Creative Writing Notes

Avoiding clichésA cliché is:• An overused phrase • Something that is too obvious• “Hackneyed”Examples:

Creative Writing Practice

Avoiding clichésIdentify the clichés in this paragraph:• Dar had been sleeping like the dead when his alarm

clock screamed like a Banshee at him. It was 1:36 P.M., and Dar had planned to be up bright and early that morning. His eyelids were as heavy as lead and he wracked his brain for excuses. It had been an epic and amazing weekend. Now he was going to have to pay for it – he'd missed English again, and he felt doomed about his grade in the class.

Creative Writing PracticeAvoiding clichésRewrite this paragraph, avoiding the use of clichés:• Dar had been sleeping like the dead when his

alarm clock screamed like a Banshee at him. It was 1:36 P.M., and John had planned to be up bright and early that morning. His eyelids were as heavy as lead and he wracked his brain for excuses. It had been an epic and amazing weekend. Now he was going to have to pay for it – he'd missed English again, and he felt doomed about his grade in the class.

Creative Writing PracticeAvoiding clichés

Identify the clichés in this paragraph.Rewrite this paragraph, avoiding the use of clichés:• I have the fluffiest pillow in the world. I’ve had

it for as long as I can remember. It’s soft and squishy, and it’s as soft as a cloud or a tender, newborn dragon shell. When I rest my head on it, it feels like heaven. It smells homey, like freshly-baked cookies.

Creative Writing PracticeDescribe a…PILLOW

What does it look like?What is the shape?What is the size?What ordinary sounds can it make? What extraordinary sounds can it make?What is its texture?What movements can it make?What do people normally use it for? What do people not normally use it for?What does it smell like?What other things does it remind you of?What memories does it evoke?What does it feel like against your skin?What would it feel like on your tongue?

Creative Writing PracticeDescribe a…PILLOW

2 PAGES

DUE TOMORROW

NO CLICHES

PASS/FAIL

Creative Writing PracticeAvoiding clichésPillow paragraph, rewritten:• How can something be spineless yet angular,

right-angled yet curved? Protected from neck pains by this passive guardian, I arrive at my dreams riding this gentle platform. I wonder if this soft-shelled dragon’s egg senses the sequence of foggy mysteries and colorful terrors that are pulled across it every night.

Creative Writing Practice• Pick an object or an idea• In one paragraph, without naming this

thing, describe it

Creative Writing PracticeDescribe a…[CONCRETE NOUN]

What does it look like?What is the shape?What is the size?What ordinary sounds can it make? What extraordinary sounds can it make?What is its texture?What movements can it make?What do people normally use it for? What do people not normally use it for?What does it smell like?What other things does it remind you of?What memories does it evoke?What does it feel like against your skin?What would it feel like on your tongue?

Creative Writing NotesUnique, creative techniques to try:

Synesthesia: Combining two different senses into one phrase (Bright yellow coldness)• A sound: and a smell:• A temperature: and a texture:• A color: and a feeling:• A sound: and a sensation:

Creative Writing NotesUnique, creative techniques to try:

Cacophony (sometimes called “dissonance”):

Choosing words that sound really harsh coming out of your mouth to describe a harsh thing.

The bricklike truck charged and clapped across the tracks with its caked and rusted engine

Creative Writing NotesUnique, creative techniques to try:

Euphony:

Choosing words that sound really smooth and beautiful coming out of your mouth to describe a lovely thing.

LeafChimeFlySwaySlideCellar door

Creative Writing PracticeDescribe an…[ABSTRACT NOUN]

What does it look like?What is the shape?What is the size?What ordinary sounds can it make? What extraordinary sounds can it make?What is its texture?What movements can it make?What do people normally use it for? What do people not normally use it for?What does it smell like?What other things does it remind you of?What memories does it evoke?What does it feel like against your skin?What would it feel like on your tongue?

Creative Writing Practicehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCyw3prIWhc

Describe gender…WITHOUT BEING CLICHÉ

Creative Writing Practicehttp://channel3.globalish.com/supaman-native-american-prayer-x-beatboxing-dj-looper-what/Describe what you see and hear in this video.Try to use: Details, synesthesia, cacophony or euphonyAvoid: Clichés, “normal” words, and qualifiers.

Creative Writing Practice

• Write down what you see in the following picture• Try to avoid clichés• Consider writing from different perspectives• Perspective is:

• (The picture you will see was painted by Paolo Uccello. It’s called Saint George and the Dragon. It was painted in1470).

Creative Writing

Creative Writing Notes

• “Tone”• The TONE of your writing determines what

“voice” the reader will use to read it• It also shows the attitude you have about your

subject• What different kinds of tone can we have in

our voices and writing?

Creative Writing Notes

• “Tone”• What tone do each of the three characters

have?• What is the tone of the dragon?• What is the tone of the maiden?• What is the tone of the knight?• (Write it on your paper)

Creative Writing NotesWords that can be used to describe tone:• Angry• Sharp• Upset• Afraid• Dramatic• Informative• Pitiful• Blissful• Nostalgic• Sorrowful• Seductive• Indignant• Compassionate• Pretentious• Gloomy• Urgent• Giddy• Condescending

• Horrified• Sentimental• Rageful• Ecstatic• Repulsed• Jealous• Irritated• Bitter• Resentful• Startled• Playful• Biting• Mocking• Cynical• Icy• Sneering• Alarmed• Uneasy• Sinister• Apprehensive

• Anxious• Dread• Terror• Timid• Aggravated• Depressed• Miserable• Empty• Mocking• Awed• Cheerful• Pleasant• Fond• Tender• Adoring• Excited• Serene• Tranquil• Passionate• Elated

Creative Writing – STANDARD ASSIGNMENT!!!(DUE FRIDAY)

• Option 1: Write creatively about anything!• Option 2: Re-write one of the creative

writing exercises we have already done over the past week

You will be graded on…1. Description (very detailed!)2. Tone (I can “hear” your attitude about the

subject)3. Creativity (no clichés!)