Monday, October 16, 2023

Jaws excerpt: Part 1 (Journal #6, Marking Period 1)



In your journals, consider the following:

How does Benchley build suspense?
Which passages best build the suspense in this particular excerpt?
Are there any similar techniques employed by Benchley and Poe?
If so, which ones do the writers favor most heavily?



Jaws
The great fish moved silently through the night water, propelled by short sweeps of its crescent tail. The mouth was open just enough to permit a rush of water over the gills. There was little other motion: an occasional correction of the apparently aimless course by the slight raising or lowering of a pectoral fin – as a bird changes direction by dipping one wing and lifting the other. The eyes were sightless in the black, and the other senses transmitted nothing extraordinary to the small, primitive brain. The fish might have been asleep, save for the movement dictated by countless millions of years of instinctive continuity: lacking the flotation bladder common to other fish and the fluttering flaps to push oxygen-bearing water through its gills, it survived only by moving. Once stopped, it would sink to the bottom and die of anoxia.

The land seemed almost as dark as the water, for there was no moon. All that separated sea from shore was a long, straight stretch of beach – so white that it shone. From a house behind the grass-splotched dunes, lights cast yellow glimmers on the sand.

The front door to the house opened, and a man and a woman stepped out on to the wooden porch. They stood for a moment staring at the sea, embraced quickly, and scampered down the few steps on to the sand. The man was drunk, and he stumbled on the bottom step. The woman laughed and took his hand, and together they ran to the beach.

‘First a swim,’ said the woman, ‘to clear your head.’

‘Forget my head,’ said the man. Giggling, he fell backward on to the sand, pulling the woman down with him. They fumbled with each other’s clothing, twined limbs around limbs, and thrashed with urgent ardour on the cold sand. Afterward, the man lay back and closed his eyes. The woman looked at him and smiled. ‘Now, how about that swim?’ she said.

‘You go ahead. I’ll wait for you here.’

Tuesday, October 10, 2023

Using the First Person "We" Narrator: Writing Assignment (10/10/23)


In-class assignment

Since you have read the excerpt, consider the following:

"What is the effect of using a plural narrator on the reader? How does it alter the conventions of the traditional "I" narrator? How is it different from third-person omniscient point-of-view? Without seeing this narrator, can you describe him (them)?



Thursday, September 21, 2023

Heroes & Villains (9/21/23)


Since we are talking about archetypes and the great characters in fiction and film, we are going to play Frankenstein. By this, I mean we are going to be assembling stories from the ground up - piece by piece. We are going to start with the most basic elements because many of these stories are templates for the stories they inspired.

To truly write a story where we turn an archetype "inside out", we must first establish a TIMELINE for the character.

Think about it this way:

A good character starts as an idea in our head that we have to get down on paper. We have to tell the story because the characters insist we do so. In order to fulfill their request you first must make them real to others. You must create them and insert them into our world. There are several steps you can take to make sure these characters become known to the world in some intimate manner.

First, initiate each one of your creations with a working name (you might change the name later to suit the character's personality once you've gotten to know them more). Then begin bringing each character to life by working and following specific steps that we will be discussing in class: timelines, back-stories, dreams, closets and clothes, where they live, what ifs, character profiles and semantic mapping.

Timelines are a great way of meeting your characters for the first time by asking questions about the events of their lives. If you think about the myth of any great hero or villain, they come with a legendary back story. When a writer does his/her job well, the back story is just as interesting and integral to the story as the what the character is doing in the present. In this way, the character becomes multi-faceted and more interesting to the reader/viewer. If you do not establish this timeline, the character begins to "fall out of orbit" in the mind of the audience.

In any successful story, I suggest writing out the timelines of all major characters as well as a few secondary characters that might play a somewhat important role in the story or at least your mind. Once this is done, it becomes easier to make the connections between all your characters as their timelines overlap or have similar experiences written in them.

Timelines can be a frustrating experiences at times but the important thing to remember is that the character has to be born, age, go through certain life events (school, maternity - events that are normal in your world and time), go through one or more disturbing events as well as climatic events in his or her life. The timeline ends when the story ends or when the character's role has been accomplished.

As an example, the character Superman was created with a specific life story that is integral to understanding the character in the present. That same applies for classic villains like Darth Vader. If you are really thinking about creating a character that gets audiences thinking, try developing a character with a certain amount of duality...like Darth Vader.


For this assignment, choose one hero (male or female) and one villain (male or female) and research their backstory. I want to know if the character only exists in the present or if it has a significant story that accompanies him/her that shapes their past as they move forward. Is this a character that there could be some split feelings about? Could a villain inspire sympathy? If so, how? Could a hero seem unlikable? How? Also, provide some backstory for the creation of this character. What does the character represent in the mind of its creator?

Heroes and villains in graphic novels are great examples of this. And before you go away thinking that graphic novels are silly examples, remember this: After Superman, Spiderman is one of the most serialized heroes in all of fiction. That includes literature.

Friday, September 15, 2023

Giving Colors To The Shapes (Journal #3, Marking Period 1)


This journal is due on Thursday, 9/15/2022.

If you think about it, writing has a few things in common with painting.
Consider the fact that you start with a sketch or an outline of the greater picture you wish to "paint" for the reader.



The goal is to define the boundaries of your subject coherently enough to keep the readers attention without losing his/her interest. More importantly, you want to take them on a journey without losing them.


As you write, you are filling in the missing colors.



The picture of the butterfly (above) is no less beautiful or intricate because it doesn't have color. But, you cannot give life to your portrait of the individual you are researching until you first define the shape.



Also, you do not need too much color to make a compelling or interesting portrait. The most important part of your research is to choose the colors that will help your portrait take shape and make sense to the reader.


Today, find a picture of your subject and your narrator. Without doing any research, what can you tell me about both people just by looking at them? By doing this, you are adding "color to the shapes".

Renewal: The Narrator Piece (9/15/23)



Today, we will talk about the kind of person you might want to choose for this research project. Remember, you want to avoid choosing people simply because they have achieved a level of fame or notoriety. You want to find a person that has inspired real change. The ideal person would be someone who influenced the people around him/her to make the world a better place. This person should also be someone who made a conscious decision, day after day, to stay with his/her commitment - despite the odds they faced.

It will be hard for you to choose someone who is still living and very young. Simply put, their story is still being written. Trying to research someone like this will prove somewhat frustrating to you. However, if you think you are up for the challenge, I will not discourage you.

Above all, make sure the person you choose is someone who inspires you. If you do this, I feel that your research will prove to be a pleasure, not a burden.

In today's class, you are going to take a few moments to write down what you know about your subject. After a few minutes, I am going to ask you to reveal the name of the person you have chosen to your neighbor. Then, I want you to support your choice with the reasons for why you feel this person is worthy of your research.


You will be sharing your results with the class, so use your time wisely.