| Registered: | Sep 28, 2006 11:53 AM |
| ID: | 64834 |
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| Name: | Writing Exercises |
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| Do not eemail this account to ask to join the group.[/i] The New Writing Group ------------------------------------------ Members: CJ, Toucan, Teriyaki, SassyGirl05, Gnomesquid, Mitgui, Canton, SparkleWorks, Hug, RPGrl, Twilight4, Goomie, Jasper_Collins, AmyGrace, Lauren H, aurora!Blackheart, NavySister, _goddess792_ ------------------------------------------ User - Assignments Completed (List order is order of joining) CJ - #1, 2, 3, 4, 5a, 5b, 6 Toucan - #1, 2, Teriyaki - #1, 2, 5a SassyGirl05 - #1, 2, Gnomesquid - #1, Mitgui - #1, Canton - #1, 1b, 2, 3, SparkleWorks - #1, 2, Hug - #2, RPGrl - #1, 2, 4 Twilight4 - #1, 2?, Goomie - #1, 5a, 5b, 6, 7, 8 Jasper_Collins - #1, AmyGrace - #1, Lauren H - 0 aurora!Blackheart - 0 Navysister - #1, _goddess792_ - #1, ------------------------------------------ Assignment #1 Please post a sample of your recent writing. The type of writing doesn't matter, but please limit the sample to 1000 words or less. The goal of this assignment is to allow members to become familiar with each other. Assignment #1b Take one of the pieces of writing posted by another member and write a short scene involving one of the characters, taking place either before or after the events or the original writing. This assignment is helpful to the original writers, in that they see how the characters they have created come across to a reader, rather than how they see that character in their own head. The scene can be as short or as long as you want, but it should be a single scene. Assignment #2 This is a timed free write. Write a scene. You have a time limit of 10 minutes. (Use an egg timer or some other method to keep track.) Write only within the time given. If you are in the middle of a sentence when the timer stops, you may finish that sentence. Post the result, without editing for typos. Assignment #3 This assignment is a group effort. Each member of the group should pick one of the following scenes, then write and post it. (Don't worry about the details, aside from what is provided. The differences of style and continuity are part of the fun.) There are nine scenes to choose from. (Yes, they're pretty dull, basic. Feel free to write them in a weird genre or style and set them wherever you want. Be creative.) They should be fairly short... between 300 and 1000 words. Each scene should be written by a different member. Please post when you have chosen your scene, to make sure one scene isn't written twice. (Note: Scenes that have already been picked are marked with an X. Scenes already written are marked with a W. If you really want to write a picked scene that hasn't been written, go for it.) Guy's Name: Pete Dog's Name: Teesha First scene: Pete receives Teesha. [x][w] Second scene: Pete plays with Teesha. [x][w] Third Scene: Pete catches Teesha doing something bad. [x] Forth Scene: Pete snubs Teesha. Fifth Scene: Teesha limps home, is injured. Sixth Scene: Teesha's wound gets infected. She is very sick. [x] Seventh Scene: Pete takes Teesha to the vet. [x] Eighth Scene: Teesha dies. [x] Ninth Scene: A scene that shows how Pete has been changed by Teesha's death. Assignment #4 Write a scene between 200 and 1000 words based on the following image. It may take place immediately before, during, or after the moment depicted Image here. Assignment 5 a) Post a piece of your writing. Anything is fine, but try to limit it to 1,500 words or less. b) Critique at least one piece of writing that is posted by another member for assignment five. Try to focus both on what worked in the piece as well as what didn't. -(Remember to mark both parts of the assignment with 'assignment 5' (part a or part b) in bold, to make it easier for other members to find.) -The two parts of the assignment don't need to be completed at the same time; you may want to wait until someone posts something that appeals to you or you may want to avoid commenting on something that has already been critiqued. Assignment #6 Write a ghost story that uses three of the following words: cold, night, voices, alone, bamboo, cracked, sailboat No word or scene limits, but try to keep the length reasonable. Assignment #7 (Suggested by Toucan) Write a children's story using 1000 words or less. Optional word prompts (To get ideas flowing): edge, holiday, quintessential, blue jay, nest Bonus Assignment #7b Pick ten words that you have difficulty spelling. Write each of them out 15 times. Post the results here. (It might be interesting to see which words our fellow group members have trouble with.) This is a good habit to get into, rather than just relying on Spellcheck's corrections. Assignment 8 (Suggested by Goomie) Write a story about the apocalypse. It can be just