Welcome to Creative Writing!

1. Welcome to Creative Writing! Mrs. Hartman

2. What is the purpose of Creative Writing? • To discover the inner self and tap your subconscious • To create a safe space for exploration of ideas • To develop creativity, divergent thinking and imagination • To log life events and preserve memories of real people, places and events

3. What is the purpose of Creative Writing? • To play with a variety of genres • To develop power and skill as a writer • To read more critically and learn to appreciate the craft of writing by studying both experts and student-generated writing • To bring life to the characters and ideas that are unique to your imagination

4. What is the purpose of Creative Writing? • To investigate options and generate possible solutions to problems without risk • To organize your thoughts and make plans • To become a more careful listener and observer • To express emotions • To explore important questions • To find emotional perspective and balance

5. What types of Writing Do We DO? • Informal Journal Exercises • Memoir/Personal Narrative • Short stories/Flash Fiction • Myths/Fairy Tales/Fables/Children’s stories • Commentary/Opinion • Reading Response and Analysis • Author Study/Presentation • Interview-based profiles • Dramatic scenes/One Acts • Poetry/Song Lyrics • Multi-Genre Writing/Final Independent Project • Paired, Group and Individual Writing Based on the Interests of the Class

6. WHAT CAN I EXPECT? • You are expected to develop a daily journal habit. This requires 15 minutes of your time outside of class each day and journals are graded each marking period. I will offer writing suggestions if you get stuck or are at loss for ideas, and I also provide the journal. You may be asked to share an entry periodically, but the journal is basically a place where you stretch your writing muscles and build fluency, so I won’t be responding to every entry unless you ask me to. Grades will be assigned for completion and the first is due Monday November 3rd . You will, however, be asked to bring it in to class periodically for writing workshops.

7. WHAT CAN I EXPECT? • Classwork: Writer’s Notebook exercises and participation are evaluated daily • You are expected to give each exercise your best effort and to be respectful while sharing and responding to the work of others. • What happens in Creative Writing stays in Creative Writing : great writing comes from the heart and only when you can trust your classmates—Be KIND and don’t betray that trust!

8. WHAT CAN I EXPECT? • You will be expected to share your thoughts on a favorite writer’s style through an author study presentation. • SSR is a great time to read purely for enjoyment. Make a decision about whose writing you admire and would recommend to your classmates and read critically with that idea in mind. Look for examples of the effective writing techniques we study in class.

9. What can I expect? • All students are expected to submit a minimum of fourpolished pieces for assessment each semester ;two of these should be suitable for publishing in a class anthology or Allusions, the school literary magazine. • All students are expected to complete homework assignments in a timely fashion since class discussion is often based upon the prior night’s reading. • A final portfolio and reflection will be submitted at the end of the course

10. How is work graded? • Some projects have clear guidelines and rubrics • Some writing is graded for participation/attempting a genre • Final evaluation is based on a completed portfolio of work and self-selected independent projects

11. What you will need • A Writer’s Notebook to collect all writing experiments and assigned reading responses. Loose leaf in a small binder works well for this since it allows you to separate homework and handouts and expand on classwork. • A jump drive is essential for work to travel between home and school. Bring it every day. • We use colored pencils often and I have a set, but you may prefer to bring your own.