Finals Checklist

Intro to Creative Nonfiction/Finals Checklist

For your final requirements in our class, you’ll do two things:

1. Compile a folder/binder of the primary work you’ve done this term. These should be your original versions unless the assignment involved revision. Here’s a checklist of things that should be in your portfolio (arrange them in this order, please, and label accordingly):
• First writing prompt (from page 17 in text)
• First essay (illustrating the camera technique)
• Second writing prompt (from class blog/Firsts)
• Encyclopedia Blog entries (either print out or include a sheet with your blog addy)
• Prompt: The list of your essential firsts
• Festival coverage
• One Honest Essay
• Tiny Masters exercise/Revision exercise
• Research-based piece

2. EITHER one dramatic revision of one of the above pieces OR one new piece. Your revision or new work should indicate your understanding of the creative nonfiction techniques we’ve covered this term. Particularly essential will be your use/application of the following:
1. Scene
2. Dialogue
3. Color/Luminous Detail
4. Evidence of Research
5. Reflection/Musing
Your revision or new piece should be grammatically perfect, structurally sound, and reflective of the best possible work you can do. It replaces the need for a final exam in our course, so approach it accordingly.

In order to receive an A for the term, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:
• Consistent attendance and participation in class all term
• Complete portfolio
• Excellent final revision or new piece
Your grade on the Adderall Diaries exam will be factored into the above requirements as well.

Your portfolios and revisions are due in my office by 5 p.m. next Thursday, April 29. There will be a drop box outside of my office. If you’d like your materials returned, you can pick them up next semester.

Capstone Readings, Pendulum Launch, Guest Author Dave Newman -- All Next Week!

Googling Chickens (or The Joy of Research)

Using research is a great way to expand your voice and vision in creative nonfiction. So let's try this:

* Make a list of things you're curious about. The noun-ier the better.
* Choose one thing.
* Now: Google.
* Make of list of odd or interesting things you learned.
* Use the list as a launching point for a brief (750 words) essay.

We'll start this exercise in class. Your essay will be due in class on Thursday. You can post your brief essay to your blog or bring in hard copies for the class.

P.S. The chicken is the closest living relative to the T-Rex.

Brian O'Neill

Visit Brian O'Neill at http://www.parisofappalachia.com for backstory on the book, interviews, reviews and more.

To Live is to Fly -- And to Revise is to Write

What do poets think about revision? See some of their insights below. Then check out the book -- Seeing the Blue: Advice and Inspiration for Young Poets, compiled by Paul B. Janeczko (Candlewick Press, 2002). It's not just for poets any more.


Naomi Shihab Nye: "Now I see revision as a beautiful word of hope. It's a new vision of something. It means you don't have to be perfect the first time. What a relief!"

Georgia Heard: "To revise is a poet's life. To see and then to see again is what a poet's life is all about. I revise my poems not for the sake of revising, but to clarify what I see with my eyes and what's in my heart."

Nikki Grimes: "Good poetry requires a great deal of revision! Most of my poems go through ten drafts, minimum. (Groan.) That said, if you don't write honestly, no one will care what your poem has to say, no matter how cleverly written or technically competent it is."

Adam Ford: "It's always exciting when a poem tumbles straight from your head onto the page, but sometimes it still needs a little extra work. It's a rare poem whose first draft is as good as it could ever be."

Bobbi Katz: "Be prepared to revise. And revise. And revise."

Lillian Moore: "I tend to write poems slowly because I enjoy seeking the right word and revising until I think I have it. For almost every poem I have written over the years there has probably been a wastebasket filled with rough drafts. Most of all, I want a poem to say what I really felt or saw or heard--that is, to be true."

This Week in CNF

Workshop, workshop, more workshop. We'll discuss the revision exercises we started last week, then jump back to finish your honest essays. We'll review the writing you did for the festival week, too.

At Home: Apply your revision skills to work you've done this term. Think of this a a tinkering week. Keep reading Paris of Appalachia. We'll get to it next week.

Today in Creative Nonfiction

Hope you all enjoyed the festival! Today we'll do a festival re-cap, then discuss the art of revision.

For an in-class revision exercise, please be sure you have a copy of your Tiny Masters exercise. (If you don't have a copy, you can use a piece from your encyclopedia/blog entries, too.)

Some mysterious concepts to ponder between now and then:

Revision = re-vision.
Essay = from essais: French. Meaning to attempt or try out.
E.B. White: "Writing is an act of faith." Multiple acts of faith.

For Thursday: Bring copies of your festival-inspired pieces or post them to your blogs. Begin reading Paris of Appalachia by Brian O'Neill.

