text out of context

Text Out of Context

Most of us use text messages as a way to communicate with others. Write a very short story that revolves around a misunderstanding that occurs due to this type of communication. You can take this in any direction you'd like (missed sarcasm, misspellings, wrong phone number/person, auto-correct goof). Your story must be a minimum of 500 words. It is due at the end of the week (by the end of Friday's class).

"Your" Holiday Tradition

Describe a routine or holiday ritual, using the 2^nd person “you”:

For example, “You stand in the steaming kitchen with people you haven’t seen in almost a year. You wish your shirt didn’t have that tiny stain on the cuff. You wish your aunt’s laugh wasn’t quite so brittle. Feet stomp on the porch and you hurry to let your tall uncle in, forgetting to keep the dog from escaping outside…”

A minimum of 250 words, due at the end of the period. The traditional could be real or fictional.

Perfect

In detail, describe the perfect ___________ (some suggestions: childhood, song, person, meal, date, life). Make sure to connect the description to sensory detail (smell, sight, touch, taste, sound) and try to use at least one of the following: personification, metaphor, similie. A minimum of 250 words.

Perspective of a Villain

Write a 250 word poem or story from the perspective of a villain (either an existing villain from a book/movie/etc or one of your creation). The piece should explain the motivation and the inner workings of the mind of this villain.

The Most Embarrassing Note Ever!

Your assignment is to create the contents of a note that is found in the hallway.  This note, when found, would embarrass its writer to the greatest extent.  Be creative!  Be funny!  Your note must be a minimum of 400 words.

Song Analysis

Choose a song you like that contains lyrics that require some thought to obtain their meaning.  First, copy and paste the lyrics into your document.  Then, write 150 words about what you think the song is saying.  It is due at the end of the period.  Do not choose a simple song or you will receive no credit for the assignment.

Letter from the Future

Write a letter to yourself 30 years from now. Include what you should have achieved by then, your goals and aspirations, and what you expect to see yourself as in the future.
You letter should be a minimum of 300 words, due at the end of the period.

A Secret That Changed Everything

Use today and tomorrow to write a short story of 500 words about how a secret drastically altered a life or lives.  Your story should employ first- person narration, and should be proofread for errors before being posted to the blog.

Rooms

Describe the rooms of the following three characters; an artist, a child, a military leader. Make sure to get into the motivation for the items described being in the room - give a purpose and back story for the items (either as an observer or from the owner's point of view). Use descriptive and sensory detail.Try to convey a tone that tells us something about the character's personality. Each description should be about 100 words.

Lie Poem

Write a poem about yourself in which nothing is true. The poem should be a minimum of 10 lines. Due at the end of the period.

Time Metaphor Poem

Write a poem that uses a metaphor to describe time and its effects.  It must be 50 words.  It is due at the end of the period.

Goodbye Note

Choose any deceased person you'd like, and imagine that he or she wrote a goodbye note before leaving this earth.  Construct that note.  Your note must be 150 words.  It is due at the end of the period.  It can be humorous or serious.

Alphabet Short Story

Create a short story that is 26 sentences long, each sentence beginning with the next letter of the alphabet. Your story should be comprised of complete sentences.

This Is How I Live My Life

Your assignment for the week is to create a prose piece that discusses how you approach life.  It must be 750 words (400 for lab students).  It should be proofread to ensure a minimum of errors.  You can approach this in any way you like.  Here are some things to consider:

• things you value in yourself
• things you look for in a friend
• things you are absolutely unwilling to bend on
• things that annoy you
• faults that are forgivable in your eyes
• faults that are unforgivable in your eyes
• is it ever necessary to lie? When?
• what is your greatest accomplishment?
• what was your biggest mistake?

This assignment is due on Friday at the end of class.  No exceptions.

Bi-directional Poetry

Your assignment is to create a poem that can be read both forwards and backwards.  It is a challenging assignment that can bring a multitude of benefits to your writing; it can open up the possibility to perceive new possibilities in word structure, as well as add depth and dimension to a single poetic concept.

This assignment also teaches the importance of comma placement. Since your poem has to be read both forwards and backwards, reorganization reagarding comma placement becomes crucial in making your poem readable in both directions.  For today's part of the assignment, do not include any commas.  We will return to the comma placement portion at a later time.

Because this assignment is so difficult, I only ask that your poem be a minimum of seven lines, with a minimum of three words per line.  It is due at the end of the period.

