Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Writing Fiction Vs. Writing About Fiction
I really enjoy writing fiction much more than writing about fiction. For me, the creative process will usually surpass the analytical because I feel like there are more doors open when writing something creative. While writing about fiction can also be enjoyable (I usually have a lot of ideas after reading any kind of fiction), for me the freedom that comes with being creative will always win out. The two, however, really can be to aid one another. Writing about fiction requires knowledge of terms and usage in order to point out how and why an author chose to implement them. These terms can then be applied to the creative process. If an author has a strong use of foreshadowing for example, the reader can take this example, analyze how it’s achieved and maybe work in something similar in his or her own writing. Creative writing can also help the analytical writing by allowing the writer to know what to look for in other writings. In future teachings of fiction, I will most likely do the analytical first in order to teach students the proper uses and techniques of successful authors. Once the students are able to locate terms and proper usage, I will then let them write creative fiction. Another idea is to try to implement both the creative and the analytical with maybe a paper that is written creatively and is an original story, but with strong ties to the reading I am having them read. Maybe have the students take characters from the story and write their own creative fiction in the same style of the author.
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5 comments:
Normally I would disagree with you completely. Writing over writing about? Never! But this time I am on your side. I actually loved the writing fiction activity much more than the writing about.
Writing about fiction for me is normally a puzzle, trying to find little pieces, clues, hints at meaning and theme. I had much more trouble with this world fiction, because so many of the underlying cultural placement isn't something I have ever studied. I wish we had more time for research.
I really like your idea of students taking characters from the stories and writing their own creative piece involving them. It really makes them think about characterization, and how their character might react under different circumstances.
I agree with you when you say that writing fictional stories is very different from writing about fiction. I had a great time writing my own fiction. It allowed me to be creative and I did something different with my writing. We have spent the last 4 or 5 years writing about fiction but very little time for us to write our own fiction. It was finally time to step away from all of these academic essays that we have been writing and now finally being able to take the time and write our own fiction stories. Writing fiction is very different from writing about fiction. I like how you used several authors to influence your own story writing experience. I didn’t think about any author or style for my story writing. All I did was think of an idea for my story and then sat down and started writing. I think fiction short stories is a great unit to use when teaching. You can see how creative the students can get when they write their own stories.
Hmnmm, I like your idea with the classroom. It's like eat your veggies before dessert. No creative writing 'till you have finished all of your analytical learning. While I agree that on any day writing is ten times better than writing about, I don't think I dislike it as much as you do. I guess it really all depends on the setting though. If I am sitting in a big group and I get to discuss the analytical aspect more as conversation than as a paper, then I really enjoy it. Maybe it's the inner nerd coming out, but I really do think it is fun to sit at home and discuss different literary aspects of a book. however, when I do get to analyze in this casual setting there really never is a need to learn the proper names for techniques. But still I think letting students discuss fiction in class helps to make the breaking the horrible analytic essay barrier a little easier.
I think that you can definitely use the knowledge gained from writing about fiction in writing your own creative story. However, I found it very difficult to do just that because I wasn't use to doing things backwards. I had more practice in writing academic papers that I seem to have lost touch with writing freely. I agree that the freedom one has in writing a creative piece will always take a higher post. I like the ideas you have to teach creative writing. Meshing the two different styles of writing and having students work both ways will definitely open their eyes to the elements that are mapped out in the story. As you stated, all writers have a certain style and to imitate can also enhance the student's experience of writing by transforming into someone else as a writer instead of student. I'm glad that you enjoy writing creatively and hope that I will able to regain my own creativity as well. =)
Hey Greg. I like what you said about letting the process of reading fiction influence the process of writing fiction. It reminds me of how certain bands are influence by other bands, and they let this influence show. Like the Backstreet Boys did with NKOTB and Boyz II Men or Oasis and The Beatles. However, there are times when a writer should be wary of this influence; it can come across to be more like mimicking. Some authors have such a particular style; when anyone else tries to write like them, they seem artificial. Other times it is not the style, but the subject matter that is unoriginal. Have you seen how many books there are about young wizard boys. I’m not saying that these imitations exist because the authors noticed how to use foreshadowing, but in any community, the members recognize the work of others and let it influence them. This has no doubt produced many great novels, but it has also probably produced just as many not-so-great novels.
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