#teaching creative writing

[rozmorris]

‘If you are serious about writing, don’t hide it’ – John McCaffrey @jamccaffrey

‘If you are serious about writing, don’t hide it’ – John McCaffrey @jamccaffrey

How do you make a life as a writer? John McCaffrey’s stories, essays and book reviews appear regularly in literary journals, newspapers and anthologies. He’s had a novel and several short story collections published (his latest, Automatically Hip, was released this month) and he teaches creative writing at college level. Where did this all start? How do you create a life path like this? John,…

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[emptymanuscript]

My next idea for a lesson, I think, Mendelian Characterization:

Text says:

Oversimplifying:

If FEAR is dominant to WANT, the character tends to flee from trouble. Drama comes from when they have to face their fears.

If WANT is dominant to FEAR, the character tends to seek trouble. Drama comes from when being brave isn’t enough.

If NEED is dominant to WOUND, the character tends to seek character growth. Drama comes from the character trying to be more than they are.

If WOUND is dominant to NEED, the character tends to seek redemption for themselves.  Drama comes from the character trying to put aside their achilles heel.

Where WANT and FEAR as a combination are more powerful than NEED and WOUND then the character tends to ACT more than they THINK unless they’re forced. Drama comes from them not being able to push their way to victory.

Where NEED and WOUND as a combination are more powerful than WANT and FEAR then the character tends to THINK more than they ACT unless they’re forced. Drama comes from them being unable to avoid action.

This is of course assuming I ever finish my introductory lecture, and actually, you know, TEACH it, like intend to. 

*Sigh*, I’ll probably end up defancifying the hell out of this one in the rewriting, too. My current script for the 0 class has become... “more appropriate for introductory material” *sigh*.

The annoying thing is that for introductions, you need things to be simple but if you make them simple, then they’re wrong. Like, show vs. tell, simple, easy, catchy, wrong; it will address the most likely problem to start with but will just get more wrong as things go on and eventually hurts more than it helps. AND... I’m really not that smart. I don’t have a simple solution for that because no one else has a simple solution for that. If there was a simple solution, we’d use that instead. You need complexity to make it all work... BUT you can’t give the graduate school answer on day one. Which I find very frustrating. I spent all my time trying to get the grad school answer, why can’t I just give the grad school answer. *Sigh* the answer is no. I just prefer yes. 

And I think it’s hard for me to see the difference at this point, If I’m being honest. But I think I can make this idea simple. 7-10 minutes on WANT, 7-10 minutes on NEED, 7-10 minutes on FEAR, 7-10 minutes on WOUND, 7-10 minutes on WANT vs FEAR, 7-10 minutes on NEED vs WOUND, 7-10 minutes on WANT and FEAR as Conscious motivations vs NEED and WOUND as Unconscious motivations, and 7-10 minutes on backstory to hold it all together in a single bag. 7-10 minutes for some kind of exercise for each and there’s a two and a half hour weekend class on creating characters. 

That should work, right. Right? Right??? Anybody?? Bueller? *sigh* I should really get back to work on working out the first class instead of daydreaming about another. Is there something similar to wanting to have taught instead of actually teaching like there is for wanting to have written instead of actually sitting down and writing? I think I have that. *sigh*

[startrailsiv]

Today’s Writing Tip Need a story idea? Fill in the blanks using the formula for the classic "What if?" premise.

[criticalangst]

REJOICE! A FUN & INCREDIBLY USEFUL CREATIVE WRITING TEXT

Brevity: A Flash Fiction Handbook by David Galef Columbia University Press

I collect books on writing. Even before I taught creative writing I was addicted to reading about process. Yes, the irony is I was doing very little writing. I do even less now—I am more focused on coaching my students. Even with my library of self-help writing books I struggled to find a text that offered more than a few lessons for my students (high school kids, 13-18).

Two years ago I settled on the Gotham Writer’s Workshop’s Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide from New York's Acclaimed Creative Writing School. The book is geared for college aged to adult students but my bookish creative writers manage it. I found a dozen or so sections that teach fiction fundamentals. I made reading guides to go with the Gotham book, questions to make sure they actually read the three or four pages assigned before they respond to the book’s writing prompt in their journal.  

The Gotham text is geared toward the short story, but not really the short-short. Flash fiction is mostly what we do in class. The benefits are obvious. I have 150 writers in six sections I see daily. I read a novel worth of stuff a week, but, to put it kindly, it isn’t always the novel I wish was reading.  

When my students write I want to see that they can hit all the marks in a couple pages. Get right into the action while providing artful exposition, have a dramatic question and finish with an interesting resolution. I taught flash by example, trotting out some of my favorite stories as models. T. Coraghessan Boyle’s “The Hit Man” which is organized in sections with subtitles is about the best model I have found. Students copy its life-spanning structure and usually come up with something compelling of their own. I have used the Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Flash Fiction, but the essays are a bit verbose for my crew. I needed something that was more instructive. 

