Written Final Coming up!

Please make sure I have you Literary Scrapbooks and Final Projects by the time you show up for the final exam on Monday--ALSO: If you want to turn in a POLISHED version of your favorite piece from your writing journal this year, please bring it with you on Monday, June 10th, to the final exam.Thanks for everything!
Mrs. Eddy

Writing about Family

Be sure and get the handout in class-- there is a great bit of discussion and a few examples about how to to creative non-fiction/memoir/biography writing and seven choices on how to go about doing it.  We will hand these in on May 31st. Friday--
Seniors! Finals on Monday, June 3 and 4 during class-- don't miss it!
Scrapbooks: Due June 7th unless you are a senior (June 4th for you.
We are almost done: happiness/sadness!

Last Week Update

We spent most of last week reading our self-chosen novels and creating our scrapbooks.  Please see older posts for those requirements/assignments.

We also talked about how all authors engage in "World Building," setting up the rules an laws that define the world(setting) where their story takes place. One fun thing t do is to create a world that has dfferent ereules from our own-- maybe even unjust rules-- and then introduce a character who breaks the rules.  belwo is a copy of that assignment-- PLEASE TURN IN ASAP--NO MORE"LATE WORK" AFTER THIS WEEK-- ABSOLUTELY-- THANKS!

World Building: 

World Building

Every story is set in a fictional world. Even if your world appears to be the same as the real world, you need to establish its similarity.

Pick a crime in your world. Write (or research and write) how criminals are punished for that crime. Are they presumed innocent or guilty? Do they get a trial? Do they represent themselves? Is there a jury? What is the punishment? Are there exceptions to the rules?

 Journal: Write a scene or a document detailing the legal system (or lack of legal system).

To turn in:

1-Write a description of a character in your world: a quick background/exposition.

2- Have your character decide commit the crime you wrote about yesterday: write a scene where we see the decision to commit the crime made by the character, and we understand not only why they did it, but what the consequences might be—you can use internal dialogue/narration or show what happens from the outside—as another character or the narrator explains what your character is up to.

Working on Scrapbooks

Most of this week has been time to work on our reading and literary scrapbook during class.  One thing we turned in was a story or poem about color. PROMPT:

It was all yellow.


Colors have always been linked to emotions. Take one color and write down every emotion you associate with that color. Then, branch out. Write down people and positions, locations, objects, weather--anything at all that you associate with that color. The relationship doesn't have to be logical; it doesn't have to make sense to anyone but you.

Write a poem or short story incorporating a few of the objects and feelings that you've listed. Incorporate the original, inspirational color as frequently or infrequently as you like.


Final Project: Try to publish by May 24th--either on blurb.com or with me---thanks!


Mrs. Eddy

Time to Read and Write--Creatively!

Today we finished writing about our childhood "firsts" and then went down to the library to get a book to read for the next few weeks--
If you are currently reading something delicious, you can use that.
Bring the book to class tomorrow, Wednesday, May 8th,
Here is the assignment we will go over and start tomorrow:
Literary Scrapbook

Project Progress and Childhood Firsts

We turned in a document idea this today-- it is required to pass the class---
Project Progress

We also read an amazing short story and an fun poem--
Read this Story
Read this poem and thoughtfully complete the worksheet
Writing Assignment

Se you tomorrow as we finish the writing assignment!
Mrs. E

Writing Story Inspired by OZ: DON"T NEGLECT YOUR PROJECT

This week we are drafting a story that gets its inspiration from The Wizard of OZ.
I am currently working on the story of the Ambivalent Witch of the NW--might turn out well?
Drafts of stories due on Thursday, May 2nd at the end of class.
Here is the rest of the assignment in case you missed it:
How Story Works

Project Progress Reports are due Monday, May 6th

Story elements

Monday-- we turned in a properly written dialogue--see "Creepy" assignment in last post.
Tuesday: we explored story elements and the variety of heroes and quests we find in story.  Focusing on one story we know well-- (Harry Potter? Cinderella? Mulan? Star Wars? Lion King? Lord of the Rings? The Hobbit? Hunger Games?) Just about any great movie or book?) we completed the following worksheet:
Story as Journey Archetype

Wed-Friday: we will view the classic film, The Wizard of Oz.  and use it as a great model of this archetype-leading to our writing the final big story of the semester:
Wizard of Oz tasks/Assignments:

Poems Galore and More

Monday we finished presenting song lyrics as poetry
Tuesday we talked about how to write a song-- and started drafting one!
Wednesday we turned in the Song we Wrote!
Thursday was "Poem in your Pocket Day:
Here is the assignment:
We started thinking about and writing GREAT dialogue-- writing in fragments of sentences and thoughts, just the way real people do.  Here is that Assignment: Creepy Dialogue

Project Dates

Semester Project Deadlines


https://docs.google.com/document/d/1U7m4GEZI50Em0xO6KdzHsF3nWXnVScA3WJLqSfZT6Q4/edit#

Back at Work!

