What we did, and what we'll do

In our last meeting, on April 22, we did a free-writing exercise that consisted of the following:

+ Write the sketch of a character.
+ Write the sketch of a character who is opposite to your first character in at least one significant way. It doesn't have to be obvious.
+ Write a scene in which these two characters interact.

For many of us, this exercise made us think differently about characters we'd already been working with.

And for next week, choose your response to one of the three prompts to read aloud. We'll talk more about character development and realistic scenes at the meeting.

Additionally, please spread the word to your classmates and friends about Nic's Q&A, which will be at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 6, in Rosenwald 405. There will be food. In case you're debating whether or not to attend, refer to Sara's account of an after-class talk with Nic, in which he decried UChicago's lack of support for writers who really would like to use their skills practically. A kindred spirit, he.

Some recommendations

In our meeting today I mentioned a couple of books. I just wanted to get the names and authors out there in case anyone was interested in actually looking them up or looking for them. With bullet points and Amazon links for convenience!

The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss.

• An author dealing with the fact that most epic fantasy is recycled tropes.
  
• It's a self-conscious novel, sometimes to the point of irritatingly so, but it's interesting to see Rothfuss blend "fairy tale comfort food" with more main-stream character treatment.
  
• There are some neat plot ideas and spins on the genre (did I mention the vegetarian dragon addicted to narcotics?) and the logic of the magic is really solid.
• In all honesty, Terry Pratchett and even Peter David do this better, but Rothfuss is more epic than Pratchett and less bleak than David. And sort of fun on his own terms.
  

Odd Man Out, Sarah Ellis

• Raia's Nathan made me think of this one.
  
• Kip gets stuck staying with his cousins while his mother and new stepfather are on their honeymoon. When he finds his father's old journals in the attic, Kip gradually begins to uncover the disturbing truth about the father he has never known.
• It's technically a kids' book, but fun to read anyway. The writing is a good reminder on ways to tell a story plainly and how to integrate humor into a more serious "grown-up" issue.

Notes from Week 1 Meeting

Here's another minutes post, because you all love them so much.

+ meetings every week!
+ two or three submissions per meeting
+ Nic's talk, tentatively sched. for 4/22/08 at normal meeting time and place
+ we need publicity for this event! and funding!
+ we need someone to talk to ENGL and CRWR departments/committees to ask for funding and build networking, as well as sending out an e-mail to the listhosts ([ugrad-english] and whatever the CRWR one is, sent out by Julia Klein)
+ let's get started on the online magazine: if anyone has ideas for the website or the magazine itself, or about lj-style cuts to excerpt works on this blog, let me know
+ weekly writer's journal: blog about the problems and successes of everyday writing (this will rotate)... who's first?

And the prompt: write a piece that could only take place in a particular season. Explore the effects of setting on your action and characters.
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