A Sense of Doubt blog post #1969 - On Writing- Four videos - Poetry - A scene - POV - Two by Me

A Sense of Doubt blog post #1969 - On Writing- Four videos - Poetry - A scene - POV - Two by Me

So, I am going deep into the weeds as I "instruct" students about creative writing, both poetry and fiction, for English 231 at Lower Columbia College.

These are really the first instructional videos for two assignments that essentially breakdown to "write a poem" and "write a scene for a story (or that is a story)."

First, there's two videos by me and links to the poem and story that I am talking about in each. Following those videos, there's a great web page on point of view followed by an excellent TED talk on POV and a final video on building a fictional world.

My videos are not as good as the others, I will admit it. I do not have the time to do too much in terms of planning, and so they are very much like exactly what I would do in the live face-to-face class room. If you watch them, bear that caveat in mind. Despite my improvisational technique, I think both videos do a good job with the ideas I wanted to convey. I am sure I could ameliorate the experience but that's for a future time when I think remaking them would be a valuable use of time.

The other two videos seem more composed. The first is a video about POV using great examples (Calvino! Virginia Woolf!!) as well as the tale of "Rapunzel." Smart and informative TED talk. The second is about building fictional worlds in fantasy and speculative fiction and will only be interested to those types of fiction (as I am, and I know some of you are).

Here's the gritty of the nitty. Enjoy.

Please like and leave me a comment!

FOR ASSIGNMENT ONE, WRITING A POEM

Modeled on "Lying Down with Men and Women" by John Woods:

A Sense of Doubt blog post #1827 - “Lying Down With Men and Women” by John Woods, a poem



FOR ASSIGNMENT TWO - WRITING A FICTION SCENE

Modeled on the story "No One's a Mystery" by Elizabeth Tallent - PDF.







https://thewritepractice.com/point-of-view-guide/

All stories are written from a point of view. However, when point of view goes wrong—and believe me, it goes wrong often—you threaten whatever trust you have with your reader and fracture their suspension of disbelief.
However, point of view is simple to master if you use common sense.
This post will define point of view, go over each of the major POVs, explain a few of the POV rules, and then point out the major pitfalls writers make when dealing with that point of view.

@write_practice https://thewritepractice.com/point-of-view-guide/

“I am an invisible man.” 

“Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself.” 

“You are about to begin reading Italo Calvino's new novel.” 

These three opening lines, from Ralph Ellison’s "Invisible Man," Virginia Woolf’s "Mrs. Dalloway," and Italo Calvino’s "If on a winter’s night a traveler," each establish a different point of view. Who is telling a story, and from what perspective, are some of the most important choices an author makes. Told from a different point of view, a story can transform completely. 

Take this fairytale: "Rapunzel, Rapunzel," the Prince called, "let down your hair." Rapunzel unbraided her hair and slung it out the window. The prince climbed her tresses into the tower. Rapunzel is typically told like this, with the narrator outside the story. This point of view is called third person. 

But Rapunzel can also be told by a character in the story— a first person narrator. The tail end of Rapunzel’s locks plopped down at my feet. I grabbed on and began to climb… ugh! I couldn’t untangle myself. Strands came off all over me, sticking to my sweat. 

In a first person narrative, the story can change dramatically depending on which character is the narrator. Say Rapunzel was narrating instead of the prince: I hope he appreciates how long it takes to unbraid 25 feet of hair, I thought. OUCH! I'll be honest; I thought my scalp would stretch off of my skull. "Can you climb any faster?" I yelled. 

In second person, the narrator addresses the story to the reader: He calls your name. He wants you to let your hair down. You just finished braiding it, but hey– you don't get a lot of visitors. 

Third person, first person, and second person perspectives each have unique possibilities and constraints. So how do you choose a point of view for your story? 

Constraints aren’t necessarily a bad thing— they can help focus a story or highlight certain elements. For example, a third person narrator is necessarily a bit removed from the characters. But that can be good for stories where a feeling of distance is important. A third person narrator can be either limited, meaning they stick close to one character’s thoughts and feelings, or they can be omniscient, able to flit between characters’ minds and give the reader more information. 

A first person story creates closeness between the reader and the narrator. It’s also restricted by the narrator’s knowledge. This can create suspense as the reader finds out information along with the character. A first person narrator doesn’t necessarily have to represent the character’s experience faithfully— they can be delusional or dishonest. In Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel "The Remains of the Day," Stevens, an aging British butler in 1956, recounts his many years of service, but fails to acknowledge the flaws of the man he serves. The cracks in his narrative eventually draw the reader’s attention to the under-acknowledged failings of the culture and class system he inhabits. 

Justin Torres’s novel, "We the Animals," begins with a plural first person narrator: “We were six snatching hands, six stomping feet; we were brothers, boys, three little kings locked in a feud for more.” Partway through the story, the point of view shifts to first person singular, from we to I, as the boys come of age and one brother feels alienated from the others. 

Second person is a less common choice. It requires the writer to make the reader suspend disbelief to become another “you.” Placing the reader in a character’s perspective can build urgency and suspense. Sometimes, though, second person is intended to distance the narrator from their own story, rather than bring the reader closer to the story. In these cases, second person narrators refer to themselves as “you” rather than “I.” 

Writers are constantly experimenting with fresh variations on point of view. New virtual and augmented reality technologies may expand the possibilities for this experimentation. By placing people at a particular vantage point in virtual space, how might we change the way we tell and experience stories? 

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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2007.09 - 10:10

- Days ago = 1833 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.