WE are in the home stretch of the school year and looking forward to creating our own, published works.
Tuesday: We went to the library to type up our "Dark and Stormy Night" stories.  We will get ONE MORE DAY to finish those--hopefully this week.
Wednesday:  Introduced the Willamette Store's Poetry Contest. Here is a link to the rules
ASSIGNMENTS: 
1- Enter the Contest: cc (send a copy) of your entry to me:
eddy_christina@salkeiz.k12.or.us before the due date (April 13th) Here is a link to the rules
2- Write a Quatrain about an ordinary object   (See Directions Below)
3- Complete a proposal for your semester project      Proposal worksheet and example

Quatrain

 

To view what's around you as if for the first time, it can be necessary to wander away from your everyday life, to get lost on purpose, to lose track of time, leave home for a while so you can return with fresh eyes and a refocused imagination. Wander around and just look at things. Open doors, peer into closets, check out bookshelves and cupboards.

Go on your own snoop or pick something from the list that follows. Anything that you can reach out and touch is up for grabs. The idea is to write four lines (or a quatrain) about one object and describe it in an entirely different light.

On the first line: write the name of your object.

On the second line: compare it with something or rename it in a way that makes sense to you.

On the third line: add a dash of detail about what you wrote on line two.

On the fourth line: reassure it, ask it a question, say what it's doing, or what it's like.

Optional objects: pencil, bench, storm, candle, thumb, toothpick, soup spoon, key, sock, book, shadow, cat, quarter, moon.

Example:

Thumb

odd, friendless boy

raised by four aunts,

don't worry, you're not alone.

-Philip Dacey

Almost Spring Break!

We have been working on several things, so I wanted to get the assignments organized  for you before we go off to break
1. Cheesy Stories (It was a dark and....) Story Additions You should have them all typed up and accessible from school computers. We will finalize those when we return from break (April 3rd).  If you would like to work on/expand/explore/edit yours before that, please do!

2. Time of Day poem This is due on Thursday, March 21st, or the first day you get back from break if you are on a school trip. Noun List for this poem

3. Semester Project: think things over and get together a proposal--we will talk about this some more and turn in formal proposals when we get back from break-- on April 3rd, to be exact.

4. Anti-Hero story: Writing activity + Read, The Life You Save May be Your Own, by Flannery O'Connor and be prepared to discuss heroes, anti-heroes--our next story!

Haiku contest and Cheesy Story Exercises

This week we worked on that story that started with, "it was a dark and story night . . . by practicing a little writing craziness on it.  Attached is a copy of the three things you need to do to your story-- YES, you must pic one of the things listed EXCEPT for the ending,  Make the ending work--somehow!  We will type these stories up next week.
Start the Story with the Story Starter

End the story like a true writer-- resist the urge to cheese out here. Write an ending that your readers will cheer about (or at least not throw tomatoes!)

We turned in a draft of a haiku poem that conforms to the rules of this contest on Friday-- Write your haiku and bring it on Monday if  you were absent.
See you on Monday!

New Short Story: All in Class!

We handed in the "Road Trip" pantoum poems for grading.
Here is the new story starter-- you must use every word of it, and then finish the story your own way!  We will work on this Wednesday and Thursday in class, with collaboration groups and idea banks and editing exercises--oh yeah!.Thanks!
Mrs. Eddy

Feb 25 - March 1st

This week in review:

Monday/Tuesday: we keyboarded our hearts out and finished a compete draft of the short story--turned them in on-
Wednesday: We wrote a discussion in class (silent discussion), and then began to brainstorm for our writing frenzy about our DREAM ROAD TRIP that began on
Thursday: Went through the Dream Road trip REVISION process (see link on Wednesday) up to Haiku (that rhymes!)
Friday: 1- Finish with the haiku RE-VISION of our road trip and EDIT AND TURN IN our pantoum and our cinquain (see link from Wednesday).
2- Funeral for the remaining eggs: Turn in: How Mr. Egg should leave this world, and why. (10-20 words, only)

This Week in Review/Preview

Tuesday: We wrote a bit about our eggs and then got involved in good writing--we had a lesson on SHOWING, NOT TELLING as we write.Showing Character Lesson