Tiny Masters: An Exercise in Finding What Matters

Here's an excerpt from a Brevity piece by writer/teacher Sherry Simpson. The piece is called Tiny Masters: An Artful Trick to Writing Personal Essays. Read the full piece here: http://www.creativenonfiction.org/brevity/craft/craft_simpson9_08.htm

The notion of tiny masters comes from author and New Yorker writer Susan Orlean, who once explained that she’s most interested in writing about people who are masters of their “tiny domains.” (She meant orchid thieves, 10-year-old boys, female bullfighters, Maui surfer girls, and The Shaggs, among others.) Adapting her approach to personal essays can help writers discover a rich subject near at hand – something they already know a lot about, something that interests them. It helps shift the focus from writing exclusively about the self to writing about knowledge, ideas and processes. As writers explore their mastery on the page, they instinctively begin playing with structure and making connections they never knew existed. Meaning begins emerging naturally from their drafts, pointing the way to future revisions.

This is how it works:

* Make a list of 10 things of which you’re a master. Include talents, skills, hobbies, qualities of character. I've created many lists over the years, and they surprise me every time: Making enchilada sauce. Building fires. Finding beach glass. Crossing rivers. Writing thank you notes. Collecting maps. Procrastinating. Teaching tricks to my dog.

* Choose a mastery that appeals and free-write about it. Describe how to do it, when you learned it, what you accomplish, where you do it – whatever comes to mind.

* Now write about a person connected with this mastery. Maybe it’s the person who taught you how to do it, someone you’ve done it for, or someone who discouraged you from doing it. Include details that capture the person’s personality or mannerisms.

* Next, write about a particular scene or event that involves your mastery and/or your person. Look for opportunities to add dialogue and setting.

By this point, writers usually have created a rough but promising first draft, even if it’s still in pieces. They’ve chosen something that’s important to them without worrying about whether it’s important enough. Stories, recollections, incidents and ideas start coalescing around their subject. Interrogating the draft reveals other connections and possibilities: Why this topic? What don’t I know? What information or background would enlarge the story? Why do I even like doing this? What is this about? What is this about really?


************

Try this in your class binder. Be your own tiny master.

Welcome Back!

Hope you had a great break!

This week, we'll be workshopping your honest essays. Please be sure to bring copies for class on Tuesday.

Your writing assignment for the week will be to do one peer critique of one of the essays from class. You should write a one-page, single-spaced response to the author of the piece you've chosen. Your response should offer specific feedback on what's working in the piece and what could be improved in revision. Make two copies of your critique and bring them to class on Thursday. I'll keep one copy and give the other copy to the author.

About next week:

Next week is our Writers Festival. It's always a wonderful time and I hope you're looking forward to it.

Here's the plan:

Please attend the Writers Festival events all week. To get a passing participation grade for the week, you must attend at least two events. More is much better. There will be sign-up sheets at all events. (Bonus: if you need Village credit, all the events offer that, too.)

To allow you to attend the festival, we won't be meeting in class next week. Your written assignment is to write about one of the festival events. You can write about the event in many different ways. If you'd like to take a personal essay approach, that would be fine. If the event sparks a memoir, terrific. If you'd like to try your hand at reportage, feel free to ask the visiting writers questions and record their answers. Or, if you'd like to invoke Amy Krouse Rosenthal, you could attend all events and write small entries about each one. It's really up to you. Just be sure you write about an event that inspired, moved, provoked or otherwise changed you. As you know, in Creative Nonfiction, passion means a lot.

Your assignments will be due on Thursday, April 1. Post your assignments to your blogs.

The Festival schedule again is:

* Monday, March 22 -- Faculty/alumni reading/festival kick-off, 7 p.m.
* Tuesday, March 23 -- Fiction writer/poet Kim Chinquee, craft talk at noon and reading at 7 p.m.
* Wednesday, March 24 -- Fiction writer Sherrie Flick, reading at 7 p.m.
* Thursday, March 25 -- Poets/memoirists Gerry Stern and Anne Marie Macari, reading at 7 p.m.
* Friday, March 26 -- Fiction writer/poet Joseph Bathanti, craft talk at noon and reading at 7 p.m.

All events will be in the Village Hall coffeehouse. Books will be available for purchase at the readings. Refreshments follow the readings. Village credit is available for all events.

Spring Break Assignment: One Honest Essay

Stephen Elliott quotes Philip Lopate here: “Strive for honesty, but admit that you can delude yourself as well as the next guy. Ironically, it is this skepticism that uniquely equips the personal essayist for the difficult climb into honesty. So often the ‘plot’ of a personal essay, its drama, its suspense, consists in watching how far the essayist can drop past his or her psychic defenses toward deeper levels of honesty. One may speak of a vertical dimension in the form: if the essayist can delve further underneath, until we feel the topic has been handled as honestly, as fairly as possible, then at least one essential condition of a successful personal essay has been met."

Over break, write an essay in which you strive for honesty. The subject's your choice -- wide open. But be sure to choose a moment you care deeply about, something that matters deeply to you.

