All of these assignments are for high school students in a creative writing class. I take an approach for the first few weeks of class where we focus on some elements of story. Each week we study one element. I assign the story on Monday and it is due on Friday. We do a lot more with rewrites and editing later in the term. Here are the assignments I have given for every week of my creative writing class at Wayzata so far this semester, as well as the one my students will receive tomorrow. Since description is the last of the elements, we work considerably with that the rest of the semester as we move into different genres and formats of writing.
Week 1: Plot
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
For your first creative writing assignment, let’s just open it up and see what you have. You are to write a story based on one of the images from The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. Be sure to include everything necessary for a plot, including a beginning, middle, and an end, as well as two plot points. Polish this the best you can. There is no length requirement; make it as long as it needs to be. Last, include the quotation from the bottom of the picture somewhere in the story. Fit it in as naturally as possible, and be sure to underline it.
This assignment, like all in this class, should be typed, double-spaced, and include a heading and a title.
Points
Two Plot Points /5
Imbedded quotation /5
Beginning, middle, end /15
Usage /5
Total /30
Week 2: Setting and Audience
Fairy Tale Retelling
You will be rewriting a classic fairy tale, but it’s not for little kids. Concentrate on the time and place of your story. Give context clues to your setting instead of saying outright where and when the story is. So, decide on a fairy tale and the group of people for whom you’d like to write it. You must adapt the basic plot. Want some examples? Rewrite Cinderella for a football team. How about Sleeping Beauty for fans of vampire stories? Get creative.
Points:
Plot Points /5
Setting/Context Clues /10
Overall Adaptation /10
Usage /5
Total /30
Week 3: Point of View
“Your” Personal Narrative?
You’ve written your rough draft, and now you’re working on your spin of a childhood personal story. Remember, your new point of view can be anyone or anything but you. It can still be in first person, but it has to be in the point of view of another in your story: an outsider, a third person narrator, an animal, or an object. You decide.
Rough Draft /5
Point of View /5
Changes /10
Plot Points /5
Usage /5
Total /30
Week 4: Character
Students fill out the following dossier on Monday of the week on character. Then, I photocopy everyone's dossier and randomly pair it with one from another student's in the class. Students do not (and should not) include every piece of information found on the dossiers, but they may not change any of these facts, and they should write their characters knowing these things to be true about them:
Character Dossier
Name ____________________
Nicknames _______________ Age ______
Occupation _______________________ Gender _____
Family____________________Pets______________
Hometown_________________________________
Description of Home ____________________________
Hobbies __________________________________
Friends ___________________________________
Ethnic background __________ Religion ____________
Eye Color _________ Hair Color __________
Weight __________ Height ___________
Favorites:
Movie ________________ Color _________________
Musical Artist __________ Food _________________
Book _________________ Sport _________________
Who is your character’s personal hero?________________
What is your character’s pet peeve? _________________
Where was your character born? ___________________
What else should we know about your character?
Character Story
You will write a story of no more than 1,000 words which involves both the character you created on a dossier and the character assigned to you at random. This can take place anywhere, at any point in time, but must still involve a narrative story line. It must contain at least 10 lines of dialogue. Remember to show character through action, dialogue, examples, description, and exposition.
Points:
Character 1 /8
Character 2 /8
Dialogue /10
Plot /9
Usage /5
Total /40
Week 5: Description
Description
Choose a place. You are to write about that place in as much detail as possible. Make this interesting and readable, but full of detail. This is NOT a story, this is merely your best descriptive writing. That said, be sure to have some flow and organization to your piece, don’t just list things. Be sure to include sensory detail, power words, and your own voice instead of clichés and idioms.
Points:
Sensory Details /10
Word Choice /10
Organization /5
Words Choice /5
Total /30
For the following assignment, I actually assign it around the third week and give students most of the term (half a semester) to complete it. I give students a very long list of books to choose from, including ones from my different genres and formats. The idea is for students to study a bit more of how other authors write, especially because many students do not read for fun at all. I tell the students regularly, "A writer who doesn't read is like a band that doesn't listen to music.
