Short Story Creation Topics

Name: ______

130 Points: During the past four weeks our class examined a variety of contemporary and historical short stories by a diverse group of authors. Throughout this unit we examined multiple styles and techniques authors use to create engaging and complex storytelling. Now as we end the unit you will be required to put all of these skills in play in order to draft a story that reflects the literary styles explored throughout the unit. Imagine the stories we read to be an anthology of American literature – your job is to write a story to capture another perspective within the anthology.

Audience: Readers 16 and up such as your classmates in Honors English 11 who demand subtle stories, those who demand much more than a literal, plot based reading.

Situation: You wish to explore the psychology of a fictional character in a short story. You are the “puppeteer” controlling every nuance of the character and aspects of the situation in which the character finds himself/herself. You want the reader to understand more than the character understands, and/or you want to reveal a realization subtlety.

Product/Performance: Your story must be 4 -5 pages; however, keep in mind that the length of the story should be determined by the needs of the story itself. You may also choose to take the “Ripe Figs” challenge.

Your story must focus on the psychology of the central character, not on external plot action. As you write, consider how different elements of your story (i.e. point of view, archetypal patterns, symbolism, metaphors, and other devices) will be evident in your story and cause your reader to think, yet at the same time be engaged. These devices and choices should be recognizable to a discerning reader. Remember a short story has one main theme. Also, use your experience to write what you know. This will allow you to take universal ideas and make them feel authentic to the reader.

Prior to submission (30 points):  Brainstorm Responses (typed)  Short Story Pitch: you will pitch to your classmates as well as the teacher -Using your brainstorm, summarize your plot, use of literary elements and thematic message. Within this pitch, explain why you think this story would be valuable to tell. 1 page, 1.5 spaced

IF YOU’RE ABSENT DURING ANY PART OF THE PROCESS YOU MUST STILL EMAIL YOUR ASSIGNMENT FOR THE DEADLINE.  Students may conference and/or e-mail at any given time during the process. If you choose to conference, please come with specific questions. In other words, where do you need help? You may conference more than once if necessary.

Special Note: No death, suicide, or disease! Brainstorm Responses (15 points) Use the following worksheet to act as a template for brainstorming different elements of your story. Your responses must be typed – 12 point font, single spaced, leave a space between each element. On your paper, answer all questions in italics. Only one is required per story.

Plot The structure of a story. The sequence in which the author arranges events in a story. The structure of a five-act play often includes the rising action, the climax, the falling action, and the resolution. The plot may have a protagonist who is opposed by antagonist, creating what is called, conflict. A plot may include flashback or it may include a subplot which is a mirror image of the main plot.

1. In two-three sentences summarize your plot.

Protagonist The hero or central character of a literary work. In accomplishing his or her objective, the protagonist is hindered by some opposing force either human (one of Batman's antagonists is The Joker), animal (Moby Dick is Captain Ahab's antagonist in Herman Melville's "Moby Dick"), or natural (the sea is the antagonist which must be overcome by Captain Bligh in Nordhoff and Hall's "Men Against the Sea," the second book in the trilogy which includes "Mutiny on the Bounty").

2. Who is the protagonist? Describe this character in detail. Consider their appearance, mental state, goals, objectives, personality flaws, type of language used by the character. This character is the key to your story, so he/she must be dynamic and layered. Is this protagonist an archetype? As you develop your character consider direct and indirect methods of characterization.

Secondary Characters These are static or flat characters that will contribute to the character and/or plot development of your story.

3. List/describe at least two. Then brainstorm what role they might play in relationship to your protagonist.

Exposition In drama, the presentation of essential information regarding what has occurred prior to the beginning of the play. In the exposition to William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," two servants of the house of Capulet discuss the feud between their master and the house of Montague, thereby letting the audience know that such a feud exists and that it will play an important role in influencing the plot.

Mood The atmosphere or feeling created by a literary work, partly by a description of the objects or by the style of the descriptions. A work may contain a mood of horror, mystery, holiness, or childlike simplicity, to name a few, depending on the author's treatment of the work.

4. What is the exposition of your story? What does the reader need to know in order to understand? What kind of imagery and figurative language will you use to describe the setting and exposition in order to create a mood? Within this section consider how allusions and archetypes can also contribute to the layers of your story.

Rising Action The rising action begins with a narrative hook, this is the first sign that conflict exists within the story.

5. What will be your narrative hook?

Conflict In the plot of a drama, conflict occurs when the protagonist is opposed by some person or force in the play

6. What appears to be the primary conflict? It is internal or external? Identify one-two other conflicts evident in the story. What conflict will be most dominant? Within your response explain which characters experience conflict, a description of the conflict, and whether it is internal or external.

