Beginning Creative Writing - Lesson 3

Transcription

1 Lesson Outline: In this lesson you will learn about: Story settings, The Science Fiction genre, and How to tell the reader when to pause for effect or to stop and breathe--using punctuation. The Setting of a Story: The setting of a story is the description of where and when the story takes place. Settings bring a specific mood to a story and are often specific to a certain type of genre. A Western story is typically set in the open plains and deserts of the American West, between the early 1800s and 1900s. In the prior lessons, the settings included a deserted island that was either very lush with many tropical plants and animals, or very dry and sandy with limited ability to support human life; and a fantasy setting which typically included dirt or cobblestone roads, buildings of stone, wood, and thatch, and huge stretches of farmland alternating with dense forests. It s important to describe the setting to let the reader know where and when everything is taking place. It is possible to use too much description at one time, though. Consequently, many writers give a brief description of a setting near the beginning and add new details as the story progresses. The setting for this week s lesson is a time in our future, which anticipates a very highly technical society (lots of inventions and gadgets). The setting may be on Earth, in outer space aboard a spacecraft, or on another planet. It may be real place or one that you ve imagined. The Science Fiction Genre: A SCIENCE FICTION story generally involves ideas based on current or future science or technology. It differs from Fantasy in that the rules of nature are explainable by the scientific rules established in the story. Magic is not involved. Science fiction stories include: Settings that may be on Earth in the future, in alternative time lines (parallel universes where people are the same as us, but making different decisions and living by different rules, for example), or in a historical past that is different from real historical times (life in America as it might be today if it hadn t been discovered by people from The Old World countries, for example). Settings that may be in outer space, on other worlds, or involving aliens. Story details that contradict the known laws of nature, such as psychic abilities, telekinesis (moving things with one s mind), invisibility, etc. Story details that involve the discovery or use of new scientific ideas or technology, such as time travel, nanotechnology, faster-than-light-travel, robotics, cryogenics, etc. Stories of new and different political or social systems, such as in the Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix or in The Giver by Lois Lowry. Page 1 of 6

2 Other examples of Science Fiction stories include: The Time Warp Trio series by John Scieszka War of the Worlds or The Time Machine by H.G. Wells Ender s Game, by Orson Scott Card Aliens Ate My Homework by Bruce Coville My Teacher Glows in the Dark by Bruce Coville A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L Engle Uglies by Scott Westerfield The Barcode Tattoo by Suzanne Weyn Science Fiction often includes elements such as these: Planets, galaxies, solar systems Alternate reality Aliens or creatures from other planets Alien environments Alien cultures and languages high-technology tools space ships/space stations travel or voyage into space Scientific research / experimentation Paranormal / parapsychology exploration / searching quest / mission conflict between humans and aliens conflict between humans and society danger / risk / uncertainty survival / hardship Punctuation: Punctuation is VERY important. Ending punctuation alerts the reader that the end of a complete thought or sentence has been reached. It allows the reader a brief pause to take a breath, and it tells the reader how to read the sentence. Ending Punctuation Periods are used at the end of a complete sentence, which is a sentence with at least a subject and an action (predicate). Sentences ending with a period are statements, which are read in a calm, serious tone. A question mark is used at the end of a sentence that asks a question. Questions are spoken with emphasis on key words such as what, who, when, where, why, how, and do. An exclamation point is used at the end of a sentence that shows strong emotion. Exclamatory sentence may be spoken quickly, loudly, and in a manner showing excitement, anger, fear, etc. Page 2 of 6

3 Internal Punctuation Internal sentence punctuation, commas, colons, semicolons, and dashes are more confusing, especially commas. Internal punctuation tells the reader where to pause for a quick breath or to show separation of ideas within the sentence. A comma is probably one of the most important pieces of punctuation, since its misuse can change the entire meaning of a sentence, or make the sentence very difficult to read and understand. There are no commas in the following sentence, which means it must be read without pauses. Without the commas, it doesn't make sense: As soon as we take off the seat belts will unlock and you may remove them. Add the commas where they belong, and the sentence is easier to read and understand: As soon as we take off, the seat belts will unlock, and you may remove them. Here are some COMMA rules: The comma comes after a phrase that begins a sentence with as, while, instead among other words. As we lifted off the ground, the rocket vibrated and shook violently. While I waited, I said a quick prayer. Instead of going to the usual vacation destinations, we decided to go to the moon for the school break. Commas come after certain introductory words such as well, yes, no, why: Well, I thought it would be a fun place to visit. Why, how did you ever find me? No, I didn't think you'd want to come, too. Commas come after participial phrases that begin a sentence. Participial phrases begin with words ending in 'ing' or 'ed': Searching my luggage, I found my boarding pass. Packed as full as possible, the suitcase spewed forth its contents once the clasp was undone. Commas are used when joining two complete sentences with a conjunction (but, for, nor, or, so, yet). The comma is placed before the conjunction: My mom enjoys traveling, but she hates packing and unpacking. Page 3 of 6