The length is open, too. As long as a love letter. As long as it takes.

Due Tuesday after break. Bring copies to share with the class.

Finders Keepers

For Thursday, pick the Encyclopedia entry from class that resonated most with you. Which entry made you laugh? Which entry made you think? Which entry made you say "ah" (not at all like the kind of ah you make at the doctor's office, by the way)? Which entry did you think about long after class was over?

Look closer. What makes that entry special? What techniques did the writer use? What do you admire most? What can you learn from the entry (writing-wise/life-wise)?

Now answer this: What makes writing good? Can you say in one or two sentences what you value?

And this: How is this entry an example of good writing?

Cite the entry and its author here in the comments section. Then jump over to your own blog and answer the above questions (and more, as needed).

We'll discuss on Thursday.

This Week in Creative Nonfiction

We'll finish workshopping your Encyclopedia blogs, then move on to a discussion of Stephen Elliott's Adderall Diaries as a meta-memoir. Be sure to finish reading the book by Thursday. We'll have a very short quiz on the book and basic concepts.

To add to your reading joy, here's an interview with Stephen Elliott you might find useful: http://www.smithmag.net/memoirville/2009/09/23/interview-stephen-elliott-author-of-the-adderall-diaries/

National Book Award Winner Gerald Stern Headlines Pitt-Greensburg Writers Festival March 22-26

(Please note: As part of your class requirements, plan to attend at least two Writers Festival events. More is always better!)

Poet and Essayist Gerald Stern, winner of the National Book Award, headlines this year’s Writers Festival at the University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg.

The week-long festival begins Monday, March 22 and continues through Friday, March 26. The festival features readings, lectures and book signings from nationally known poets and writers. All events will be in the Village Hall Coffeehouse and are free and open to the public.

Stern, the author of sixteen poetry collections and a memoir, reads at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 25 with poet Anne Marie Macari.

The full festival schedules kicks off with a reading from Pitt-Greensburg faculty authors and alumni on Monday, March 22 at 7 p.m. Faculty authors include Judith Vollmer, Stephen Murabito, Richard Blevins and Lori Jakiela. Alumni readers for Monday’s event include Tim Gebadlo, Shane Duschack, Meghan Tutolo, Joseph Reed and Adam Matcho.

On Tuesday, Kim Chinquee, fiction writer and prose poet, will give a craft lecture at noon and a reading/book signing at 7 p.m. Chinquee is the author of two books of fictions/prose poems – Oh Baby (Ravenna Press) and Pretty (White Pine Press). Opening readers will be Kelly Scarff and Joy Pinkney.

On Wednesday, Sherrie Flick, author of the novel Reconsidering Happiness (University of Nebraska Press) and a flash-fiction collection I Call This Flirting (Flume Press), will read at 7 p.m. Opening readers will be Brian Cummins and Ashleigh Chicko.

Thursday features Stern and poet Anne Marie Macari. Stern is the author of 16 poetry collections and a memoir. In addition to the National Book Award, he’s received the National Jewish Book Award, The Ruth Lilly Prize and the Wallace Stevens Award. Macari is the author of three poetry collections, most recently She Heads Into the Wilderness (Autumn House Press). Opening readers will be Liz Russell and Jeff Sharon. They’ll read at 7 p.m.

The festival wraps up on Friday with Joseph Bathanti, who will give a craft talk at noon and a reading at 7 p.m. Bathanti is the author of 10 books of fiction, poetry and nonfiction. His latest is Restoring Sacred Art (poems from Star Cloud Press). Opening reader will be David Humbertson.

The Writers Festival is supported by funds from Pitt-Greensburg’s Student Government Association, Office of Academic Affairs and The Humanities Villages. It’s co-sponsored by Pendulum, the campus’ twice-yearly student literary magazine; the Written/Spoken series; and the Pitt-Greensburg Writing Program. For more information, contact Lori Jakiela, associate professor of English and festival director, at 724-836-7481 or loj@pitt.edu.

Revising for Voice: Abe Lincoln

Thank you to Jim Heynen who called attention to this in his essay, "Becoming Your Own Best Critic." Heynen's essay is in the latest issue of Brevity. See it here: http://www.creativenonfiction.org/brevity/craft/craft_heynen1_10.htm

Here are two versions of the last paragraph of Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address. The first was written by Secretary of State William Seward; the second is Lincoln’s revision.

Seward’s draft:

I close. We are not, we must not be, aliens or enemies, but fellow-countrymen and brethren. Although passion has strained our bonds of affection too hardly, they must not, I am sure they will not, be broken. The mystic chords which, proceeding from so many battle-fields and so many patriot graves, pass through all the hearts and all the hearths in this broad continent of ours, will yet again harmonize in their ancient music when breathed upon by the guardian angels of the nation. (84 words)

Lincoln’s revision:

I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battle-field and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature. (75 words)

The two versions also appear in Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book TEAM OF RIVALS and again in the January 2009 issue of The New Yorker.