Climax The decisive moment in a drama, the climax is the turning point of the play to which the rising action leads

7. What will be the climactic moment of the story? How will the conflicts culminate in a point of confrontation and/or realization for the protagonist?

Falling Action The falling action is the series of events, which take place after the climax.

8. What series of events comprise the falling action?

Resolution The part of a story or drama which occurs after the climax and which establishes a new norm, a new state of affairs-the way things are going to be from then on. In “Young Goodman Brown,” Goodman Brown’s loses faith in the woods and consequently loses trust and faith in all of the townspeople. 9. What is the new norm for the protagonist in your story and what circumstance will make it evident?

10. A theme is a commentary or point of view the author seeks to communicate about life. What is your theme?

11. What other layers can you add to your story? How did you use tone, diction, imagery, archetypes, and irony to craft your story? Use this last question as a final chance to brainstorm other elements, plot twists of the story that will create an entertaining, yet thought provoking story. Pitching your Short Story 11 Honors English

Before completing your short story, you will need to develop a pitch explaining why your story should be published. The pitch must provide the following information:

 A brief synopsis of your story – this should summarize your plot and the dynamic change your protagonist experiences

 How you intend to integrate key literary elements within your story – how will they support the plotting and character development?

 The thematic message of your story and an explanation of how/why this story will add meaning and value to the anthology of short stories – explain what perspective you’re seeking to represent and why.

 The pitch should be one page, double-spaced, 12 Times New Roman

 Note: If you do not complete a pitch, your final draft will be penalized 15 points – giving you a start value of 85%

Rubric: ______/15 points  Clear and logical assertions  Clear explanations to support your reasoning  Clear explanations identifying the above elements: synopsis, literary elements, rationale for including your story in the anthology  Spelling and grammar

Notes from the pitch meeting: ___ The story has unique and original elements

___ The story has elements that are authentic to the situation and characters – the events, characters, and dialogue are not clichés

___ The story has a meaningful thematic message that focuses the literary elements and the plotting.

___ The story helps the reader to suspend believability. Introduction to your Short Story: Rationale and Commentary on the Process As we finish the unit, we will return to our first question to review and consider different elements of storytelling. Given the wide variety of stories you have read (to this point), it is your job to evaluate and comment on the following question as it relates to your own storytelling:

What did you seek to communicate within your short story? How did you accomplish this and what elements of the short story unit influenced your storytelling? How did your story develop and/or change? Your response should be no more than one page (1.5 spaced) and reference your story, as well as at least two stories we read in the unit. Please support all of your assertions with textual support and logical reasoning.

Your response will be evaluated on the following:  Clear and logical assertions  Use of textual support  Clear explanations to support your reasoning  Clear explanations identifying what theme you were seeking to convey and how you went about it  Discusses the inspiration and development of thinking throughout the process  Spelling and grammar

Remember the texts we read include: Jorge Luis Borges: “The Traitor and the Hero” . Modeling the critical thinking/annotation process . Using rereading as a strategy to understand theme. . Understanding allusions as the foundation for interpreting a story.

Kate Chopin: “Ripe Figs” & “The Story of an Hour” . Using background research to assist understanding . Asking meaningful questions to assist understanding . Understanding the impact of irony within storytelling

Alice Walker: “Everyday Use” . Making effective observations and asking higher order questions to yield insights . Understanding the interplay between theme, characterization and symbolism . Understanding the role of multiple conflicts

Joyce Carol Oates: “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been: Casebook interpretations . Examining archetypes: initiations, the quest, the devil . Use of symbolism . Illusion versus reality: ambiguous text . Considering the strength of counterevidence Narrative Peer Revision

DIRECTIONS: We all agree that good storytelling is engaging and complex. Your purpose is to assess your peer’s story and determine the degree to which it entertains, while telling a story with complexity. Read the story a first time and take notes on the questions below. Provide some initial feedback for the following questions, the author(s) of the story should take notes on these points as you have this discussion. 1. Does the author provide enough detail to allow the reader to suspend belief? 2. Does the dialogue seem authentic? Or, does the dialogue feel artificial and contrived? 3. Is the story over plotted? Does the author attempt to cover too many elements and subplots? How does this limit the telling of the core story? 4. Does the protagonist experience a dynamic change? Is it subtle and plausible? 5. Do the literary elements support the storytelling or do they seem too contrived? 6. Does the story exist on a literal and figurative level? Can a theme be inferred? 7. Does the author use paragraph breaks with indentation to show a new speaker?

