Before discussing some of the technical
aspects of my experience with creative writing, I just wanted to mention the
three things that stand out the most to me about the process. I know now that successful
writing requires an incredible amount of discipline. All the writers I’ve ever heard
discuss the act of writing never fail to talk about a setting a regular
schedule and sticking to it. But I didn’t realize how important this was until
I tried to write myself. And secondly and related to this is the realization
that writing occurs in the writing not in the thinking process that proceeds it.
You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to find it in the act of writing which
you can’t do, ironically, unless you are disciplined enough to write on a
regular schedule. Finally, the feedback I received from my classmates and
teacher was invaluable and essential to the whole process. I want to return to
idea of feedback later in the final section but in the following sections I’d
like to discuss the editing and redrafting of my story “Two Legs” in terms of Plot,
Point of View, Character, the use of technology and some implications for using
creative writing in the second language classroom.
Plot
“Two Legs” is about a character called
Mark who has cut a semester of university to work for an extended summer job travelling
with the circus. He is the low man on the corporate totem pole, so to speak. He
has romantic notions about the circus experience which are slowly eroded over
the season, largely because he is hounded by an abusive nitpicking producer,
whose sole concern is money. In the end, Mark stands up for himself and has a
confrontation which I leave for the reader to ponder. I came up with the
present ending, in part, after reading Jauss article “Returning Characters to
Life”. I liked the idea of leaving the final confrontation to be in the mind of
the reader, “in the blank space that follows the story” (Jauss, 2010). In terms
of the opening, I changed it several times but decided after the feedback I
received that my original opening was effective in capturing the reader’s
attention and establishing the setting. I think short stories should hit the
ground running and throw the reader into a specific moment of life and conclude
with several questions in the reader’s mind. In terms of Friedman’s plot categories
it falls under both a Maturing story and a sort of revenge plot. During the
redrafting process, it occurred to me that “Two Legs” is a sort of retelling of
Hamlet, with the producer being Claudius and Mark as Hamlet. One of the themes that
emerged in the writing is the conflict between imagination and compassion vs
the pursuit of money and the practicality that implies.
I told the story in 3rd
person limited POV with the narrator able to relate Marks thoughts only. I
tried different POVs but felt this to be the most suitable in the end because
it allowed me to try and create more distance around the main character. I have always liked very elaborate syntax that
has a strong impact but there are several problems with this style of writing.
It can sound very pompous and it also can distract the reader from the basic
action of the story, which is one of the comments I heard in the feedback
session. To overcome this, I had to keep asking myself who is saying this and
whose eyes are the readers going to be seeing the story through. As Jauss
stated in his essay on Distance “a film in which the camera stays the same
distance from the characters, never moving back or in” would be a boring
experience”. As a result, I tried to see the entire story as if I were the
director of a film, manipulating the distance between the narrator and the
characters but also the reader and the main character. As a result, I attempted
to embed some of the ideas originally spoken by the narrator into the mind of
the character in the form of a letter to describe the producer and then by
zooming into the imagination of the character. I hope that the reader will see
it from his point of view and establish a deeper understanding of what is
motivating the character.
The
Character
During the feedback sessions there were
several questions about what my character really wanted and what motivated him.
What did he look like? Why would a college kid work at circus? What is his
actual job? What journey is he on? I tried to address these questions in my
second draft and provide a background for Mark by using a flashback to a dialogue
to both show the kind of world he came from and what his parents were like and
create more conflict about his choice to run away with the circus. I feel my
character has more depth than in the initial draft but I’m still not fully
satisfied with by depiction of his character. In a nutshell, he has just
reached a breaking point with his abusive employer who represents everything he
dislikes about people who see the world just as a place to make money and this
leads to the final conflict.
On
the Use of Technology
I realized after the first feedback
session that I couldn’t let the technology sabotage good story telling
techniques by putting my clip of the circus site and revealing the setting
before the words so I moved it to after the 2 paragraph. I really wanted to use
the technology to work in opposition to the setting of the story rather than as
a way to just embellish it which in turn is supposed to enhance the coming of
age plot. The clip of the circus tent being constructed has a very melancholy
soundtrack and suggests a sense of loss in a place most readers would expect to
be festive. I attempted to use the Powtoon clip in a similar way by juxtaposing
childlike images with the serious adult crimes and situations described in each
slide. I don’t know how successful this was but it was rewarding to try and
combine digital content with the text.
The
Classroom
I don’t know how much short story
writing my students would be able to engage in but I think there is a wonderful
potential for imaginative creative use of language that would greatly impact
students success as second language learners. The act of creative something
from yourself is difficult but very rewarding and leads to more confidence,
agency, and ownership. Moreover, I think Paul Freire’s statement, “to speak a
true word is to transform the world” (1993, p 68) is equally so for writing. Secondly being aware of point of view was the
most difficult concept for me and I think my students would find it difficult
as well but it has the potential to develop strong critical thinking skills in
learners by forcing them to ask a lot of important questions. Thirdly,
understanding the mechanics and use of imagination is a very valuable from of
knowledge that is often overlooked not only in language learning but in
education in general. I’ve always felt imagination is like the invisible silent
glue that holds most conceptions we live by together. However, we tend to
operate in the realm of facts and assumptions too frequently. By doing close
readings and attempting to engage in creative writing students ultimately
become exposed to the tools of imagination which in turn could enhance their
ability to interpret the world around them (and their place in it) in a more
rounded and compassionate fashion. Fourthly, this leads to the idea of feedback
and the creative process. The story I tried to write and the way it was
interpreted in the feedback sessions was fascinating to me. Negotiating meaning and sharing ideas in this
way holds a great opportunity for language learning and I think students need
to learn how to engage in this process more than ever in the new paradigm of
connectivism. We were provided with a great set of questions and guidelines but
we still often found ourselves in awkward silence. My students would too
undoubtedly. But it’s definitely a place that should be cultivated. Finally, I
think the use of imagination and narrative techniques could be used in basic teaching
methodology as well, such as when giving instructions or explicating grammar.
Overall, it was a very valuable
experience, both surprising and frustrating, and I have a new found respect for
writing and writers in general. I would like to be better at writing and be
able to transfer what I have learned into the classroom with my students
however I don’t know how successful I can be at it. But I have a good toolbox
now and new set of questions to ask about the writing process.
Freire, P. (1993). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. London,
Penguin.
Friedman,
N. (1955). Forms of the Plot. Journal of General Education.
Jauss,
D. (March/April 2010), The Writer’s Chronicle, Vol. 42, No. 5 24-35
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