This is my mantra for this week. Come on, guys! We can do it!
BOOOOMER! (image source: Flickr)
This week, well really every week, I've been utterly blown away by the writing of my fellow classmates. I mean, wow! I read some of it and think to myself, how are you not a published writer? Then again, I suppose some of you could be. In that case, I'm always on the look out for a good book, you guys!
Reading others' work, it's next to impossible not to play the compare game, but I've learned that it's really unfair to compare my style to that of others. I have noticed that there are a few elements that I would say make a particular story "great" in my humble opinion. I've listed a few below:
Setting
When I have a real sense of the place in which the story is taking place, when I can hear the crunching of leaves underfoot, see the extravagance of the palace, or hear the rushing of the stream, I am immediately drawn into a story. Setting description can be made or broken with -
Details, Details, Details
Now, obviously we've only got about a thousand words with which to create a story so I'm not saying you should go all Charles Dickens with your details, but I do think it definitely adds to a story to add a certain amount of depth to a story.Once again, this may be difficult to achieve in a storytelling post, but I say for a storybook story, go for it!
Some Sort of Quirk
Whether it's an unconventional perspective, storytelling format, or you've gone with an unexpected setting (whether time or place) I am always wowed by some of the interesting spins I've seen in you all's stories. I think seeking to throw some sort of twist into a storytelling or storybook story without fail makes for a captivating post simply because it catches the reader by surprise. The unexpected is always great when reading a story.
This is (once again) all in my humble opinion. I've encountered some extremely talented writers and feel privileged to have my work critiqued by you all. I look forward to reading more!
Happy OU/Texas Week!
Horns Down! (image source: BlogSpot)
This is the most perfect picture on the face of the planet!! So glad that you feel that way about our classmates too! Sometimes I feel like my writing sucks compared to others in our class because there are some incredibly writers out there! I hope that you have an excellent OU/TX weekend and that we beat those Longhorns! Boomer!
ReplyDeleteJada,
ReplyDeleteYou are SO RIGHT. The people in this class are ridiculously amazing writers. I feel like I am in some crazy alternate universe where everyone should be published except for me. haha. It is a great opportunity to learn from all of these people too. I feel like every time I do the assignments through which we respond on people's blog posts that I learn something new and I am continually surprised. I hope you have a great rest of your semester and have fun at OU/TX!
You make some good points in your post about writing. Being able to create a sense of a rich setting through descriptive details is really important, but when we're limited to 1000 words, we have to learn how to be evocative without being wordy, which is no easy feat. I personally enjoy the challenge since I want to become a prolific short fiction writer and in short fiction you have to be good at writing concisely and say a lot with fewer words. Anyway, it has been really fun reading other people's work and getting better at writing with everyone else. Hope you have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteHaha that is my mantra every week, except five instead of four.
ReplyDeleteI think it's definitely true what you said about comparing other's work to your own. I do it too. I always think of things I could have done better in my own or thought of something cool like someone else. I think everyone's writing is so good in this class and we all seem to have different styles so that makes it a lot more fun to read each week. I also agree with all the points in your list!