Now, read the paper a second time. This time, focus on the style, grammar, and organization of the story, as well as elements of storytelling for a second time. Remember as you read, some places in the text will need more elaboration, others will need to be deleted, and others will need to be arranged. A true peer evaluator will provide an honest, constructive assessment.

Sentence Structure/Style 1. Varying Sentence Length and Structure: a. Is the sentence length strategically varied throughout the paper? For example, are more difficult concepts expressed in shorter sentences? Is sentence length changed for emphasis, flow, and coherence? If yes, give a few examples of where such variation takes place. If no, assist in determining how and where such variation can effectively take place. b. Does the sentence structure repeat itself too frequently? What are some of the redundant patterns? Do too many of the sentences begin with the subject? What introductory information could be used? Can shorter sentences be combined into longer sentences, or do longer sentences need to broken down into smaller sentences? Suggest revision possibilities.

2. Kiss – Keeping it Simple and Succinct: Remember good verbs SHOW instead of TELL A power sentence uses active voice, uses an active verb rather than a linking verb, and uses specific, concrete words as opposed to general, abstract words. a. Can “to be” forms of verbs be replaced with action verbs? Are these forms avoided? To be Be, being, was, were, been Am, are, is, Am being, was being, were being Will be, will be being Have been, has been Had been Will have been

b. Is appropriate diction used? (word choice) c. Is appropriate phrasing used? (can it be said just as effectively with a word rather than a phrase) d. Do synonyms take ‘shades of meaning’ (connotation) into account? e. Are all unnecessary/empty words eliminated? Is it too wordy or does it have too much jargon?

3. Formatting a. Does the writer provide a title? b. Does the writer provide the proper heading, font size (Times New Roman, 12 point, double space)

Grammar 4. Using Commas Judiciously a. Are the six important uses for commas applied? If not, make revision suggestions. i. Use a comma when separating items in a series (even before the last item introduced by “and.”) ii. Use a comma to separate two or more adjectives before a noun. iii. Use a comma with a conjunction (but, or, yet, so, for, and, nor) when combining two independent clauses. iv. Use a comma with sentence interrupters such as direct address, appositives, interjections— in short, any nonessential material. v. Use a comma to separate a quotation from the words used to identify the source. vi. Use commas to set off introductory material.

Organization 5. Transitions between paragraphs and between sentences a. displays a clear order of events b. uses paragraph breaks to show changes in time and place c. uses paragraph breaks to show a change of speaker in a dialogue d. transitions into and out of flashback effectively and clearly to the reader e. includes transitional words and phrases to show relationships between ideas f. maintains coherence within and between paragraphs Content 6. Storytelling a. Is there a clear plot? b. What are the layers of the story? What other elements exist within the story to add complexity? Consider irony, symbols, archetypes, allusions, and figurative language as ways to add details. Make suggestions on the paper as necessary. c. A good reader visualizes, a good writer helps the reader to visualize by providing visual, vivid details. Do these exist in the story? Are there places where they can be added? d. Is there an appropriate amount of dialogue? Should there be more? Less? 7. Plot Sequence a. Does the author provide a complete background for the reader to understand the story? b. Is there a distinct climax+ c. Do the conflicts appear natural or contrived?

Overall, on a scale of 1-10, how do you rate the quality of the story? Name:______Creative Writing: Short Story Rubric

MLA Format ____/5  Uses proper format  Has a title that reflects the content of the story  Double Spaced, Times New Roman, 12 point font

Implications/Believability ____/20  The figurative level of the story develops a clear thematic issue  The literal level of the story develops a clear thematic issue  The story is believable – the author(s) provide sufficient details, development and consistency that enable the reader to suspend belief

Content ____/45  Uses imagery, motifs, metaphor, simile and/or symbolism to create figurative interpretations of the story  Provides purposeful ambiguity that compels the reader to think versus feel confused  Provides distinct characterization details  Provides believable dialogue  Includes believable conflicts, climax, and resolution that contributes to the overall theme of the story

Organization ____/20  displays a clear chronological order of events  uses paragraph breaks to show changes in time and place  uses paragraph breaks to show a change of speaker in a dialogue  transitions into and out of flashback effectively and clearly to the reader  includes transitional words and phrases to show relationships between ideas  maintains coherence within and between paragraphs

Style ____/5  uses own, unique style, word choice is skillful and accurate  uses a variety of sentence structures  sentences are clear and avoid clutter

Mechanics ____/5  Non-negotiable spelling and grammar  contains no more than two or three minor errors in grammar and usage  contains no more than two or three minor errors in spelling, capitalization, and punctuation

Total ____/100