Introduction to CREATIVE WRITING UNIT
As you all know, this offering of Creative Thinking and Artistic Process is a prototypical venture. Undertaking this course with you and the mentors has been a blast. For the first time in my Trinity career, I feel the freedom to endeavor to interact on a personal level with people interested and passionate about the concept of Òcreativity.Ó A feeling that many of us are exchanging artistic thoughts, challenges and questions, which are removed from the stress of competitive grades, buoys me. This is the hippie is me. If you feel less connected, we should meet. I know and appreciate different learning styles. After all, we are only half way into the course.
I am excited to see what our Music Finals might bring before we jump into our Creative Writing focus. Remember, our quest is to appreciate and experience the processes of creative thought through various artistic disciplines. Today, we met a working, professional writer with a published hardback edition of a novel. Today we witnessed a New Yorker, a film maker, a stagehand, a writer. Today, in my opinion, we met a professional writer. He may be successful because he has figured out his methods to find creative thought. He may be successful because he understands the business of writing. In any event, today we saw an example of a successful writer. How does this relate to you?
The CREATIVE WRITING UNIT uses as inspiration, RilkeÕs ÒLetters to a Young Poet.Ó A very short book, RilkeÕs letters will form the basic
structure of our writing assignments.
We will discuss this short text on Tuesday, 3/24. Make it a priority to read RilkeÕs
words.
T 3/24
CREATIVE WRITING Discuss ÒLetters to a Young PoetÓ
PROJECT
DUE DATES
EMAIL 2 choices for group discussion to PHIL AVOCATO Due MONDAY 3/30
SELECTION OF Visual Art Print or Instrument Music and Sound
Bite Due 3/31
LETTERs to a Young Students Due 4/2
HISTORICAL RESEARCH Due: 4/7
CHARACTER MEMORY CUP Due: 4/9
PRESENTATION of Painting, Research, Memory Cup and Creative
Process
Due: 4/14
LETTERS TO A YOUNG POET
SELECTIONS
Due MONDAY 3/30
EMAIL
2 choices of letters from RilkeÕs book for group discussion to PHIL
AVOCATO.
You are to select two letter from RilkeÕs ÒLetters to a Young Poet.Ó Email your two choices to Phil Avocato by Monday, 3/23. In class on Tuesday, we will break into 4 discussion groups.
LETTERS TO A YOUNG STUDENT
DUE: R 4/2
We are all pilgrims on the journey toward a creative life, and this journey is as important as the destination we seek. Mary Montle Bacon wrote, ÒWe are what our journeys have been.Ó If we are lucky, we receive valuable advice along the way from those who have traveled the roads before us and from those walking with us. If we listen we can hear insight and encouragement as we forge our own paths.
Write a very short letter to someone anonymous in the fashion of Mr. Kappus writing to Rilke. The letter may be about almost anything; your secrets, dreams, fears, aspirations; questions about the meaning of life or love; personal questions to the reader.. E-mail these letters to Phil Avocato by WEDNESDAY. He will then randomly send letters to different people in the class. The recipients will respond to the letter. They may respond in a variety of fashions: a letter, a poem, a short-play or scene, as long as it is creative writing. Due 4/2
THE MUSEUM PIECE
As an individual project each student will study a museum
piece (a pre-existing work of instrumental music or visual art) and create a
character who lives in the work of art.
There are four aspects to the project.
Historical Research Due: 4/7
á Conduct
appropriate research into the world depicted in the painting or music you have
chosen. SEEK THE GUIDANCE OF BENJAMIN HARRIS, our Fine Arts Librarian if you
need help.
á Develop
a full-sentence Outline specifying hi-lights of your research into the
historical context of the world depicted in the painting. Internal citations are required. This outline presents a combination of
relevant historical research and your own creative process as you develop an
original character that lives in the world of the work of art. The outline will
serve as your narrative commentary for your final presentation to the class.
á Craft
a memory ÒcupÓ for your character in which an early ÒcallingÓ is the focal
point of the recollection, revealing a passion, a dream and hinting at a
creative life yet to be lived
Presentation of
Painting, Research, Memory Cup and Creative Process
Due: 4/14
á Design
and execute an engaging presentation of your creative process for this
project.
á The
painting, your research and the memory cup will be the major components of your
presentation.
á Length
for each presentation: 4-5 minutes.
You will submit your MUSEUM PIECE to you mentor and to me
for feedback.