ENGL132.A – Ecology of the Text

Assignment for Paper #4: Creative Writing Assignment

Due:                            in class, Wednesday, May 3

Length:                       5-6 pages (minimum; it’s fine to write more)

Special

   Requirements:        ● engage with environmental topic creatively

● share 5 minutes or so of your work out loud in class

Your forth paper asks you to explore an environmental issue relating to your chosen place through a piece of creative writing.  This writing can be of any genre—short fiction, poetry, drama, a screenplay, a personal essay, etc.  You might think of the respective models we’ve covered in class: Lopez’ “The Mappist” (short story), Jeffers’ “The Purse-Seine” and Atwood’s “Frogless” (poems), Robert Michael Pyle’s chapters in Wintergreen (non-fiction reportage and personal essay) Skaay’s storytelling (communal narrative), A Thousand Acres (screenplay).

If you choose a genre that is likely not to generate 5-6 full pages (i.e. a poem), you may write a shorter piece and then analyze your work in a supplementary essay that combined with the creative writing makes up 5-6 pages.  (It wouldn’t be a bad idea for each writer to append a page explaining the motive and method behind her/his creative piece any way).  You don’t need a Work Cited section for the creative assignment, though if you do employ an intertext in your writing (we’ll talk about this when we discuss A Thousand Acres), it would be nice to let me know in a note at the end.

On May 3, we’ll share this work out loud in class; you should come to class with your creative piece ready to turn in and a short excerpt (5 min) ready to read.

As always, I’ll be glad to meet with you during office hours or by appointment to answer any questions you may have; you may also contact me via email.