4 Her new personal robot could easily pack for her, yet she insists on doing it herself. Commas are used to separate items in a series of THREE or MORE items: Running, jumping, and lifting weights are easy to do on the moon. Commas are also used for setting off interrupting words and phrases. The comma comes before AND after the interrupting clause: The captain of the space ship, the tall man leaning by the wall and wearing a red and black jumpsuit, is a very likeable guy. My sister, even though she has a serious boyfriend, has a crush on him. Semi-colons are used between two independent clauses closely related in meaning. Sometimes a sentence can be separated with a semi-colon rather than a period. Flying a spaceship is not easy; most people never learn how to do it. We also use semicolons when listing items that have commas: We visited San Francisco, California; Dallas, Texas; Phoenix, Arizona; and Palm Beach, Florida on past vacations Last night, our meal onboard ship included green bean paste, a vegetable; roast beef puree, a protein; and mashed peaches, a fruit. Dashes may be used instead of commas, semicolons, colons, or parenthesis to show more emphasis, an interruption, or an abrupt change of thought. Dashes are SELDOM used in formal writing. He piloted the ship through the minefield--the captain received the credit! He was the pilot--the best pilot--for the cruise line. Page 4 of 6

5 Homework Assignments: All homework assignments must be formatted following MLA formatting rules and saved as an MS Word document. 3A - Editing Practice Read the handout, Comma Usage. Correct the capitalization, spelling, and punctuation errors in the paragraph in the BCW-3A-Editing document: Open the MS Word document BCW-3A-Editing. Save it as BCW-3A-your name, retype the words that must be capitalized. Retype the misspelled words. Add the missing punctuation. Then, send the corrected paragraph to your instructor as an attachment to an . 3B - Revising Practice Open the MS Word document BCW-3B-Revising. Save it as BCW-3B-your name, retype the sentences adding details and using more descriptive nouns, verbs, adverbs, or adjectives. Send the revised sentences to your instructor as an attachment to an . 3C - Story Writing Science Fiction: Using the prompt for the proper session on the next page, write a short science-fiction story. Use MLA formatting. Save the story as an MS Word (.doc) file, named BCW- 3C-your name, and send it to your instructor as an attachment to an . Remember, you MUST use the correct prompt for the current session. Page 5 of 6

6 Prompts (choose correct prompt for the session in which you are taking this class) Session 1 (August September) It s the year 2108, and you re living on a space station. You and your best friend have a favorite place where you go to hangout. Few others spend any time there, so you re surprised to discover others have been meeting there, too. You overhear that they are plotting to take control of the space station. Tell what you and your friend do to stop them. Session 2 (October December) It s the year 2110, and technology on Earth has become very sophisticated. Robots that look, sound, and act like people do most of the work. Recently, they have discovered the meaning of the word fun and they want to experience it, too. Tell what happens when the robots revolt and go on vacation. Describe what the world is like and any troubles the humans have learning how to do things they ve never had to do. Session 3 (January February) It's the year 2109 and you're going on vacation with your family. Your personal robot packs your suitcases for you and carries them aboard your family's spacecraft. Tell about the voyage, what it was that the robot packed for you, and your final destination. Session 4 (March May) It is the year 2509, and you are on a field trip to another planet with your classmates. You eagerly exit the space bus and follow your teacher to a planetary landmark or tourist attraction. Afterwards, you stop at the gift shop, buy a souvenir, and return home. Describe your day, your impressions of the planet, the attraction, and any people, animals, or other beings you encounter. Tell why this trip was a memorable occasion. Summer (June-July) It is the year The world is full of wonderful technological gadgets, space travel is routine, and your best friend is an alien from another galaxy. Write a story about something that happened to you and your friend. Describe the technology, space travel, your friend, and the event. Page 6 of 6