I second that emotion

There's something to be said for letting the story stand on its own. So I guess in that way I agree with Shana's fancy Hahvuhd teachuh. I know in my writing I have a hard time keeping hands off-- seems like I'm always judging my characters or inserting my emotion into the scenery and language instead of just letting it be. But no emotion, period? Then why tell the story at all? Maybe your instructor just means the old show-don't-tell: choose the right story, tell it simply and honestly, and it will affect your readers personally without you having to beat them over the head with it. I've been reading Lawrence Wechler (a seminal Kim fave), and he does non-fiction unbelievably well, just by noticing how different pieces of the world fit together. Maybe check him out.
In other news, I got an interview at Harvard for this Friday! ...hopefully I'm not jinxing anything. So as you may have guessed, I'll be in Boston this weekend, and so excited to be back so soon after graduation. Maybe we should have a meeting of the Midnight Society, um, I mean, The Attic Office...a little tea, a little 'I Remember'? Also, can I invite Sara Rice to join? She's BC 08, former president of the English Association, and actively writing. (It's true, she just sent me a poem the other day.)