Creative writing requires attention to detail. Look around your room tonight at all the unique things you have collected over the years. Each object tells a story. Bring in that background to your creative writing. Get your parents to tell you a story about their childhood tonight at dinner. Use people in your life for unique details. Focus on pop culture references, the snacks we eat, the shows we watch, the music we listen to, the headlines, the tweets, the likes on Facebook, etc to "show" i.e. to bring your character to life rather than to "tell" facts about a cardboard character that no one will believe. Think of the stories we have studied. The novel you read. The stories written by students and published in The Claremont Review that you read. What techniques do they use that you can use too?
Today, we corrected our essays and handed in a chart regarding strengths and skills to master. We read a number of essays by other students in order to see the strengths and weaknesses of the entire group. Any items that a lot of students have in common, I can turn into mini-lessons. For example, how to turn a plural noun into a possessive noun, etc.
Tonight: Create a character, a setting, a conflict, and three complications. Write them down! Also, write down which aspect of identity you plan on revealing in your story.
