Writing Place: A Creative Writing Exercise
writing·@jessicakluthe·
0.000 HBDWriting Place: A Creative Writing Exercise
<html> <p> I often find myself staring at the blank page wondering if I should pursue one of the projects I have saved in some folder on my desktop (like that half a novel that is still rattling around in the back of my mind), or maybe I want to read one of the ten books I have in my to-read pile, or, or, <em>maybe</em> I just need an assignment: a task set out for me that I can see through to completion. </p> <p>This weekend, as Canada celebrates 150 years (though, this is indeed a land that’s been inhabited by Indigenous peoples for millennia), I’ve been thinking about the places that I’m from – the city I live in now, the small town that I grew up in… These sorts of connections to place, that are a part of who we are, lend us story material. </p> <p>So, if you’re like me, and sometimes just need an assignment to get you started, I’d like to share with you one that I created (from scratch) for a creative writing course that I teach. I’ve modified it (since, I’m not grading you and you certainly are not restricted by genre or work count); <strong>I hope that it inspires you to write</strong>. </p> <p>I’d love to know what you think of the assignment, and if you’re a teacher and want to use it in your classroom, by all means, but I would appreciate if you credit me. </p> https://steemitimages.com/DQmSuunhHD7Mn6FzbqyZgEKx3oAk5AEk6PC9BXff3gSt7cV/place%20.jpg <h2>WRITING PLACE </h2> <p>Getting Started (some writing ideas) </p> <p>Perhaps your place-based story will invite readers into a landscape that you know intimately (in the way, for instance, that Alberta writer Robert Kroetcsh invites us onto the prairies, or <a href="http://www.mcnallyrobinson.com/9780888643032/robert-kroetsch/what-the-crow-said">into a seemingly never-ending winter</a>). Or, perhaps your place-based story will be an exploration narrative (following a long history of texts by writers like Mungo Park who <a href="https://archive.org/details/travelsininterio01park">travelled the interior of Africa</a>). Or, maybe you’ll write a fictional place, a landscape you’ve fashioned that is just as real as Edmonton, Alberta, Canada (or the place that you are from). </p> <p>Maybe you’ll use a map that you unfold before us. Maybe you’ll take us to the world’s largest triple island in Nunavut that Jeopardy-famous, Ken Jennings details in his book <a href="http://www.ken-jennings.com/maphead"><em>Map Head</em></a><em> </em>(that is, the world’s largest island in a lake on an island). Maybe you’ll incorporate Google Maps. Maybe the place you write will be the Internet. Maybe you’ll take us off of Earth, and you’ll write a place somewhere else in the universe. Maybe you’ll write about the Mars One Project—a one-way trip off our globe—and imagine what it would be like for those first inhabitants of the red planet. Maybe you’ll write a travel story—real or imagined—where you explore your history (a family history, perhaps) or a history (for instance, of a particular group’s food or music). Maybe the place you write will be a bedroom, a kitchen, or inside of a car. It is entirely up to you. </p> <p><strong>For this assignment, place should not simply be inserted as a location (or an empty stage for the action to unfold), but rather it should be developed as an essential element to the story. </strong></p> <p>Below are some questions aimed at writing place that I’ve used so often I may have worn holes in them; you may find some or all of these useful to answer for yourself before you begin. If you are more of a “write to discover” kind of writer, ignore the questions and get typing. </p> <p>To ensure that your selected place is a central element, ask the following question: <em>if the same character(s), the same plot points, and the same conflict(s) existed in another location, would this story become a different story? </em>If you answer is “yes,” then continue to polish your story. If your answer is “no,” that’s okay: while revising your first draft, focus on developing your place and integrating that place into the narrative. </p> <p><strong>In your early drafts, give yourself permission to explore. </strong></p> <h2>Five <strong>Place-Focused Pre-Writing Questions</strong> </h2> https://steemitimages.com/DQmcvY3SdG7CoD7Y5LpNHdgNhiMxLapxYq1NAcaSVTiviXs/northern.jpg <ul> <li>If you were posting a photo of this place to an online album, what would your caption say? How would you frame it (i.e. what would you deliberately leave out)? </li> <li>Thinking in story terms… what kind of conflict does this place lend itself to? <em>Character vs. nature? Character vs. character? Etc. </em></li> <li>What bodies of water belong to this place, and how do they interact with the landscape? </li> <li>Consider audience. If you gave your place story to five people, who would they be? Why would these particular readers be interested? </li> <li>Consider genre. What form should this place story take? Does it lend itself to fiction? Non-fiction? Poetry? After you’ve made your selection, explain why. </li> </ul> <h2>THE ASSIGNMENT</h2> <p>Write a place-focused story. Place (real or imagined) should be a central element, i.e. your piece should convey a strong sense of place that is more than just a backdrop/setting, but is integral, in some way, to the story. </p> <p><em>Before you get writing, I’d LOVE to hear what place you’re going to write about and why. Where are you from? What's interesting about it? Happy writing!</em> </p> </html>
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