Week 1, Part 1. Writer's Autobiography as a Writer
What's the story?
I need to know something about you as writers, so why not post a writer's autobiography (an autobiography of you as a writer) on your new blog, describing your writerly triumphs, tragedies, hopes, disappointments, dreams, fantasies, strengths, weaknesses, projects, course expectations, and so on.
Tricky part: do it three different ways.
Write it in the first person ('My head rested on my folded hands, which were wet with the beads of blood, sweat, and tears I was shedding at the idea that I had to write an essay in 45 minutes....").
Then write it in the second person ("You love to write, you sit for hours with your imaginary friends spinning stories, until Monday comes and back in school, you face the dragon in her lair, Mrs. Jones, the fourth grade teacher, writhing up to you hissing, 'Have you finissssshed your writing?' You want to split her skull with an ax, but the school you have been exiled to frowns on such things....")
Then write it in the third person ('She was a quiet student, a student who from the outside seemed in control, obedient, eager to help. But this was her mask, her public face. Secretly she was gathering material for the expose that would blow the lid off the Middle School forever....")
Go ahead and post it on your own blog where I promise I will read and comment on it. If you want, but it's optional, post a reaction to this assignment here, below, in comments.
I need to know something about you as writers, so why not post a writer's autobiography (an autobiography of you as a writer) on your new blog, describing your writerly triumphs, tragedies, hopes, disappointments, dreams, fantasies, strengths, weaknesses, projects, course expectations, and so on.
Tricky part: do it three different ways.
Write it in the first person ('My head rested on my folded hands, which were wet with the beads of blood, sweat, and tears I was shedding at the idea that I had to write an essay in 45 minutes....").
Then write it in the second person ("You love to write, you sit for hours with your imaginary friends spinning stories, until Monday comes and back in school, you face the dragon in her lair, Mrs. Jones, the fourth grade teacher, writhing up to you hissing, 'Have you finissssshed your writing?' You want to split her skull with an ax, but the school you have been exiled to frowns on such things....")
Then write it in the third person ('She was a quiet student, a student who from the outside seemed in control, obedient, eager to help. But this was her mask, her public face. Secretly she was gathering material for the expose that would blow the lid off the Middle School forever....")
Go ahead and post it on your own blog where I promise I will read and comment on it. If you want, but it's optional, post a reaction to this assignment here, below, in comments.
posted by johngoldfine | 8/23/2013 05:49:00 PM
10 Comments:
I think this is an awesome first assignment. I wasn't sure what to expect form this course.
I think that is was a very interesting assignment and was a thought provoking process. I learned things about myself as a writer that I never thought about before.
Glad this worked for you both.
This piece started off as challenging for me, I couldnt decide what approach to take but once I just dove in, I felt like it unraveled ok.
I'm not sure about this assignment. Are we to write three separate papers? Or was that simply a challenge?
Three separate versions of yourself as a writer or writing student, one told as 'I,' one as 'you,' one as 'she.'
An interesting way to make us view ourselves from various angles. In fact, I think it may be easier to write about myself as she or you than as me. Me can be a hard person to get to know, this requires an internal view. You and she, those are like looking form the outside in, always, for me, an easier task, but helpful in a way to get deeper inside....
I like this subject and am pretty comfortable with the first and third person writing styles. The second person view (or however you say it) is probably the only one i will have trouble with since i don't think that i have ever written a paper in that style. But this should be fun.
I am just about to start this assignment. I feel like writing in 2nd and third person may be a challenge for me, not hard, but something new. I haven't really written much of anything like this before so m interested to see how it goes!
I think this assignment is very interesting, but definitely a great way to get thinking and use our experiences to write in different manors. Great way to get thinking!
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