I muddled along and then along came Brevity--not the web site dedicated to flash nonfiction, but the very useful book by David Galef. Brevity: A Flash Fiction Handbook is organized into 22 chapters and cover the gamut of short forms. The chapters contain pithy explanations of the forms, usually two stories as examples of the genre and writing exercises. It is all perfectly brilliant. My students love it. Again, I have been looking for this book for three years so I am very happy. The Gotham book contains only one short story, Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral”--a story that skirts the edge of appropriateness (drug use) for a high school teacher. 

In Brevity David Galef practices what he preaches in his short, entertaining and inspiring sections. The book maps out genres and techniques from the essential to the esoteric--vignettes, epistolary genres, fables, anecdotes along with chapters on plot twists and mass compression. 

I still make reading guides to ensure my students read it all and to focus their activities. Like the Gotham book, the vocabulary can be challenging for younger students but I have heard no complaints, actually only enthusiasm for the lessons and prompts. I skipped over a few of the story models as they weren’t quite school appropriate but miraculously, most are, and they are usually very engaging narratives. Brevity comes highly recommended for the teacher of writing or the writer seeking inspiration.

[artbypatch]

We have three words above the door [of the Flash writers room]: "Heart, humor and spectacle."

Greg Berlanti

[onlinewritingtips]

Creative fortunes: a game for writers

Creative fortunes: a game for writers

Here’s a game I sometimes use in the Creative Writing classroom to get students thinking about resisting the obvious when describing their world and their characters.

office items list

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[onlinewritingtips]

Simile wheel of fortune: a game for writers (writing tip 65)

Simile wheel of fortune: a game for writers (writing tip 65)

Here’s a great game to practice thinking metaphorically – it also works well as a drinking game! read video transcript

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[notrefined]

Creative Writing lesson plans

Think of this as a deeply belated TEFL Friday update! 

I’ve been working a lot with creative writing, trying to get my students ready for the Write On! competition (one week left!!), and it’s not always the easiest subject to teach. It can be a bit challenging to bring creative writing into the classroom, especially if students are unfamiliar with the concept. So, here are some basic lesson plans and resources that might help you get students' imaginations flowing! I’m pleased to say I’ve gotten some pretty good results from these :)

“Age range” is just a vague suggestion -- you know your kids, I don’t, and you can alter most of these activities any old way you’d like to fit different levels. You do you.

Title: Using Descriptive Language Concept: Students use adjectives to describe the physical appearance of an imaginary animal, well enough for another student to draw the animal based on said description. Teaches vocabulary and addition to detail. Age range: Approx. 7th-8th form, but can be modified for higher levels.

Lesson plan: Descriptive language lesson plan Materials: Animal Discovery Log, Adjective Helper

Title: Personification Concept: (Designed as a follow-up to "Using Descriptive Language") Students create a human character out of a non-human element in nature, giving it a personality and other human traits. Teaches the meaning of personification, how to characterize, and personality vocabulary.  Age range: Approx. 7th-8th form, but can be modified for higher levels. 

Lesson plan: Personification lesson plan Materials: Personality Helper, Character Web Worksheet

Title: Surprises and Failures Concept: Students learn to write about conflict, and to think about how their characters would react to struggles or failures in certain situations.  Also good practice for characterization and plot development.  Age range: 7th form and up.

Lesson plan: Surprises lesson plan Materials: Story Cards, Once Upon A Time, Tell Your Story (low level), Tell Your Story (high level), "I Gave My Kids A Terrible Christmas Present" video

Title: Idea Box Concept: Use these materials to help your students create a "Creative Writing Journal," so they can practice this kind of writing at home. The "Idea Box" teaches many different elements of creative writing, including dialogue, characterization, and story structuring.  Age range: 9th form and up.

Lesson plan: Using the Idea Box Materials: Ideas Box! Contents, Story Cards

Title: Using Creative Writing in the Classroom Concept: This is a Powerpoint presentation, with activities and materials included, geared toward introducing teachers to Creative Writing and giving them ideas about how to introduce it to their classrooms. It focuses on four basic tenets of creative writing: descriptive detail, dialogue, characterization and sequencing. You will use printable resources from the Idea Box in order to do these activities.  Age range: Teachers and professionals. Can be used for university students as well. 

Lesson plan: Link to Powerpoint Presentation with Instructions Materials: Creative Writing Presentation in PDF form, Ideas Box! Contents

Hope these give you teachers out there some ideas! They can all also be found at the Write On! website, along with more writing prompts and other fun stuff. Let me know if you have any questions!