Writing 4 Watts

Next week “The Odyssey Club” will be promoting its annual short story contest. Details will be outlined during Tuesday’s assembly and on the various posters that will adorn our hallways and bulletin boards mid to late next week. For now, here are the details:

1.      600 word maximum!

2.      Must have the prompt (“….and a silent scream split my brain…”)and the theme (“Dreams and Hopes”)

3.   All stories must be submitted to Mr. Krocker, room 306, by April 2, 2010

4. Prize Money: 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd Place … (1500, 1000, 500 baht gift certificates for Kinukoniya)

Share This

English 10: D.S. Watts

Creative Writing is meant to invent and imitate.  It is the reshaping of ideas.  But it also has solid roots in real-world experiences and memories of the writer – fact and fiction, blending together.  Creative writing fulfills a writer’s need to imagine, invent, and explore.  It is a process that satisfies the creative spirit. 

TASK:

Choose ONE (1) of the topics below.

1. Prepare a creative piece of writing based on Holden’s unresolved guilt and sorrow stemming from Allie’s death.  Describe Holden’s behavior in his garage, his response to rain on Allie’s grave, and his memories of leaving Allie behind when he and Bobby Fallon go to Lake Sedebego on their bikes.  It could take the form of a personal diary.

1. Write a speech in which you explain Mr. Antolini’s quotation from Wilhelm Stekel: “The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.”  Use examples from the story to support your ideas or thoughts.

1. If you were to rewrite The Catcher in the Rye in modern times and in Bangkok, what would you change and what would you keep the same?  Where would it take place?  What kind of situations would Holden get himself into?  How would the story be different?

1. Write the composition that Holden wrote for Stradlater about Allie’s baseball mitt. 

1. If Holden was a female, how would this story be different?  How would it be the same?  Would it have the same effect on people?  Would males be able to relate to a female protagonist in the same way?

1. Imagine that Holden spent some time at ISB.  Write his impressions of a day in our school.  Use fictitious names!  Concentrate on the kind of interactions he is likely to have had, and what kind of language he would have used to describe people, places, and things.  Your writing should imitate (called a pastiche) the same writing style used by Holden.

1. Write about an incident in your life using Holden’s language.

1. Write an epilogue to The Catcher in the Rye that gives readers greater insight into Holden’s future and his understanding of the past.  Use Holden’s first person point of view narrative and place him in one of the settings of the novel.  How much time has gone by since his “mad” days, and how has he changed (if at all)?  Consider referring to people and events from the novel.

Share This

Due: Friday, May 1st

Choose one of the following activities from your novel and provide a minimum of a 5 paragraph word processed written response (also known as one page typed):

1. Write a speech in which you explain an important quotation from your novel and how it relates to the theme of the novel.  Use examples from the story to support your ideas or thoughts.  Think about your audience.
2. If you were to rewrite your novel in modern times and in Bangkok, what would you change and what would you keep the same?  Where would it take place?  What kind of situations would your main character get him/herself into?  How would the story be different?
3. If the protagonist from your novel was the opposite gender, how would this story be different?  How would it be the same?  Would it have the same effect on people?  Would males/females be able to relate to that protagonist in the same way? Provide a novel sketch of how the novel would evolve.
4. Imagine that the main character from your novel spent some time at ISB.  Write his/her impressions of a day in our school.  Use fictitious names!  Concentrate on the kind of interactions he/she is likely to have had, and what kind of language he/she would have used to describe people, places, and things.  Your writing should imitate the same writing style used by the author.
5. Write an epilogue to your novel that gives readers greater insight into the protagonist’s future and his/her understanding of the past.  Use a first person point of view narrative and place him/her in one of the settings of the novel.  How much time has gone by since the novel, and how has he/she changed (if at all)?  Consider referring to people and events from the novel.

6.       Write a journal/diary from your main character’s point-of-view.

7.       Write a letter to the author of your novel.

8.       The author gives detailed descriptions of each of the characters in the book.  Choose 4 characters and write 4 poems about each of these characters, presenting them in a creative poetry booklet with at least one illustration per poem.  Poems must be typed.   Poetry should vary in length, style and type-NO haikus.

9.       Draw a book jacket that would appeal to your friends and would make them want to read the book.  You must include a short summary.  For example, the book jacket could resemble the back of the book, with art work, praise about the novel attributed to fake people, and a summary of the book (at least one page typed).

10.    Write another chapter with a different ending to the story. The chapter must be a reasonable length and must be typed.

11.      Do an interview with a main character from your novel for a local radio station.  Include questions about the problems that exist and how he/she feels.  A written interview must be typed, an oral interview must be on a audio or video file.  

12.     Design your idea of the perfect film version of your novel.  Include details about who you would cast and why, where you would set the film, what time period you would focus on (ie. if your novel is set in 12^th century Korea, would you change it to modern times, or a different place than Korea and why).  Think about what you would see, hear, smell, taste, and touch. You must include photos or illustrations. 

13.     Make a movie trailer for your novel.  Advertise your novel and convince your audience to read it.  A written script must be provided.

14.    Create a paper mache/clay or other visual production of one of the themes or scenes from your novel.  A written reflection must accompany this project.

Share This

Your most recent poetry projects were really fun to read and there were so many poems worth sharing.  I would like you to share one poem of your choice on this site.  After you have posted your poem, I would like you to comment on the poem of a classmate.  That’s it.  For those of you that love to write, you may submit as many entries as you like, whenever you like.  All comments will be positive in nature.  Go for it and give it a try. . .

Share This

Hello students and authors of all shapes and sizes!  This blog exists for the pure enjoyment of writing and reading the work of our fellow students.  You will be able to share your work, read your classmates work, and comment on their writing.  Stay tuned for more!

Share This