creative writing Resources for students in Mr. DeCubellis' Creative Writing 157

I wanted to thank all of you again for the suggestions you have provided along the way to improve the digital aspect of the course.  I have made several changes to previous blog entries which I will carry forward for next year’s students.  Some of the changes include providing specific instructions in setting up the blog in a standard format (while allowing for creativity), setting up a sample blog, adding a Reading Summaries page, and others.  This, of course, is in addition to the fine suggestions you provided regarding supporting the digital story assignment.  Also, I am going to have to insist the course is scheduled in a room with a hardwired LCD projector and computer.  Lastly, for what it’s worth, I still have not worked out a more efficient way to conduct audits (I think we would all agree that the Google forms idea wasn’t much to speak of), so if you have an idea, I am all ears….

On Friday, you will be expected to hand in a properly formatted hard copy of your electronic portfolio.  You may revise ANYTHING before that time.  You may only submit pieces that were written for this course.  Reflections must reference class discussion, website readings, class notes, and class activities.

Your portfolio will include the following in this order:

Edited for next year– 0. A table of contents.

1. A two-to-four-page typed reflection which makes a case for the growth of your “inner creator” and “inner critic” since the start of the course.  You must use brief “before and after” and “compare / contrast” quotes from your drafts and works of poetry, short stories, and one-act play to make your case.  Be sure to reference your class notes as well.
2. Three of your blog entries which best reveal your ability to think deeply.
3. A brief reflection of why you selected these.
4. Five meticulously edited poems which demonstrate your ability to use guidelines for good poetry.
5. A brief reflection on their level of quality and to what degree they fit specific guidelines of good poetry.
6. Two revised short stories (one if you were the layout editor).
7. A brief reflection on what you revised and why in light of what you learned in your article summaries, class discussions, and class notes.
8. A revised one-act play script.
9. A brief reflection on what you revised and why.

During the exam period you will recite one of your poems and share with us a reflection.  Additionally, you will bring your parody piece (more on this later) and read that to us as well.

TASK:  In your Works in Progress section, include twenty new and original poems by Thursday night, May 20th.  (That’s a pace of two per night.)  Use your previous journal entries or other musings as inspiration for your work.  Include a brief reflection for each poem which addresses what you were trying to accomplish, what aspects of language you were playing with, how well you thought it turned out, what you might do to continue revising it, etc.  You will select five of your best poem and accompanying reflections to include in your portfolio.  (More on this later.)

Tips:

• Use the guidelines for good poetry when revising.
• Avoid poems which use end-rhyme– find other ways to being symmetry to your poems instead.
• Play around with techniques we discuss in class– go back to your notes.
• Avoid getting stuck in a rut– challenge yourself to explore different forms and techniques.

Use the last link in the list entitled “Types of Poetry” to learn about aspects of the genre that are both unfamiliar and interesting to you.  Write a summary of these as described in class.

http://www.types-of-poetry.org.uk/

Thank you all for following Dave’s lead and continuing the one-act process. Please continue today (Tuesday) and finish up if need be. Afterward, please quietly read as many of your classmates’ short stories (don’t stick to your peer support group) as possible– the sub has the publication copies for you. Your blog reflection tonight will be an open letter to the authors stating what you liked about the stories you read. Jot down some ideas as you’re reading to help you refresh your memory tonight. (No suggestions– just honest praise for what you liked specifically and why.) Please leave the publication copies with the sub for me before the end of class. I will make sure you get your own copy to take home at a later date.  Also, don’t forget about your one-act draft’s due-date this Friday.

Josh, Alex has your the hard copy of your audit but forgot to put it on my office door. No worries, but please give it to the sub today for me.

Amy, Brendan, and Chris, I haven’t gotten your audit form through Googledocs. Instead, please email yours to me ASAP by copying and pasting into an email to gdecubellis@egsd.net. The rest of the class’ blog grades have been posted on iParent.

Kate, I don’t have a hard copy of your short story to grade– please send me one ASAP.

Brian S., Sarah Z., and Sheldon, I DO have your short stories and will finish grading them tonight. The rest of the class’ short story grades have been posted on iParent.

Brian N., please email me a link to your blog again– I still need to check your short story summaries.

DUE DATES ARE IN BOLD

1. Ignore the instructions under “Task” in your hard-copy handout.  Instead, read and view the following and then write a one-page summary (total) which synthesizes what you learned from each:

• Classic advice for playwrights
• How to write a one-act
• One-act tips

2. Submit this summary to your Works in Progress section no later than Monday, April 12.

3. Work with one other student or alone and write a one-act, ten-minute play that adheres to the advice you addressed in your summary and the guidelines you received in class on Tuesday.  First draft due in manuscript form on Friday, April 16th. Final draft, due Thursday, April  29th.

4. Rehearse your play with actors you have recruited from our class OR conscript  digital actors who work for free .

5. Perform your play for the class with your actors OR show your digital play.  You are not expected to memorize lines; however, delivery must be clearly well-rehearsed and coordinated.  Due May 3rd.

Evaluation

Your one-page summary will be evaluated on the basis of thoroughness and accuracy.

