After you have read "Mudlavia" and written a response, please read the short story "How To Become a Writer" by Lorrie Moore.
http://www.bridgewater.edu/WritingCenter/Resources/102in-class11.htm
Response Questions
1. This entire story is told in second person point of view ("you"), which is slightly unusual. Do you think this works for this story? Why or why not?
2. Pick out your two favorite parts of the story. Why do these parts work for you?
3. What is Lorrie Moore trying to say about being a writer? How do you know?
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
"Mudlavia" by Elizabeth Stuckey-French
Read this short story:
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200309/stuckey-french
Respond to these questions on your blog when you're finished reading:
1. What are some of the conflicts in this story? How are these conflicts developed by Stuckey-French?
2. Find two quotes that develop the characterization of either the main character or his family. Explain how these examples add to the characterization.
3. How does Stuckey-French create suspense in this story?
4. Pick out two parts/elements of the story that you find particularly strong. Why do you think these parts are strong? What is Stuckey-French doing to make these parts work for the reader?
5. Mudlavia is a real place in Indiana with a real history. Do some internet research and find out what you can, and then answer the following: how does Stuckey-French use real stories to create her fiction? How can we, as writers, use real stories in a fictional way?
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200309/stuckey-french
Respond to these questions on your blog when you're finished reading:
1. What are some of the conflicts in this story? How are these conflicts developed by Stuckey-French?
2. Find two quotes that develop the characterization of either the main character or his family. Explain how these examples add to the characterization.
3. How does Stuckey-French create suspense in this story?
4. Pick out two parts/elements of the story that you find particularly strong. Why do you think these parts are strong? What is Stuckey-French doing to make these parts work for the reader?
5. Mudlavia is a real place in Indiana with a real history. Do some internet research and find out what you can, and then answer the following: how does Stuckey-French use real stories to create her fiction? How can we, as writers, use real stories in a fictional way?
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Fiction Guidelines
The following guidelines are taken from SNReview, an online literary journal.
"Short stories should be less than 7000 words. Be original. Catch our attention with your characters, plot, theme, style of writing, imagery, and point of view. No romance, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, or horror genre fiction. Not interested in short stories that start or end with a scene that includes an alarm clock ringing. Here's the best description we can offer. It comes from C. Michael Curtis, the fiction editor of The Atlantic Monthly: “What most editors look for, in addition to a respect for the conventional strengths of orderly composition, is a sentence or two sufficiently complex in structure and idea to signify a serious mind at work. Editors look for an engaging sensibility, a writer with wit, imagination, and an appreciation for the benefits of a well-constructed sentence.” And a piece of advice I heard from novelist/playwright Sarah Schulman: Stop trying so hard. Make sure the words are yours, yours from the heart, not a strained rhetoric (vocabulary, sentence, paragraph) that you presume writers use. Be true to thyself."
"Short stories should be less than 7000 words. Be original. Catch our attention with your characters, plot, theme, style of writing, imagery, and point of view. No romance, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, or horror genre fiction. Not interested in short stories that start or end with a scene that includes an alarm clock ringing. Here's the best description we can offer. It comes from C. Michael Curtis, the fiction editor of The Atlantic Monthly: “What most editors look for, in addition to a respect for the conventional strengths of orderly composition, is a sentence or two sufficiently complex in structure and idea to signify a serious mind at work. Editors look for an engaging sensibility, a writer with wit, imagination, and an appreciation for the benefits of a well-constructed sentence.” And a piece of advice I heard from novelist/playwright Sarah Schulman: Stop trying so hard. Make sure the words are yours, yours from the heart, not a strained rhetoric (vocabulary, sentence, paragraph) that you presume writers use. Be true to thyself."
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