before, during, or after. Word limit 2500 words. Word prompts: horse, house, garden, fence Assignment #9 (Suggested by Teriyaki) Like assignment #2, this is a timed assignment. You have ten minutes to write a stealthy scene, where a character is trying to accomplish something without being discovered. Teriyaki suggests using spies and ninjas, but these are not required. You have a time limit of 10 minutes. (Use an egg timer or some other method to keep track.) Write only within the time given. If you are in the middle of a sentence when the timer stops, you may finish that sentence. Post the result without editing for typos. ------------------------------------------- Beyond here are the members and assignments of the original writing group, which is long dead. However, feel free to complete any of these old assignments. (Just specify which one you're working on.) ------------------------------------------- (Old) Writing Group Members  /b]Co-Founders /b]Mitgui, Python, CJ Members Aurora Blackheart, Canton, crystal Fenix, silver wings, Draega, OwlManAtt, Parferme, Flick Flack, Nerdzrool, Cinamon, QAS, Shadow Axl, Zui, Pit Viper, Tsarmina, gnomesquid, BunnyBunny ------------------------------------------- Assignment #1 Suggested by Aurora Blackheart Write a 500 word plot summary of your nano or big idea that you really want to have done. The goal is to keep your story straight and not make loopholes as you write. You can effectively prevent plot holes. Assignment #2 Suggested by Pit Viper Write a character bio. Include background, heretage, physical strengths/weaknesses, mental strengths/weaknesses, personality, religious beliefs, and skills/attributes. Also include anything else that may be interesting to readers. Assignment #3 Suggested by CJ Write for at least two paragraphs, focusing heavily on description. Try to use all five senses. Assignment #4 Suggested by Mitgui Pick one of the Google ads that appears on the next page you open, and turn it into a premise for a story. Not the whole story, just sketch it out. Assignment #5 Suggested by CJ Write for at least 1000 words, in any form. (Example: Essay Form, Short Story, etc.) The topic is self-sacrifice. ------------------------------------------- Old Group Assignments (Feel free to complete them, if you wish.) Assignment #1 Assigned by: CJ Timed Description-based Free Write Time Limit: Twenty Minutes Topic: A place you haven’t been to for many years. Deadline: Next Friday Notes: For members who are doing NaNo, this serves as practice for writing as quickly as possible and not stopping to edit. When your time runs out, finish the sentence you’re writing, but don’t go any further. (Use an egg timer or an alarm clock, if you want to be precise.) Feel free to approach this exercise from any point of view or style, while focusing on describing the area. Completed by: Aurora Blackheart, Python, CJ, crystal Fenix, silver wings, OwlManAtt, Mitgui, Nerdzrool, Canton, Parferme ----- Bonus Assignment # 1 Assigned by: CJ (Should not be counted in any totals) Write five Haiku about really random subjects. Completed by: CJ, silver wings, Aurora Blackheart, Python ----- Assignment #2 Assigned by: Python Powerwrite Write about 3-5 or more topics. Give yourself only 30 seconds to think about it, and 2 minutes to write about it. Do not finish your sentence; only finish the word. Do this 3-5 times for the different topics. This is supposed to strengthen your creativity so that you can think of idea fast and don't waste too much time thinking about what to write next, like in your NaNo novel. It's also to be able to write under huge pressure, like close to the end of the deadline, really, really fast. This can be applied also in other situations, so it's a good excersise to do. I will not supply any topics, because that's part of the assignment. Any amount of pieces will do, no limitations. Completed by: CJ(7), Aurora Blackheart (3), Mitgui (3), Python (4), silver wings (3) ----- Bonus Assignment #2 Assigned by Python Pick one or two of your Powerwrites (exercise 2), and develop it for 15 minutes. Completed by: CJ --------------------- Assignment #3 Assigned by: Mitgui Write for ten minutes, describing yourself getting surprised, trapped, and destroyed by something that scares you in real life. (If it's something like public speaking, you could have it just ruin your life, rather than kill you). Choose first or third person as you prefer. Next, write for ten minutes about being threatened by that scary thing, but escaping or overcoming it. Completed by: silver wings, CJ --------------------------- Assignment #4 Assigned by: CJ Due next Friday. Write a short story of at least 1000 words about a character whose values are the exact opposite of yours, in some way. Example: If you are a devout Christian, write about an athiest. If you believe in democracy, write about someone who supports a monarchy. If