Here's an example I constructed to help guide you:

Peaceful and quiet
eternal sleep makes it so
death is transformation
soon comes change
pain wilting slowly
like dying flowers
ending is beginning

Face

Your assignment is to go online and find a picture of an adult face that interests you. Study it. Then write a piece, in poetic or narrative form, that describes what experiences have shaped that face. Why does it look the way it does? What has this person gone through? Create a story for the individual and the marks upon their face.
Make sure to copy and paste the link to the picture at the top of your response, as a reference (since you cannot post images into the comment section).
Length - 400 words.
Due - Wednesday

Hint: Search for "portrait," since the word "face" has some issues.

End of the World

Your assignment is to create a three-page story about how the world will end. This story can go in any direction you'd like. You can make it humorous or serious, but try to make your story as creative and original as possible. You are competing. The person who writes the best story, as judged by your teacher, will receive an exemption from the next long writing assignment (however, you may choose to complete the exempt assignment for extra credit).

Format: Times New Roman, double spaced, 12 point font.
Due Friday, November 16, 2012

Ode to Sandy

Your assignment is to reflect on the past several days, and construct a written piece about some aspect of the storm and its effects.  Your response can be in any form you like.  The only requirement is that it is 300 words in length.  It is due at the end of the period.

Epitaphs - Thursday and Friday

An epitaph is a poem to remember the dead. Your poem will let the person reading it know the following:

1. Who is in the grave?
2. How they lived? or died?

Your task is to write a poem (or lyrical prose) that will be displayed on tombstones in the graveyard. You may choose to make them serious or humorous, depending on the person the epitaph is for. Many famous writers use lines from their own fiction on their tombstones (included is the picture of F Scott Fitzgerald's grave) to further immortalize their words.

You will be writing 10 of these in total, with one of them being an epitaph for your own tomb. Each one of the epitaphs needs to be a minimum of 4 lines long.
Here is an example of a humorous epitaph:

Here lies my dear friend Ben.

He walked into a lion's den.

He made some noise, that silly fool,

and turned up in the lion's stool.

 

Bio and Favorites

For the purposes of "The Spectrum," please write a 100 word bio - include information about yourself appropriate to be published on the school website.
Also, include a list of your 5 favorite books, 5 favorite songs, and 5 favorite movies.

"A Killer Assignment" Days 5 and 6 (Mon and Tues)

Days Five and Six: During the next two class periods of this assignment, you are to spend your time:

1. Creating Scene 2. Thinking in cinematic fashion, write a one-page, typed, single-spaced, 12 pt Times New Roman narrative that describes the first killing. You have used the previous classes to establish your killer's identity, and to give the readers an indication of who the victim is. Today is the day to do some dirty work. This scene should focus on the killing, from start to finish. Remember that you are trying to create a scene that the reader can imagine as if he/she were watching it at the movies.

Hint: If you have previously revealed too much (or not given enough detail on the killer or victim) go back and edit - 1 page should focus on the killer only (background, motivation, style, appearance), 1 page on the victim (what kind of person they are? why are they chosen? should we feel sorry or glad that they die?), and 1 page is the killing(s).

"A Killer Assignment" Days 3 and 4

Days Three and Four: During the next two class periods of this assignment, you are to spend your time:

1. Creating Scene 1. Thinking in a cinematic fashion, write a one page, typed, single-spaced, 12 pt Times New Roman, narrative that sets the stage for the first killing. DO NOT include a killing in this scene. The purpose of this scene is to give an overall impression of the general setting where the killings will take place, and most importantly, to familiarize the audience with the first victim. You should try to establish a connection between the reader and your victim. Make the victim come to life, using tools like dialogue and description. Let the reader know who this person really is. What is this person's personality like? You want to make the reader feel something strong about the character, be it positive or negative. Decide whether you want the reader to feel sympathy or anger towards the victim.

If you have trouble getting started, think about any horror films that you've seen. How did you feel about the victims? Did they deserve to die? Did you feel anxiety or sadness when you knew they were about to die? What did the film-maker do to make you feel this way? Here are a few suggestions for how to pursue writing this scene:

• Show the victim interacting with friends.
• Show the victim doing something he/she feels passionately about.
• Show the victim doing something to justify his/her death (a "bad" thing they might be "punished" for).

Include details to help the scene come to life for the reader. Your goal is to allow the reader to visualize your scene as if he/she were watching it in a movie theater. Here are a few suggestions in that regard:

• Sensory details: smells, colors, sounds, touch/texture
• Descriptions that accompany dialogue. How does someone say what they're saying? Gestures and emotions.

