Thursday, January 31, 2013

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

What Happened There?

Your assignment is to write a descriptive piece of 250 words.  You should be giving your reader as many sensory details as possible, without telling them exactly where he or she is.  The goal of the assignment is for the reader to guess your location.  It can be a place where some major event in history has happened, a crime scene, or really anything you'd like.  it is due at the end of the period.

Friday, January 18, 2013

Midterm Review


Midterm Review

You will be responsible for the following formats on the exam:

Haiku

Lune

Sestina

Pantoum

Ottava Rima

 Cinquain

As a review, you must complete the following amounts for each format.  They are due next Friday.

Haiku (5)

Lune (5)

Sestina (1)

Pantoum (1)

Ottava Rima (2)

Cinquain (2)

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Modern Fairy Tale

Everyone has a favorite (or least favorite) classic fairy tale. These old stories are usually set in the vague era of "once upon a time, a long, long time ago," and feature make-believe characters with strange challenges to meet or impossible tasks to complete, and are assisted by mysterious, magical beings. Using an existing fairy tale, legend, myth, or tall tale, writing a tale with a modern, newfangled twist. The complete story should be a minimum of 500 words, due on Tuesday January 22.
Decide which elements of the original story to change or twist. Here are suggestions (you can always come up with your own):

  • Time: Set the story in the present or future, instead of "once upon a time, a long, long time ago." Think about Peter Pan flying over today's NYC, for example.
  • Location: Set the story in a different country, region, or city. Imagine Rapunzel set in Los Angeles or British Columbia or outback Australia.
  • Gender: Change the gender of the main character for a new slant. Perhaps Rumpelstiltskin is a mischievous, grumpy female dwarf, or Cinderella is a modern day janitor.
  • Ending: Keep the original elements but change the ending.
Here is a list of fairy tales, you are free to choose one from the list or an alternate favorite:
*Rapunzel
*Cinderella
*Peter Pan
*Snow White
*Little Red Riding Hood
*Puss in Boots
*Sleeping Beauty
*Goldilocks
*Beauty and the Beast
*Princess and the Pea
*Rumpelstiltskin
*Jack and the Beanstalk
*Hansel and Gretal
*The Ugly Duckling
*The Little Mermaid
 
 
 

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Epigraph Story


Epigraph Story

Epigraph: a quotation set at the beginning of a literary work or one of its divisions to suggest its theme.

 

Many works of fiction contain an epigraph.  Most authors decide on an epigraph after their story has been fully realized.  For this next assignment, we are going to work in reverse.

Select one of the following epigraphs and write a short story of 900 words or more to go along with it.

1.       “All you need is love.”

2.       “A man’s got to know his limitations.”

3.       “Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.”

4.       “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.”

5.       “None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.”

6.       “Fear is your only God.”

7.       “Religion is the opiate of the masses.”

8.       A truth that’s told with bad intent beats all the lies you can invent.”
This assignment is due next Tuesday.  Lab students only have a 600 word minimum.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Free Write

Today's assignment is a topic and format of your choice, the only requirenment being that it has to meet a 250 word minimum. Be creative and original. Due at the end of the period.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Dinner with Dead Celebrities

This is a three day assignment. Here's what to do:

Choose five dead celebrities to include in a dialogue. The dialogue should be based on the idea that these people are having dinner together at the location of your choice. You can take this in any direction you'd like. It can be serious or humorous. The characters can have something in common or be complete opposites. Your one goal for the piece is to provide insight into each character in the dialogue. Try to make the dialogue relevant to specific traits of the character. For example, if you were to choose John Lennon, you might want to have him talk about World Peace, or finding a "Beatle" in his soup.

Format Instructions: This dialogue is to be three pages in length minimum, single spaced, 12 pt. Calibri font. You should hit "Return" each time the dialogue shifts to a new speaker and insert any stage directions and gestures using italics, like so:

John Lennon: I can't believe there's a bloody beetle in my soup.

Steve Irwin: The gator bites are fantastic.

Tu Pac: Looking up from his plate, and smiling at Irwin. I hear Sting Ray is quite the delicacy around here.

John Lennon: Stay clear of them, Stevie boy, I hear they're bad for your heart.

You can work by yourself or with ONE partner on this assignment. Make sure your paper has the name of the assignment at the top. If you choose to work with a partner, make sure both names are on the assignment. This is due at the end of class on Friday.