Your play will be evaluated according to the following checklist:

1. If the play begins with a situation, is it introduced effectively?

2. If the play begins with a single character, is the beginning sufficiently dramatic?

3. Is the conflict in the play clearly established at the beginning?

4. Is the plot believable?

5. Is the setting adequately established through set instructions  and dialogue?

6. Are the characters’ names, diction, and appearance consistent throughout the play?

7. Is the dialog realistic but appropriate for the classroom?

8. Does the dialogue reveal what is important to the characters?

9. Does the dialogue effectively contrast the differences between characters?

10. Are the actions that take place offstage adequately summarized through dialogue?

11. Is there a balance of favorable and unfavorable incidents so that suspense is created?

12. Are all scenes included important to the outcome or resolution of the conflict?

13. Is the play well structured—that is, complete, compact, and well proportioned?

14. Are the scene descriptions adequate for a set designer and director?

15. Do the stage directions give adequate instructions to the director and the actors?

16. If there is a telephone conversation staged in the play, is it done effectively?

17. If the writer/director has chosen an unusual medium in which to present his/her play, is it appropriate?

18. Does the play end at the right place?

19. Is the title of the play interesting and appropriate?

20.  Is the script neatly prepared?

Adapted from http://www.isd381.k12.mn.us/technology/Webquest/WritingAOneActPlay.htm

For next time, be sure to bring to class a copy of the script for your chosen play. For the sake of classroom propriety, modify words and phrases which are on the “seven dirty words” list. The challenge is to do so without changing the import. Bring a typed copy of your character sketch (a brief bio, background, attitudes, etc.) that you will review with the class. Be able to cite the text to substantiate what you inferred about your character. Lastly, rehearse your part STANDING UP at least twice beforehand. You will have only one run-through with your group before delivering for next time.

Due to the sluggish nature of the laptops today, your audit are due by Sunday night instead of by today.  Please follow the directions carefully:  Every box must contain a code.

Also, you are not required to journal tonight, Saturday night, or Sunday night.  Journals will resume again on Monday.

NOTE:  To conduct this audit, you will need a Google account.  If you do not have one already, set one up at Google.com.  Use your FIRST INITIAL, LAST NAME, followed by EGHS.  Example:  jbagadonutseghs@gmail.com.   Set this up immediately.

If you already have a Google account and would like to use it for this purpose, email your Gmail address to me at gdecubellis@egsd.net immediately.

You will receive the audit form in your Gmail in-box.  To receive credit for your journal, you must complete the audit using this form.  It is a simple, albeit tedious process, of copying and pasting.  You will find a few required self-assessment questions at the end.  The directions are contained in the document, but I have included them here to preview if you like:

AUDIT FORM DIRECTIONS

1. Copy from your blog the full text of each entry and paste into the form under the appropriate date.

2. Do not paste two entries under one date.  Rather, paste any “irregularities” into the day it was supposed to be written and add the appropriate code in caps BEFORE your entry (at the top of each entry, in other words):

BD:  Indicate days you “banked,” or got ahead by marking them BD. (BD stands for “banked day.”)

OT: Indicate days you entered on time by marking them OT.  (OT stands for “on time.”)

CU:   Indicate days you made up by getting caught up after the fact.  CU [insert actual date it was written].  (CU stands for “catch-up.”)

C:  Indicate days which you commented on another blog by entering C.  (C stands for “comment day.”)

X:  Indicate with an X any remaining days.  In other words, DO NOT leave response boxes blank.

3.  Double-check to ensure each day is coded correctly.

4. After filling out this sheet, answer the four multiple-choice reflection questions at the end of the form.

Jessabelle was a nice girl and when she turned 14, her father took her around back and shot her.

It wasn’t a messy job.  It was clean and quick, and when he was done he went inside and drank a beer, and sat down and watched the TV set.

All he could hear was blabbering.  More talk, drivel, nonsense.  None of it was making sense and he held his head, wanting to make it all go away, at the same time not wanting to miss anything.

What was there to miss?  She is freshly dead, his [illegible] trouble shot with a Magnum.  “I can start over again,” he thought.  But something was holding him back.

The body wouldn’t go away, he knew.  He had to do something with it, or else the Yoo-Hoos next door might get pissy when their back window yielded a lovely view of 120 pounds of dead 14-73q4-old.  That would be it for him.  No, it had to be done today, before that prissy Cadillac Deville came moseying up the drive at 5 o’clock.

But his time was up. “Come out with your hands up!” came a voice from a loudspeaker.

“Crap,” stated the Dad under his breath.  “The fuzz decided to show.  Someone musta heard the shot.”

“Come out with your hands up!” repeated the officer.

“You want me, you’ll get me,” he stated.  He grabbed his shotgun and made for the front door.

BA-BOOM!  Click-click.

One officer lay bleeding on the driveway.  “That will hold ‘em for awhile,” the [illegible] growled.  He hurried downstairs and grabbed all the C4 he had.  He closed all of the blinds and booby trapped every window and door.  “See how ‘em sons of bitches like that!”  Suddendly, Kid Rock was blaring from the dad’s stereo.

“I’m a cowboy!”  The lyrics rang through his head long enough for him to realize he had not become the outlaw he had aspired to be as a teenager.  He was a sociopath, and he knew it well enough now.  He had crossed over and knew he wouldn’t be coming back.  Not in this life anyway.  Before the explosions began, he drew in a heavy breath, grabbed both pistols from the wood-shop table and charged.