"A Killer Assignment" Days 1 and 2

Your assignment is to create your own, original horror movie star. Motion picture companies are looking for a new alternative to Jason, Freddy, Michael Myers, and Pinhead. Can you create a new character to base a horror franchise on? Do you know what it takes to create the perfect psycho-killer?

Here are some things one needs to consider when taking on this assignment:

• What does he/she look like? (body type, features, clothing)
• History (what was his/her childhood like?)
• Motivation (why is he/she doing these things?)
• What is his/her M.O? (how do they kill? does he/she have a particular method or reason for killing? does he/she leave the victims displayed in a certain way?)
• Setting (in what location is the killer residing?)
• Victims (do they have something in common? is there a particular quality about his/her victims that draws him/her to them?)

Days One and Two of Assignment: During the first two class periods of the assignment, you are to spend your time:

1. Writing a few brief notes pertaining to each bullet in order to sketch out your character. This should only take about 10-15 minutes. You can do this on a scrap sheet of paper or post the information to the blog as proof of work.
2. Writing a one page, typed, single-spaced, 12 pt. Times New Roman, focusing on the history, or background of your killer. You could take this in any direction you want as long as it is in narrative form (no scripts). You can choose to write as the killer (sort of like a journal entry), or in third person (as someone else discussing the killer). A good idea would be to describe the killer's early life, perhaps providing a good deal of insight into why he/she came to be this way.

Remember, this is a story - not just a description or summary of a killer. Include sensory details and emotion.

This assignment will have other parts to follow, so make sure you create something that is interesting to you. The completed 6 day assignment should read like one continuous story.

Urban Legend

URBAN LEGEND

An urban legend is an apocryphal (of doubtful authenticity), secondhand story, told as true and just plausible enough to be believed, about some horrific, embarrassing, ironic or exasperating series of events that supposedly happened to a real person.   It’s likely to be framed as a cautionary tale.

Factual or not, an urban legend is meant to be believed. In place of evidence, the teller of an urban legend relies on skillful storytelling and/or reference to relatively trustworthy sources — e.g., "it really happened to my hairdresser's brother's best friend" — to convince hearers (or readers) of its truth.

Your assignment is to create an urban legend of 300 words or more.  It is due at the end of Monday’s class.

My Entrance Music

Write a 200 word piece about what song you would choose if you could have a song played to announce your presence every time you walked into a room.  Explain the reasons behind your choice.  How does the song serve as a proper representation of you?

My Favorite Character

My Favorite Character

 

Your assignment is to write a five-hundred word piece about your favorite character.  This can be from a book, movie, comic book, or TV show. 

Here are some suggestions for where you can go with this:

·         Explain the reasons for why you like this character so much. 

·         Talk about whether you relate to the character or view him as absurd.

·         Discuss whether the character is realistic or not.

·         Discuss your thoughts about whether or not the character’s creator keeps the character’s actions consistent.

·         Explore a moment where you believe the character’s creator failed to portray the character in a consistent way.

·         Try to describe the character’s philosophy on life.

Respect

Create a poem or story that discusses respect.  Consider what the concept means to you.  The only requirement is that it must be 250 words.  It is due at the end of the period.

Visually Inspired Story

Choose a piece of art (photograph, painting, illustration) from a published (well known) collection or from your own life (your own artistic creation or photo). Write a story that the image conveys to you. Please print the image and hand it to your teacher, with your name on it, for reference (since you cannot post an image in the comment box) OR include the website for the image at the beginning of your post. The completed 500 word (or more) story is due at the end of class on Tuesday.

Provided are some images for inspiration; however, you are not limited to these. 

Mini Story 1

Write a 300 word story inspired by the following prompt:  “There was only one left.  This was going to make things impossible.”

 

Your Name

In a minimum of 200 words, write about your first name—why you were given it, what associations or stories are attached to it, what you think or know it means. Do you think your name fits you? Do the same for your last name. Given the chance, what name would you give yourself?
If you are not sure, invent a history for your name (both first and last).

End Word Poem

Write a poem of twenty original lines that contains end words that when extracted from the rest of the poem, stand as another poem.  Here's an example:

He carries unbalanced parcels of sorrow

As his silent shoes move among masses like empty measures

No one hears the echoes, the throbbing cadence of memories

Now relegated to the faceless insignificance of amplified light, blown out

A loud white storm, no one else knows what it sounds like

This is the point when reason and knowledge become cruel

The empty, un-reflected truth rains down like beatings,

The poison of logic is administered

To the servants he left his soul to

Intelligence, sentience, introspection, those

agents that render the mind helpless

When the hunched beast of emotion descends on men

in times most trying

When there is no one to talk to

Finally, he falls down on the cold ground, a slave to the process

The machinations of his own mind, in the onslaught of grief

The New You

You wake up, go to the bathroom, and look in the mirror. A different face stares back at you. Begin your story here. Use your creativity to construct a story that explains the change that you see. Is it mental only? Is it a physical change? Was it voluntary or forced?
You may include a visual as a reference. You may choose to go back in time to explain what account for the change.
Stories should be a minimum of 400 words.

