Wednesday, December 17 -My Final Blog Post

After our final presentations today, I would like for you to take a few minutes to reflect on this semester in Creative Writing.  In a personal letter to me, I would like for you to respond to the following questions.  I will use this information to adjust, modify, and repeat my teaching strategies.   Your letter should begin with Dear Mrs. Pace. Please type this letter in a Word document and print it when you are done.  You do not have to sign your name if you would like to remain anonymous.

I have enjoyed having you this semester.  This was the first time I have taught this class in a computer lab, so I would like your feedback on some technology things as well.  I hope you all have a wonderful, safe, LOVE-filled Holiday Break.  

Thank you for taking Creative Writing,

Mrs. Pace

1.  What was your favorite unit?  Why?

2.  What was your favorite Creative Burst assignment?  

3.  Were the film studies beneficial to you in preparing your mind for writing in a specific genre?  If yes, explain how so.  If no, explain why not.

4.  Which was your favorite film (from what genre)?

5.  What was your least favorite unit and/or assignment?

6.  What could I have done as a teacher to make your Creative Writing experience better?

7.  Did you like working on the computers?  What were the positives and negatives of having immediate access to a computer for this class?

8.  Do you feel like your grade reflects the effort you put into this class?  Do you feel like your grade reflects your writing ability?  

9.  What suggestions do you have for me for future Creative Writing classes?  What units would you like to see in the curriculum that we either did not get to or are not listed on the syllabus?

EOC Presentation Dates

Presenters MUST present on their designated day.  If a presenter does not or cannot present on his or her assigned day, the EOC score will be a zero.  There are no extra days for me to allow for make-up. Presentations MUST be done in front of the class, as part of the presenters overall score comes from classmates' score sheets.  It's worth 25% of your entire grade in this class.  It should be an impressive, cumulative piece, worthy of a 25% grade.  Please, please, please, keep in mind this is an assignment that you have had ALL semester long and have had 89 week days to work on it.  Your work should reflect the amount of time and energy you devoted to the assignment.

Friday, December 12
1.  John Williams
2.  Jeremy Turner
3.  Adam Whited

Monday, December 15
1.  Isabella Burlingame
2.  Chloe Clark
3.  Gabriel Copeland
4.  Elijah Jones

Tuesday, December 16
1.  Brody Cantrill
2.  Stephanie Manson-Potts
3.  Joel Wests
4.  Guiseppi DeLalla
5.  Hannah Hudson
6.  Kaitlyn Marlowe

Wednesday, December 17
1.  Asher Clark
2.  Jonathon Simpson
3.  Clifford Amann
4.  Serena Dolak
5.  Josie Easterday
6.  Taylor Henry

Tuesday, December 9 - Persona Poetry

TASK:  For practice, create a persona poem based on the name you draw from the cup.  You might need to do some research on the person in order to be able to write a historically accurate persona poem.  You should always tie in fictional elements, but keep historical accuracy in mind.  Your poem should be 30 lines, all lines from the perspective of your historical figure.  You should include in your blog post pictures and images associated with your person from history.  

Thursday, December 4 - Unrequited Love

Unrequited love or one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such.  The beloved may or may not be aware of the admirer's deep and strong romantic affections.  

Read the New York Times article "Pain of Unrequited Love Afflicts the Rejector, Too"

One of the most torturous forms of unrequited love is that which occurs between friends.  As stated by Daniel Goleman, author of the above mentioned New York Times article, "One frequent path to unrequited love is through what starts as a platonic relationship.  'One of the most common stories told by people in our study was of being in a friendship with an undercurrent of attraction on one side,' said Dr. Baumeister.  'Over and over people said, We were good friends, but I secretly was in love.'"

After reading the article, think about unrequited love.  Does it also affect the rejector?  If it does, how so?  Write a story in which you (or your main character) is in love with someone that either doesn't know your feelings (usually because they are unavailable -- married, in a relationship, can't date, etc.) or doesn't return them.  In other words, the theme of your story should be unrequited love.  