Wednesday: We wrote for a bit in our journals about a new birth: The title is, "It's a ...." We also thought about how our egg would survive in a spoon, fit in a spoon, make it from one spoon to another, etc. THEN we got into character, stiuation and desires and obstacles: we are completing a lesson/worksheet intitled, "Writing the Short Story" and then we will do just that--
Thursday: Complete the worksheet on "Writing the Short Story" and then begin a hand-written draft of your story-- Don't forget about amazing opening lines, showing instead of telling about characters, noticing details, using metaphor, and all the other great stuff we've been working on since the start of the semester.
Friday: We are off the the middle computer lab in the library to type up a draft of our:
Monday: We type again
  Short Story:
5-7 pages 
DOUBLE-spaced 
Times New Roman 
one-inch margins. 
Can be about anything, but must have at least one clearly written major character with a clear goal/desire and at least one major obstacle to obtaining said goal.  Of course-- friends/enemies, internal and external conflicts, extraordinary powers, long-lost wizard uncles, purple irises and fangs are fun, and multiple belly-buttons and evil twins are fine, as are ice/lava/tornadoes/meteor showers and singing dwarfs and talking bananas-- but remember that you can't go over seven pages. At all. Period. Thank you and have fun!
Complete, Typed Draft Due Tuesday, Feb. 26th.

Eggy Days and Eggy Nights

Light and dark, comedy and tragedy, evil plots and sweet dreams-- all of this drama we have experienced as we CLOSELY OBSERVED our eggs.
Here is some of what we did in class: Class activity #1  Class activity #2
Please be sure to bring in at least 50 observations on Monday--if they are in your writing journal, no worries, I will just look at them, not tear them out.
We are also almost done with our Synesthesia poem.
Here is the explanation of that assignment: Synesthesia Poem
Here is the grading rubric, so you know what you will be judged on, in the end: S. Poem Grading rubric

Here is more writing you might have missed: First Lines  and  Close Observation Story: Take this Fish!

Thursday Notes

Due Friday: Final Draft of "Moody Poem" and first draft of "101 Word Journey" (see previous posts for details). Tomorrow we will present our poems--read them to the class--share our GENIUS!

If you were absent, here are the journal exercises we did today:

2/7/2013

Exercises

#1

Opening Line

Finally, after years and years of arduous searching, we found it. Damn.

Use the following line as the opening line of a short-story or poem. (5 minutes)

#2

Short Words

Write a paragraph that uses only one syllable words. Your choice of subject. (10 minutes)

Brand New Semester--Created!

Welcome to Creative Writing!  I don't have but a minute, so I will just slam down a few links and talk about the class more at a later date. Please make sure you have a writing folder with fresh paper and three prongs (no spirals!) with you for each class. this is where you will keep all your exercises and activities from class for the whole semester, plus whatever else you want to write in there.
Monday: We wrote a quick, three-line poem exploring the visual possibilities of metaphor, and then we completed a "Moody Poem" where, again, we tried to capture abstract ideas with written images (IMAGERY!).
Tuesday we wrote 101 word stories about a journey.  Here is a link to the instructions: 101 Word Story
Wednesday We wrote in our writing folders for fifteen minutes and shared our work: prompt
worked some more on those short, short, 101 word stories and started to revise our Moody poems-- we will finish both these tasks on Thursday.
Enjoy the day!
Mrs. E

Down to the Wire

I am sooooo pleased with the wondrous final projects that you have turned in-- so much care and creativity is in your pages--EXCELLENT!

Final Exam/Grade situation: Three components;equally weighted
1- Your Final Project
2- Your Writing Journal from this Semester: Complete, Organized, Table of Contents, Three of your favorite pieces marked for expansion put in a special section-- I will read the reason you chose these as examples, and read the examples.
3-Finals Day: We will engage in Ekphrastics-- examples of works written in response to graphic art will be given to you, as well as some well-known paintings for you to consider.  You will write a piece (prose or poem) in response to one of the paintings as your final write--final exam).

Poetry Reading Friday

Final Copies of the Villanelle Poem are due Friday-- we will read and enjoy--yes!
Mrs. Eddy P.S.: PLEASE finish up your final projects.  I can't wait to see them.
Mrs. E

Monday Mornings Make the Grade

We got our last chance to turn in a first draft-- hey, that's interesting--wording-- of our villanelle about life surprises.  We are now working on our reading to search for SYMBOLISM in story.  Reading excellent works is a key element in becoming a better writer-- Stephen King an Anne Lamott say so, as well as many others.
REMINDER: Final Projects--semester projects-- are due January 22nd--a Tuesday.  Don't be late!
Mrs. Eddy
Villanelle assignment another way

Welcome Back Writers!

Remember that we will be writing about EXACTLY how we are progressing with our semester projects tomorrow.  Please come prepared to explain where you are in the process.  Project DUE DATE-- Tuesday, January 22 NO LATE WORK-- IT IS THE END OF THE SEMESTER!
Here's the work we did today--have a great rest of this short week!