Short Story Assignment

Your assignment for this week is to compose a short story of 1500 words or more.  Students who are here for only part of the week have a minimum requirement of 1000 words.  Your story should be constructed in Microsoft Word during the week.  It should be proofread and posted with a minimum of errors by the end of class on Friday.  You will be graded on punctuation, spelling, and grammar.

Object Poem

Write a poem from the perspective of an object.  Don't mention what it is.  The idea is to write as if you are that thing.  It can be in any format you like, as long as it is 200 words or more.  Other students will view your post and try to guess your object.

Walk Poem

The walk poem involves a walk. The interesting thing is that there are so many ways for the walk to be a part of the poem, and the poem to be a part of the walk. There are at least four basic types of walk poems, of which there are a great many variations and blends:

a.       A poem about what the poet sees during a particular walk.

b.      A poem about a walk that produces a revelation of some kind.

c.       A poem whose length, style, and shape mirror the length, style, and shape of the walk.

d.   A poem that reflects the way the mind works during the walk. (When you are out walking, the mind flows somewhat differently than it does when you are sitting at home.)

No single poem fully represents all these types and their variations, but this one gives the general sense of the genre:

A Late Walk – Robert Frost

When I go up through the mowing field,
The headless aftermath,
Smooth-laid like thatch with the heavy dew,
Half closes the garden path.

And when I come to the garden ground,
The whir of sober birds
Up from the tangle of withered weeds
Is sadder than any words

A tree beside the wall stands bare,
But a leaf that lingered brown,
Disturbed, I doubt not, by my thought,
Comes softly rattling down.

I end not far from my going forth
By picking the faded blue
Of the last remaining aster flower
To carry again to you.

Your final poem should be a minimum of 20 meaningful lines (the influence of the walk should be apparent).

Create Your Own Assignment

In the response box below, make a suggestion for an assignment that appeals to you. You may choose to give specific guidelines or leave it more to the writer's interpretation.

Ottava Rima

Originally used for long poems on heroic themes, the ottava rima later came to be popular in the writing of mock-heroic works. The lines follow a rhythmical pattern of iambic pentameter (un-stressed and stressed syllables alternating) with an abababcc rhyme scheme. Each stanza is comprised of 8 lines, with the first six encouraging the unwinding of the imagination, while the last two rhyming lines (cc) often give a short pause to rest before continuing and express a truth. Write one ottava rima of 3-5 stanzas by the end of the period.

Example of iambic pentameter:

The da-DUM of a human heartbeat is the most common example of this rhythm.

A standard line of iambic pentameter is five iambic feet in a row:

da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM

The tick-TOCK rhythm of iambic pentameter can be heard in the opening line of Shakespeare's Sonnet 12:
"When I do count the clock that tells the time”

 Example of an ottava rima:

Our Canine Paladin

We're sure the robbers shudder in the night (a)
just thinking of our canine paladin, (b)
while Lucy sniffs the air for signs of plight, (a)
in every nook and cranny that's within (b)
her boundaries, in case intruders might (a)
ignore the risk of scratched or punctured skin. (b)
Alas, we've seen the mighty Lucy hide (c)
behind us when she hears a noise outside.(c)

Portraying fearlessness is just a show,
for terriers project their self-esteem
for all to see, from breeding long ago,
they are the leaders of their home regime.
From safety Lucy barks to let them know
to keep this house apart from any scheme,
but with a simple knock she hits the floor
with body wags for any at the door.

Pantoum

The pantoum is a poem of indefinite length made up of stanzas whose four lines are repeated in a pattern: lines 2 and 4 of each stanza are repeated as lines 1 and 3 of the next stanza, and so on as shown below.

___________________________(Line 1)
___________________________(Line 2)
___________________________(Line 3)
___________________________(Line 4)

___________________________(Line 5) - same as line 2
___________________________(Line 6)
___________________________(Line 7) - same as line 4
___________________________(Line 8)

___________________________(Line 9) - same as line 6
___________________________(Line 10)
___________________________(Line 11) - same as line 8
___________________________(Line 12)
And so on...

