Paquin 2014/2015 Write-on Prep and Business Letter Part A: Defining Characterization Characterization is the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character. Characterization is revealed through direct characterization and indirect characterization. Direct Characterization tells the audience what the personality of the character is. Example: “The patient boy and quiet girl were both well mannered and did not disobey their mother.” Explanation: The author is directly telling the audience the personality of these two children. The boy is “patient” and the girl is “quiet.” Ebony And Ivory... 2. In developing fictional characters, remember that very few people, if any, are totally good or evil. We all have good and bad in us. Don't be afraid to show a few warts in your main character, or a little bit of good in the "bad guys." What's In A Name? 4. Pay special attention to the names of your fictional characters. 1
Transcript
Paquin 2014/2015
Write-on Prep and Business Letter Part A: Defining Characterization Characterization is the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character. Characterization is revealed through direct characterization and indirect characterization. Direct Characterization tells the audience what the personality of the character is.
Example: “The patient boy and quiet girl were both well mannered and did not disobey their mother.” Explanation: The author is directly telling the audience the personality of these two children. The boy is “patient” and the girl is “quiet.”
Ebony And Ivory...2. In developing fictional characters, remember that very few people, if any, are totally
good or evil. We all have good and bad in us. Don't be afraid to show a few warts in
your main character, or a little bit of good in the "bad guys."
What's In A Name?4. Pay special attention to the names of your fictional characters.
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Character Interview
Character name:
Character age:
Character ethnicity:
Character gender:
Hobbies:
Favourite foods/drinks:
Favourite Colours:
Habitual Expressions:
Habitual Mannerisms:
Most important thing to know about the character:
What kind of sports does the character like?
What taste in music, art, books, TV?
Best character trait?:
Worst character trait/ flaw?
Why is this character worth writing about?
Part B: Basics: Dialogueby Terry W. Ervin IIDialogue is an essential part of most short stories and novels. It is always better to
show or have happen than to explain or to describe. Character conversation, or dialogue, is one way to accomplish this. This article reviews some of the basic structural and punctuation issues of conventional
dialogue.
1. Dialogue is set apart or identified with quotation marks. “Words spoken.”
2. Words spoken by a character in a story do not have to be in complete sentences.
3. People in conversations do not always speak in complete sentences or use proper grammar.
4. Example:
John said, “I am happy.”
Comma before dialogue tag:
“I am happy,” said John.
d. If end punctuation is an exclamation point or a question mark, the following word in the tag is still not capitalized:
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“I am happy!” said John.
6. Watch comma use when adding action or information to a dialogue tag:
“I am happy,” said John, jumping up and down.
“I am happy,” said John as he jumped up and down.
Below are brief examples showing the various dialogue structures used in combination.
Example 1:
Sally said, “John, don’t eat too much cake!”
Her fiancé dashed to the front door. “You should’ve told me sooner.” He opened it just in time, making a mess on the front porch.
She shook her head and frowned. “I shouldn’t have to tell you such things.”
“Right,” he said and wiped his mouth on his flannel sleeve
“You bet I’m right. And you’re better clean off my new welcome mat.”
Example 2:
“Oh, no!” cried Sally, “John, I think I’m going to be late!”
“What? Has your watch stopped again?”
Sally shook her wrist before examining the timepiece. “Again!” She tore it off and threw it on the floor. “This is the third time this week.”
"Don’t leave it there. Why don’t you take it back and get a refund?”
“Because, I lost the receipt.”
“You don’t always need one,” said her boyfriend after retrieving it from the green shag carpet.
With her left eyebrow arched, she asked, “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I am.” He winked, handing it back to her. “As long as it’s not all broken up.”
How to Write DialogueActivity: Discover 2 different ways authors incorporate text in the books around the classroom. Make 2 notes each on what they do.
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Part C: Questions to ask yourself when writing a short story:
What point of view am I writing from? “I said” or “He said”
What language techniques am I going to use? Foreshadowing, symbolism, simile, metaphor.
Part D: Writing a ”Hook”Activity 1: Writing a “hook” to start off the story- analyze some from Sightlines and decipher if they are proper “hooks” or not. THE FIRST SENTENCE.
Activity 2: Write “hooks” for the following scenarios:
- A story about a girl or boy flying on an airplane alone for the first time.
- A story about a valuable ring that has been stolen and must be found.
- A story about an alien visiting Earth and making friends with a human.
-A story about two best friends who got in a fight but want to fix their friendship
'Tanglewreck'
Tanglewreck by Jeanette Winterson, paperback, 416 pages
"At six forty-five one summer morning, a red
London bus was crossing Waterloo Bridge."
'Each Little Bird That Sings'
Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles, paperback, 276 pages
"I come from a family with a lot of dead people.”
'Wemberly Worried'
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Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes, hardcover, 32 pages
"Wemberly worried about everything”
'Ragweed'
Ragweed by Avi, paperback, 224 pages
"Ma, a mouse has to do what a mouse has to do
'Stormbreaker'
Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz, paperback, 256 pages"When the doorbell rings at three in the morning, it's never good news."
'Feed'
Feed by M.T. Anderson, paperback, 320 pages
"We went to the moon to have fun, but the moon
turned out to completely suck."
'The Teacher's Funeral'
The Teacher's Funeral by Richard Peck, paperback, 224 pages
"If your teacher has to die, August isn't a bad
time of year for it."
'Voyage of the Dawn Treader'
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The Voyage of the Dawn Treaderby C. S. Lewis, paperback, 256 pages
"There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved i
Kurt Vonnegut’s Advice for Short Story Writing:1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he
or she will not feel the time was wasted.2. Give the reader at least one character that he or she
can root for.3. Every character should want something, even if it is
only a glass of water.4. Every sentence must do one of two things – reveal
character or advance the action.5. Start as close to the end as possible.6. Be a sadist – no matter how sweet or innocent your
leading character, make awful things happen to them in order that the audience may see what they are made of.
7. Write to please just one person.8. Give your readers as much information as possible as
soon as possible.
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Practice:
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Fill out the following chart for Write-On practice in your notes:
