Literature Club Members Only Activity/Lecture Thread

Romance
The dazzling blue eyes of her shone through the others, her freckled, pale skin were too pretty to be unseen.
A tall, brown-haired adolescent, with his scruffy hands in his pocket, couldn't bear the fact that the girl was staring at him.
The only thing that the both of them could see were those pathetic days that seemed to blink in an instant.

Beauty
Her pink-and-white dress, covered in scarlet and emerald buttons, were busy showing off to the others, leaving a perfumed, rosy scent on the way.
The ocean breezed through her dusty legs, cleaning them like clear water, her gentle hands on the ruffled fringes as the birds chirp nourishingly.
Her ponytail hair swooshed and swished as the wind flew gently on her rosy cheeks, as if it was all a coincidence.

Sorrow
As she fell again and again, she couldn't control it anymore; tears were surging up her veins, slowly but steadily.
The only way to get what she wanted was to beg for forgiveness; but instead, the boss of her company rejected her, her silent heart plummeting in despair as soon as she stepped out of the building.
She felt a sense of sorrow, a sense of disappointment, a sense of remorse; the senses that had made her day as bad as Doomsday.

Romance:
You've lost your ability to gain my love,
If you didn't try too hard, you would've gained me, an achievement.
I know you're still after me but I gotta say, your adoration of me is just too much.

Affection:
You're so calm, you could be in an argument and not care.
I like chaos but you're so enchanting I can't be myself.
But we do have something in common and that is charity.

Bittersweet:
Please, please help comfort me, I've lost my old friends.
If I didn't gain new friends, I would try and gain compassion.
But now, I've gotten confidence that I can keep my new friends and gain my old friends back.

Alright, I struggled with this but I hoped I did ok (:

COLDNESS

When you turned away, all I felt was black ice gripping my heart, so dark-hearted; left me shivering in the open.
Dusted with frost, your chilling tone was a dark ice empress sitting upon her throne which was not hers, using me for your own good.
Your tone I didn’t like; the affection you had for me was gone with a black gaping hole in my heart; all the love you had for me was gone with a bloody dagger to the heart.

DEATH

Your assassination was a harsh blow to my head, all I can think about is you, bullets and knifes shoved through your flesh.
Now laying besides your still body, your grave speckled with moonlight and my tears staining your skin and body.
Like a headache that can’t go away, your death struck me as hard as your were struck down.

PAIN

The wholesome trouble I went for you, left me with a broken heart and affliction.
Blood splattering the white soft cloth, sleeping through the yellow-shined wood, making the wood stained dark bloodred.
The throbbing of the gaping wound, and the stab of the bloodred dagger made me clutch my wound with agony for what you made me do. ...

ASSIGNMENT IS NOW CLOSED!

@Eryn Bailey @Ronan Ward @Ruby Night
@Cass Ito @Della Barfield @Giselle Lam @Elizabeth Stonewall
@Audrey Gallant @Brookline Quinn

Hi all! The activity – “ABSTRACTIONS TO IMAGERY” – Is now closed. Well done to those who have submitted their work! It’s not an easy task by any means but you’ve all given strong effort and I applaud those who’ve given a go at it! For those who hadn’t managed to submit theirs, don’t fret! Just remember to keep practicing, since this topic in particular will be prevalent going forward!
Stay tuned, for the next activity will be released shortly!

ASSIGNMENT IS NOW OPEN!

PROMPTS TO DESCRIPTIONS

This week is all about learning to take a nice and simple idea and turning it into a setting or a scene!

What is a Prompt?
A writing prompt is essentially a starting point.
Think of it as a spark designed to ignite your creativity and guide your thoughts in a specific direction.
This little nudge can come in various forms – a word, a sentence, a question, or even a picture – and serves the purpose of inspiring you to write.
Whether you’re drafting a story, an essay, or just jotting down your thoughts, prompts help overcome the intimidation of a blank page.
It sets a predefined theme or direction for your writing.
They’re not just about what you write, but how you think and approach writing, encouraging you to explore new ideas, genres, and perspectives.

What Is a Scene?
A scene (in a story) is an event that occurs within a narrative that takes place during a specific time period and has a beginning and an end.
A scene is a story event, in other words, or a single unit of storytelling. It is the bedrock of every kind of narrative, from a novel, film, memoir, short story, theatrical play, and graphic novel.
Scenes can vary in length, but they tend to be 500 to 2,500 words long. The average book or film has fifty to seventy scenes.

The Five Criteria for a Scene
1. A story event. The scene must contain at least one story event.
2. A change. A character begins the scene believing one thing, feeling one way, or doing one thing, but by the end of the scene they’re believing, feeling, or doing something else.
3. One period of time (e.g. a few minutes in one day). Most scenes will be just a few minutes in one day.
4. (In film) One setting. Novels can bend this, but in film, scenes take place in one setting.
5. Contains the six elements of plot: exposition, inciting incident, rising action, dilemma, climax, and denouement.
However, we’re not quite at that stage just yet! So let’s scale back a tad…

The Opening Paragraph
Why Are a Novel’s Opening Lines Important?
The first lines of a novel or short story must grab the reader’s attention, enticing them to continue past the first page and continue reading. The first sentence provides you with an opportunity to showcase your writing style, introduce your main character, or establish the inciting incident of your narrative.
Think about your favourite books. What are their opening paragraphs? Is there a link between them? Maybe it’s the way they set the scenes in such detail or maybe they have cold openings and go straight into action, forcing you to keep reading to see what happens next.
Often the first paragraph defines the rest of your story. If the opening paragraph features a man fighting on an airplane before parachuting out to escape, chances are the book falls under the genres of action/thriller/espionage rather than romance or slice of life.
In that regard, cold openings are a common but guaranteed way to hook readers a fan of such genres into those same stories.
Other novels start their stories by conveying the voice of their characters – think of “The Catcher in the Rye” as an example. It immediately gives readers the sense of the main character’s point of view: irreverent, detached, and jaded. Brainstorm a simple, effective way to introduce your protagonist’s general attitude and tone in the opening paragraph.
There’s plenty of other ways to establish your story; a random statement through your character’s voice (think of “Geek Girl” for instance), lyricism or a similar narrative style – essentially, your method of writing lets readers know what they’re getting into through your signature style.

Your task is to write an opening paragraph. To test your flexibility and approach to different genres, I’ll be providing prompts for you (how you interpret these prompts is entirely up to you however.)

Prompts :
- A little girl is watching a snail move along a fence intently on a wet day.
- A passerby witnesses a blocked off house that’s surrounded by police cars and tape with other witnesses – what the cause behind it is up to you to decide.
- A woman stands at a balcony as she watches over the city until she hears something behind her.
- Someone is sitting outside the basement door with headphones in late at night.
- A man wakes up on a stretcher with no clear recollection of what happened prior.

CRITERIA:
- Choose one prompt.
- Max. Word Count = 300 words.
- Remember to consider the “Show Don’t Tell” aspect.
- While the first paragraph can start from anywhere in your "story," (In a manner of speaking) try not to throw so much in all at once. The idea of a first paragraph is to flow gently into a bigger stream of ideas (where your story will pick up from so to speak).
- Think about each prompt carefully – which would you consider opportunities to tell from a character’s voice or to set the scene around what’s going on?

MY EXAMPLE:
- Prompt: A little girl is watching a snail move along a fence intently on a wet day.

Reducio

The garden was never empty even on a hazy day. In the early hours of a drizzly Saturday morning, Ellie had her coat and wellies on as she prepared to venture out into the long grass, weaving between the wild woods of the reeds until she reached the red iron border surrounding her castle. She tapped her toe against the puddle at the edge of the gate as she ran a curious finger along the gate to feel the cool droplets of rain running off the sides. Was the world crying happy tears or sad tears? Either way, she hoped the world was smiling since she was smiling at the lovely morning.
Along the side on one of the rods however was a teeny-weeny snail, it’s antennae curling and stretching as its smooth and sticky form travelled up the gate at full speed. For such a tiny critter he was sprinting along the gate like he was running a marathon. Ellie hunched down to its level and watched in amazement. She was resisting the urge to feel its brown shell, knowing full well it could break into glass. She was small but anyone would doubt her pinky finger was still bigger than this speed demon of a snail. She was glued to the sight the same way the snail was still clinging onto the gate, with full strength and determination. The sound of the incoming achievement of the snail reaching the top of the gate was louder than the voice of Ellie’s mother that was calling her back inside for brunch.

DEADLINE = 27/06/2024 - 11pm UTC/GMT

Resources:
How to Write a Scene
What is a Prompt in Writing
Tips for Writing the Opening Line of Your Novel

@Eryn Bailey
@Ronan Ward
@Ruby Night
@Cass Ito
@Della Barfield
@Giselle Lam
@Elizabeth Stonewall
@Audrey Gallant
@Brookline Quinn

Yellow and Orange

Ember always took sunset walks. The bright oranges and brilliant yellows caused by the setting of the sun always made her think that the sun lit the sky on fire. She admired the colors as she walked down the street convincing herself she didn't need yet another picture of the bright, entrancing, and hypnotic colors. Turning the corner onto Wisteria Street, the seizure-inducing strobing of bright blue and red met her hazel eyes instead of the normal yellows and oranges. She crinkled her nose at the sight of the obnoxious hues and the scene in front of her. Observing further, Ember rolled her eyes at the annoying yellow and black caution tape that had marked a perimeter around the charred and mostly destroyed house, keeping the crowd of onlookers away. She hated that shade of yellow. It burned her eyes. She much preferred the yellows in sunsets. Looking away from the caution tape, the brunette walked by the scene slowly, observing the red firetrucks and ambulances. Hysterical sobbing reached her ears as soon as she got close enough. An unconsolable blonde woman in the arms of a taller black-haired man. Husband and wife most likely. The grim voice of the firefighter caught her attention next. Ember slowed her walk to listen in on what he had to say.

"after the initial investigation...no sign of the fire being caused by electricity or... must've been deliberately set by someone."

Hearing all she needed to, Ember sighed, speeding up her walk and analyzing the scene one last time. A chilling breeze rustled the trees and her brown hair. Rounding yet another corner, she wondered who could've been crazy enough to purposely set the fire and ruin someone's life. A small smirk rose on her face, her hazel eyes glinting in the last light of the day as she recalled the moments earlier that day. After all, she only liked certain shades of orange and yellow.

❀ Notes ❀

PROMPT: A passerby witnesses a blocked-off house that’s surrounded by police cars and tape with other witnesses – what the cause behind it is up to you to decide.
A little bit over 300 (322 to be exact)

Lost in the Light

The blinding fluorescent lights of the hospital ceiling swam into focus as Jack's eyes fluttered open. He lay on a cold, hard stretcher, the sterile smell of antiseptic sharp in his nostrils. Panic gnawed at the edges of his mind as he struggled to piece together fragments of his memory. His heart pounded in his chest, a wild drumbeat of confusion and fear. What had happened to him? He glanced around the room, searching for answers in the stark white walls and the distant hum of medical equipment. His body felt heavy, unresponsive, and his head throbbed with a dull, persistent ache. A nurse appeared at his side, her face a mask of professional calm, but Jack could see the concern in her eyes. He tried to speak, to ask where he was, how he had gotten here, but his voice came out as a hoarse whisper. "Easy there," she said gently, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "You've had quite an ordeal. Just try to relax and we'll get you sorted out." Her words did little to soothe the storm of questions swirling in his mind. What ordeal? Why couldn't he remember anything? The last thing he recalled was... nothing. A blank slate where his memories should have been. As the nurse began checking his vitals, Jack's gaze drifted to the window, where the first light of dawn was breaking over the horizon. It felt like the beginning of something, but what?

ASSIGNMENT IS NOW CLOSED!

Hi all! The activity – “PROMPTS TO DECSRIPTIONS” – Is now closed. Well done to those who have submitted their work! It was a joy to see how yous all interpreted my quick ideas and turned them into something exciting!
For those who hadn’t had the chance to submit theirs, don’t fret! Just remember all we’ve talked about and keep what you’ve learnt for next time!
Stay tuned, for the next activity will be released shortly!