Tuesday, December 2 - Top Secret

The snow is coming down and school has been cancelled. Your spouse, who works at CTU (the Counter Terrorism Unit), absolutely must go into work.  Your spouse decides to quickly jump in the shower.  

Snow days are the best; you decide it's perfectly okay to wrap the warm blankets around you and go back to bed. 

PROBLEM:  You can't fall back to sleep as you had hoped. While trying to force your eyes closed, you hear talking. The water in the shower is running, but you can definitely hear a one-sided conversation. What was that?  Who is your spouse talking to? Thinking your're asleep he (she) unknowingly reveals top secret information about the state of the country.  You can tell immediately that this is information that is not meant to be overheard.  It's shocking....

What does he unwittingly divulge?  What is his conversation about?  What are the results of what you overhear?

Friday, November 21 - Ekphrasis

In ancient Greece, the term ekphrasis (ek-fra-seas) referred to a work of art in one medium that was produced as a reaction to a piece of art created in another medium.  

Have you ever heard the expression A picture's worth a thousand words? Well, sometimes poets think that a picture, or a sculpture, or a piece of pottery is worth just that, and maybe more. 

When poets find a piece of visual artwork that truly captures their imagination, they often engage in a literary practice known as ekphrastic poetry, which is poetry that verbally describes a visual work of art.  For example; a song might be based on a famous piece of literature, a short story might include great detail (especially of evoked emotions) of the Mona Lisa, or a poem may describe a well-known artistic movement.  

Modern scholars have simplified the definition and say ekphrasis is "the verbal representation of a visual representation" (Nordquist). At it's core ekphrasis makes explicit connections between art, storytelling, and life.  

Examples of Ekphrasis (art to poetry)

Homer's ekphrastic nod to Achilles' great shield

William Carlos Williams and Charles Sheeler

So let's practice together.  Look at the image below.  Really study it and all its minute details.

Let's brainstorm some answers to the questions below.  
• List the first words that come to mind when you look at this artwork. 
• What is happening in this artwork? What story is being told? 
• Who or what is the subject of the painting? How would you describe them?
• What is the mood of the artwork? What sounds, smells, feelings, tastes could 
you associate with it?
• Now that you have closely observed the artwork, how would you summarize its main idea? 

To Read More about Edvard Munch

TASK:  Now, your job is to choose a famous piece of artwork and write a poem or song based on your reaction to this piece.  Answer the questions above and practice what we modeled in class to help you get started.  

Some places to look for famous artwork:

100 Greatest Paintings of All Time

Famous Paintings

Top 100 Masterpieces

Thursday, November 20 - Emotions

Have you ever wondered about those voices in your head?  I sure have; in fact, I've had many a conversation with the various voices.  Sometimes all is going well and the voices are agreeable and pleasant.  Sometimes it's as if the voices are being painfully tortured; thus, they feel the only thing to do is to torment me as well.  Joy causes my heart to swell, sometimes tears to form, but always a smile to cross my lips.  Anger makes me do things I don't want to and say things I don't mean.  Anger usually leads to Sadness; at least it does for me.  There are a plethora of emotions, but Sadness might be the worst.  Sometimes Sadness visits after Fear has been sojourning in the open ranges of my mind.  Fear leaves me panicked.  It strips me of my sense of control.  It robs me of my sanity.  It causes me to doubt myself and who I am. It's awful! Unfortunately, Disgust reels her ugly head all too often.  I'm disgusted by the slowness of the cashier, the incessant crying of a newborn in church, the children that pick their nose and eat their boogers, the people who come out of the bathroom without washing their hands. Ahhh, but such is life as a human being, full of EMOTIONS.


Today, I want you to think about those voices in your head.  Think about they things they make you feel, the things they make you say.  These voices have inspired Disney/Pixar's newest animated film, Inside Out.  

After reading the film summary, which is very brief, and watching the short preview, craft a story involving all of Riley's emotions.  Describe a battle in her mind between her emotions.