Part of the pleasure of the pantoum is the way its recurring lines gently and hypnotically twine in and out of one another, and the way they surprise us when they fit together in unexpected ways. Write a pantoum comprised of 6-8 stanzas, with meaningfully intertwined lines. Try to create an unexpected juxtaposition between the lines to achieve surprise or irony.

Example from Christopher Lane:

A man outside my window

The cat meowed and purred
I kneel by the fire
The darkness comes soon

The cat meowed and purred
She walked between my legs
The darkness comes soon
The stars will guide my way

She walked between my legs
She ran into the house
The stars will guide my way
I walk the beaten path

She ran into the house
Hiding away from me
I walk the beaten path
Stone, sand, and shell

Hiding away from me
The man peeks out
Stone, sand and shell
I stumble to the ground

The man peeks out
He hides behind the tree
I stumble to the ground
I'm running out of steam

Night turns to day
I kneel by the fire
Tapping at the glass
A man outside my window

Why I Write

Write 250-500 words describing what drives you to express yourself in writing.  Does it help clear your head?  Does it make you feel alive?  Where did this desire come from?  A person?  A thing?  Tell us in any format you choose.  This assignment is due at the end of the period.

Sestina

The sestina has six unrhymed stanzas of six lines each in which the words at the ends of the first stanza's lines recur in a rolling pattern at the ends of other lines. In the diagram below, the letters A-F stand for the six end-words of the sestina. The sestina concludes with a tercet (three-line stanza) that also uses all the six end-words, two to a line.

Stanza 1:
__________A
_________B
_________C

In this Sestina by Elizabeth Bishop, the six simple end-words are:
A: house
B: grandmother
C: child
D: stove
E: almanac
F: tears

__________D
__________E
__________F

Stanza 2:
_________F
_________A
_________E
_________B
_________D
_________C

Stanza 3:
________C
________F
________D
________A
________B
________E

Stanza 4:
________E
________C
________B
________F
________A
________D

Stanza 5:
_______D
_________E
________A
________C
_________F
_________B

Stanza 6:
________B
_________D
__________F
_________E
__________C
_________A

Tercet:
________A ___________B
________C __________D
________E ____________F

"A Presence" Associative Prompt

In at least 200 words, describe a presence in your house (childhood home/current place of residence)—a person, a pet, a piece of furniture, an illness, a secret, a "ghost." Use all five senses. Be as detailed as possible. Your description could take on the form of a poem or a story and could be real or imagined.

Cinquains

Cinquains

This is another short poetic format with a set syllabic structure. 

Line 1 = 2 syllables

Line 2= 4 syllables

Line 3= 6 syllables

Line 4= 8 syllables

Line 5= 2 syllables

Construct ten of these.  They are due at the end of the period.

Free Write

Complete a 200-500 word free write on a topic of your choice. Use figurative language in meaningful way.

Lune

The lune is a three-line poem with a specific syllable count (3,5,3) in each line. Its format is based on the Haiku, with changes in the amount of syllables to accommodate the style of the English language. Traditionally, these poems were meant to express a simple truth, and usually incorporated nature. You may write your lunes on any topic you like.

Please write 10 lunes. They are due at the end of the period.

Haiku

The haiku is a three-line poem with a specific syllable count (5,7,5) in each line. Traditionally, these poems were meant to express a simple truth, and usually incorporated nature. You may write your haikus on any topic you like.

 

Please submit 10 haikus by the end of class - Friday, September 7, 2012. Choose your best haiku to post in the comment section below after revision.

Welcome

Creative Writing is an elective course that centers around several different types of writing. Students taking this course may expect to encounter a variety of assignments, ranging from short poetic formats, to TV scripts, to novellas. The focus of the course is to provide a creative outlet for students while refining and reinforcing writing skills.

Due to the fact that one cannot grade a student on his/her amount of creativity, students will be assessed according to the total number of assignments completed. Students will also be evaluated on their ability to demonstrate mastery of each format introduced. As in any other class, work ethic and attention to detail are integral to a student's success in this class.

The purposes of this blog are multi-faceted. Often, assignments and prompts will be available for perusal on the blog and supplementary materials and creative inspiration posted by the teacher. The blog is also a venue to communicate with your classmates in reference to constructive criticism, to introduce assignments you would be interested in doing, as well as posit specific prompts of your own.

The only rules that need be followed is that we respect one another's particular vein of creativity and use the site for academic and creative purposes only, maintaining the proper voice, grammar, and tone for each assignment.