Let's talk about the difference between the two versions. Let's talk depth, effect, voice.

A Quote to Quote (and Discuss)

William Stafford said: "The poem is best that's most congruent with who you are."

What does this say about voice and truth in creative nonfiction?


p.s. William Stafford also said: "You must revise your life." Read his poems. They'll change everything. And read his amazing collection of essays on writing -- WRITING THE AUSTRALIAN CRAWL.

Feeling Bloggy?

For this weekend, please finish reading Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life and finish your own encyclopedic entries.

Then: put your entries on a blog. This will be fun. I promise. You can use any blogging platform (Blogger/www.blogspot.com is one that's easy and free). Once you've set up your blog, link to our class blog. Then post your blog site's address in the comments section below.

I'll post links to all of your blogs on our class blogroll. (All this blog talk makes my brain bloggy. How are yours?) We'll use the blogs in class for workshop. That's right. No paper this time around.

In class on Tuesday, we'll also be talking about revising for voice and intimate point of view (per Truth of the Matter, Ch. 5). We'll use Amy Krouse Rosenthal as an example of a writer with a distinctive voice and intimate style. We'll also talk about how blogging can help you develop voice and a sense of what it means to write to be read.

p.s. If you haven't done so already, check out AKR's own website/blog at www.whoisamy.com.

NPR Interview: Amy Krouse Rosenthal and the Art of the Alphabetical Memoir

Here's an interview NPR did with Amy Krouse Rosenthal shortly after the publication of EOAOL. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4560580

Excerpt from Powell's Essay/Interview with Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Here's an excerpt to think about when we're thinking about voice -- what it is, why it's important, how it works to bring the writer and the reader closer.

Powells.Com From the Author Amy Krouse Rosenthal

"People ask me how I arrived at the idea of presenting a (my) life in encyclopedia form. Can I first say that until very recently I didn't think it was that outrageously odd of an idea. Yes, I understood that the structure was not conventional, I got that — but this format made such perfect sense to me (on many levels) that it was more like of course this is how my book will operate versus boy, I'm really doing something zany here with the structure. That said, this question has been posed to me enough times now that it is clear that people are either a) indeed curious about how I came to this encyclopedia solution, or b) it's simply the least wobbly plank from which to launch a dialogue.

That concludes the preface answer to the real answer. Here's my real answer: I don't think that question needs to be answered anymore, or at least not anymore today. I have answered it head-on for a few weeks, answered it like an earnest school girl who's been called upon, and here's the outcome: it's starting to make me feel sleazy. Why is that? Why do I feel like I'm giving a bit of myself away every time I answer that question directly? I don't know. Maybe you know. Maybe you've been here before. But I haven't. When do they serve lunch?

I think that if I continue talking about the book this way, explaining it, dissecting it, doing all this fancy circus-performer back-tracking about the process — it's potentially damaging. You explain something away enough and you're left with a dehydrated mass. I'm picturing a rotten, pale, sunken-in orange. There isn't a lot of juice or magic in a rotten orange.

Not to mention: It's no secret that I speak to this question at great length (i.e., excruciating detail) in the "Evolution of this Moment" section of the book.

Not to mention: What if I'm remembering the creative process all wrong? What if I'm romanticizing it? What if I am changing the story ever so slightly each time I tell it, in an effort to improve it, polish it, keep it fresh and unboring to me?

Not to mention: Who cares.

Let's talk about something else."

Read the full piece here: http://www.powells.com/fromtheauthor/rosenthal.html

Updated Assignments: February 18

First, here's a flamingo. Summer-y, right? It's out there, summer -- somewhere under all this mess.

Now: assignment-wise, we'll try to cover as much as possible on Thursday (no more snow!). Here's the plan:

* We'll finish workshopping your first pieces.
* I'll cover concepts from Chapters 4&5 in Truth of the Matter
* We'll review your Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life assignments (you'll finish these for Tuesday, Feb. 23)

Keep reading Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life if you haven't finished it and review chapters 1-5 in Truth of the Matter. We'll have a quiz on concepts we've covered so far this term next Thursday, Feb. 25.

On Tuesday, Feb. 23, I'll review some of these concepts in class and we'll talk about Encyclopedia. You'll turn in one copy of your encyclopedia entries to me. I'll make a packet of them and distribute to everyone on Thursday for workshop.

Writing Awards Deadline Extended to Thursday, Feb. 18

If you'd like to enter work in the 2010 Writing Awards Competition, you have until Thursday, Feb. 18 at 5 p.m. to submit. See full guidelines on the earlier post. (Remember -- you have to play to win. Prizes are $100 + fame. And, in the event of blizzard, $100 will buy a lot of milk and toilet paper.)