Book Project
Once you have read your book, you are to write a story inspired by the world in which your book takes place. This is very open. You can explore how the main character would act in a different time and place, try a different version of the original story, or spin off into a seemingly unrelated tale based on a specific moment in your book. Write from what you find inspiring, interesting, or curious about the book. There is no length requirement—make this as long or as short as it needs to be. Play with style and formatting. Remember to use everything you have learned so far about the elements of a story. In addition to your story, write a one-page explanation of how your story has sprung from the original book. Why did you make the choices you did? How obvious are the connections?
Points:
Plot /5
Characters /10
Setting /5
Description /15
Usage /5
Explanation /10
Total /50
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Penny for your thoughts?
ReplyDeleteI think that you and I think quite alike in the sense of a sort of compartmental analysis of writing... In other words, tearing Writing down to its smaller constituents (plot, dialogue, setting, and so on and so forth), and largely compartmentalizing our writing instruction, be it creative or expository. Basically, I did the same sort of this assignment for this week's post, isolating the element of specific details.
My question and concern are the potential "dangers" (if you can call label it that) such a compartmentalized vs. holistic approach to writing instruction affords. But, how in the sweet hell else would you teach something so dynamic, so idiosyncratic?!?
I just want to point out that I like how you offer your students to "...just open it up and see what you have." I feel as though you have framed this assignment as a much more holistic approach to the process, saving the compartmentalizing and tearing down until later. I think this is a really good start.
So, my extended question is how do you think we can still acknowledge writing as a super holistic activity when we later break it down so much? Basically, how can we continue to draw attention back to the holistic process at the same time we compartmentalize our instruction.
Nice work. Keep kicking ass.
-Rick Filipkowski
Like Rick I struggle in my own teaching to balance holistic and compartmentalized instruction and evaluation. It seems particularly tricky in creative writing.
ReplyDeleteIn my own teaching, and I know that this can sometimes be contentious, it seems as though there are students with high ability levels for whom holistic instruction and assessment can work; it also seems as though students with lower ability levels flounder in these environments and benefit from a higher degree of specificity with respect to instruction and expectations. In classes that focus on creative writing that often lump students from all levels of ability, this seems to be a problem of individuation (the current buzz term for ability grouping?).
So what do we do? I don't know. My own background, before English, is in studio art and performance music. In these disciplines, which are obviously highly creative, few serious instructors are nervous about drilling the basics. You have to "cut your teeth" before you can improvise a solo - you've got to learn the real book before you can sit in with a jazz combo. And so sometimes I wonder why creative courses in English don't emphasize these sorts of building blocks more before we set students loose to write their own stuff. I know that unless I set incredibly strict requirements I usually get junk back.
But I also get students who are turned off, and who just sit there doodling and pocket-texting.
I like the way you have chosen to "help" the students along with specific directives. I can remember many creative writing classes where I was simply told to write a story. About anything. Any length. Just write. That doesn't work for my students, so I really like the techniques you describe.
ReplyDeleteI think re-writing a story, or changing the ending, or continuing the story (your last assignment is fascinating to me) are all wonderful ways of "helping" the students get started. Additionally, I think it helps them, from a literature standpoint, to study the works they are appropriating more closely. They really have to go in and understand the style, the tone, the characters, the setting, the plot, etc.
I have not taught a full creative writing class before, but often incorporate little exercises like this to help them with the literature. I think you've described some great ways to get students involved and excited without intimidating them.
I totally did that first assignment in 6th grade! In fact, I was just talking about it in my teaching writing course. This was the image I had
ReplyDeletehttp://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/davidc/6c_files/documents/mysteries/underrug.htm
I remember, seriously, writing a 12 page story about little people living underneath the floor boards and that guy getting shrunken down somehow and visiting their world. Weird, weird stuff, but hey, it worked!
I think the other comments are technically useful for you, so I don't have much to add except cool!! It's a good one; it worked for me!