenue to getting people to submit. Anyone you know who writes (or whom you think is a writer) needs to submit a couple of poems by Friday. You'll be in the classrooms on Tuesday/Wednesday of this week, and that will be a good contact, too, but in the past it has been friends and groupies of Rogue who have bulked our number of entries out to a respectable number for publication. Put on your game faces.

Monday Goal: Meet as early as possible to cut regular paper into thirds.

Tuesday Goal: Meet as early as possible to discuss 'scripts' for classroom visits.

Wednesday Goal: Same as Tuesday.

Thursday Goal: NEW eye-catching posters in the hallways to remind of Friday's closing of the RogueBox.

Friday Goal: Close the RogueBox, conduct informal BizMeet after school, Halloween party @ Jessie's.

See you in the a.m.,

Easter

SoB Friday @ 3...

So we're planning on having an SoB on Friday @ 3p actually @ SoB, correct? Yes. I think that was the agreed-upon plan. We'll have a laid back meeting/reading with a pinch of Rogue Halloween party planning. Can ya' dig?

I can SO dig.

Easter

Tuesday & Wednesday...Friday, too.

As promised, here is a goals-specific new post...

For Tuesday a.m. I want everyone to meet as early as possible in my room. There will be cutting involved. I'll print off handbills and miscellaneous slips of paper for you to pass out to people in the hallways. The goal is to get EVERYONE made aware of us and to draw out the poets into the glorious light of our project. It needs must be done!

For Wednesday a.m. I want everyone to meet as early as possible in my room to prep for English class visits. I will use you during the hour you have English...and drama, art, or other class where the teacher will be down with it. I (<- that's a BOLD I ) will decide what classes you're able to miss based on MY opinion of whether the teacher will be OK with it.

For Friday p.m. I want us to plan to meet for a bizmeet/readingmeeting. SoB is fine, but we must contact the library, as we are on the books for meeting there--and I failed to call last week to notify them of our absence. That's tacky & rude--and my fault last week. DON'T LET ME FORGET AGAIN, please.

Lastly, the button maker and materials to make 250 buttons arrived today. Hooray! The process is a little tedious, but I think with practice it will be speedy enough. This true, we need to work your button ideas into usable sizes. I still have a file of the stuff you turned in to me when last I called for it. Come by and ask to see the button maker and sample "I Heart Reading" button I made.

Heart 12,

Easter

...sensing trouble

I wanted an eye-catching title for this post that, while true, is also a little overly dramatic. Still, I am realizing how YOUNG the staff is and how so few have done Rogue (the product) or RogueNight in the past. This takes a lot of work--a LOT of work. And I'm just sensing a little trouble because we have this short week of 3 days to get into classrooms which means there's going to be a significant lull of 4 days before our final push for submissions during the week of 10.23 - 10.27. And that lull...it just serves to defuse our intensity. We'll have to work hard to keep it up.

So what am I driving at? I am simply urging you to keep up your energy and excitement for Rogue and recruiting good/active writers to submit. In the past, this is how we've survived--you all make the connections and issue the demands of people you know to submit. People like to hear that they're good writers, and it makes them feel special to be pursued. So get after it!

Today I am going to work up the schedule of when you will go into the classrooms this week. Your spiel needs to be quick and clear. I'll see about having some FAQs to pass out, etc. Everyone needs to come in as early as possible tomorrow morning, preferably by 8:15a. If you can't, don't sweat it; I know some of you simply cannot make it that early in the morning, and that's no problem.

Last, we really need to discuss format. Because we've not done this yet, we've got no form to pass out to have students use to put their poetry on. If poems come in on various-sized paper in various states of legibility I don't know what we're going to do...so think on this. Also think on our previous idea of publishing a RogueCD--no (or few) paper copies.

Enjoy the rain.

Easter

Updates for Week 1

OK. So far, signage is happening. That's a good thing. Jessie, Joe, Katie, Suzanna, Wade, & Margaret have helped out. My freshmen are beginning to ask what Rogue is, so keep up the good work. Also, when the announcement was made during 2nd hour today (that the RogueBox was opening), several of my poetry students exclaimed, "YESSS!" That was nice to hear.

Rogue PermaPasses are now available. If you do not have yours, get it from me ASAP. They're pretty.

I ordered the button maker and enough supplies to make 250 buttons. We're officially back in the hole, folks, but not too far--about $20. We can make that up EASILY once we get some buttons made and sold. I'll work on getting the paperwork done to allow you to sell these once we get some made.

This Friday, Rogue will meet at SoB. You guys have been requesting it, and I am going to be unavailable. Newbies: Make sure your parents know I won't be there to "supervise", please. I hope that doesn't disallow some of you from attending, but if it does I'll offer my apologies now.

I'll update further as things further develop. We're off to a good start...but let's do be sure to PLASTER THE WALLS with signs. So far, the walls are only spotted...

Heart 12,

Easter

Rogue: This Week & Next

OK. I'm on board for the mass of Roguevents that commence, well, tomorrow. I was out of town again yesterday; man, that takes me off my game.

Goal for Monday: Bring signage. As we discussed Friday, whatever you bring WILL, likely, get destroyed--so don't take it personally. Each sign you bring needs to include the basics (covered below) and should not be overly creepy. Our loose 'carnivale' theme is directed more toward spectacle & the bizarre than it is toward scary. Yeah, definitely don't try to make the signs scary by writing (coughJOEcough) 'come if you dare.'

Signage Basics:
-RogueBox opens 10/13
-Submit original poetry of roughly 23 lines or shorter
-RogueBox is in Easter's room, 229
-RogueBox closes 10/27

In the past, we have connected with our audience of student writers by making signs that say things like, "Don't you have something to say?" and "...we're listening." Because of the quiet/shy nature of many student writers, we have to devise ways of drawing them out. This is a good activity in, well, advertising...so think about your audience when you're making your signs. Imagine what would captivate YOU. Everyone's signs will be different, and they'll hopefully serve as a kind of dragnet for all varieties of writers in our school.

Please do your best to have 20ish signs tomorrow a.m. I'll have tape & my own signs. Oh, and perma-passes; I'll have those, too. You'll need 'em...

Slightly off (this) topic--I need your speedy opinion on this: Do you want our buttons to be 2.25" circles or 1.25" circles? We cannot afford (yet) to buy both...so which would you prefer to start? The bigger ones are the large standard, but the smaller ones are the type I tend to see more on people's bags, etc. The larger ones will be easier to design for... I'm 50-50. I need your opinions so I can place the order.

There may be things I need to add to this post, so watch for edits or other people's comments.

Fire up.

Easter

A Happy New Post

...and Jessie: I cannot believe you would call me a slacker! Now, I could shame you much by retelling the intensity of my weekend and how it is so little separated from the hectic pace of my week...but I'm not one for guilt trips. :/

Truly, all, I did intend to post before now, Monday morning at almost 7:00a, but I've not been home. I will get the schedule up...as soon as I find it--or I'll have Jessie dictate it from her whack memory at school.

Much love,

Easter