you're a skeptic, write about someone who believes in the paranormal. However, you must write a convincing and human character. You may not have your character's values change in the story, so that they end up in line with yours. You may use any style or point of view you wish and the topic is completely open. Feel free to use a character from one of your existing pieces of writing, if it fits the criteria. Notes: The purpose of the exercise is to avoid /always/ writing characters who are a reflection of some part of yourself. It's fine to explore your own values through a story, but populating an entire world with people who either think like you or are immoral figures is unconvincing. Completed by: CJ, ---------------------- Assignment #5 Assigned by: Python Due on Friday This is somewhat drawing on the Snowflake method to write a novel. Somewhat, with some parts taken out. Write a one sentence plot, for anything. A short story, flash fiction, novella, novel, anything. Turn that into a paragraph. Make that paragraph five sentences, and then from that create five paragraphs, closely to one for each sentense. If you're doing flash fiction, that might end up being your story with maybe a little dialogue added or something. If not you can choose to expand it as you see fit. Completed by: CJ ------------------- Assignment #6 Assigned by: Mitgui Write about your ideal day. You live in your dream house, work at your dream job, and you're married to the person of your dreams. Let's say 500 words minimum. Completed by: CJ --------------------- Assignment #7 Assigned by: CJ Due: Next Friday Fill out the following details about your main character. Wherever possible, use a full sentence, and describe things in detail. If a question doesn’t apply, find a way to fill it out anyway. (Eg. What car does your character drive = How do they get around. If your character uses magic to teleport somewhere, describe that.) In the case of the world, if your story takes place on Earth, fill in your answers anyway. (While your story may take place just down the street from where you live, your readers don’t know what that looks like. You have to create a setting that they can see and understand.) The Main Character: Name: Sex: Age: Appearance: Education: Occupation: Financial Situation: Single, steady relationship, married? Moral or Religious beliefs: Mood: (Is your character quick to anger? Is your character depressed?) The name of the world this character lives on: The country, province, and city the character lives in: Describe your character’s relationship with… a) his or her country. (Is your character patriotic?) b) his or her province/state. (Does your character like the natural features of where they live?) c) his or her city. (Your character’s relationship with the people around him or her.) Timeframe of the Story: Describe the character’s family life: Who does your character love? Who does your character hate? What are your character’s greatest strengths? What are your character’s weaknesses? What does your character fear? What would this character’s bedroom look like? Has your character ever had a pet? (Present or past tense) Where does your character shop? (Everyone has to buy or find food.) What is in your character’s pockets? (What does your character bring along.) What is your character’s hobby? Why do you want to write about this character in particular? The World: -Describe your world: (What solar system is it located in? Is it the only planet in its solar system where there is intelligent life?) -Name all relevant countries of your world and how they interact: (For example, if your story is set on Earth, but the conflict between the US and Iraq is significant, mention both those countries and their relationship.) -Are there racial conflicts in your world? -Describe the country that your main character is currently living in: (What is a crime in the country? What are the country’s values? What system of government does it use? Are any of these things relevant to the story?) -Describe the province/state your character is currently living in: (Paying attention to details about the land itself.) -Describe the city your character is living in. (What is it famous for? Is it clean? Is it a safe or dangerous place?) -Describe the place where your main character is living. (Rent or own? Temporary or permanent? Is this a place your character is happy to come home to?) Notes: Since NaNoWriMo is very close now, this exercise is geared towards preparing. It’s separated into two parts: the first is outlining your main character and the second is outlining your world or plot. Sometimes just figuring out small details about your character can trigger ideas that launch your plot in a different direction. People who aren’t participating in NaNo may also do this exercise. They may use an existing character or story, or make one up for the exercise. | |
