Creative Writing Final

Labels: Creative Writing

Animal Poem

Life's end
buried deep
underneath
the darkness
and the hoot
of an owl
that subtle
eerie sound
thin frozen air
20 below Celsius
October night
childhood may escape
specter as the day ends
and inevitably shall
when mother calls them
the hooting continues
and night condescends and
eyes follow carefully
simultaneously
slowly to keep a pace
when the crowd leads
up in the tree
he follows
death
without notice
only a hoot
otherwise
concealed

Labels: Creative Writing

Exercise 5 - Chastity

The house sat on the hill. Out place from the world. The cars on the highway roared their horns while moving north and south. Up on the hill, the house observed the people live, breathe, grow, and die. The house wept for humans and wondered. Can people change? The house kept hope. Kept it inside. Within the corridors of the belly. The house has a friend, Hope. The house sat with hope hoping that someday people will change. The house hoped that the living, breathing, growing, and dying of humanity continued, but with a purpose. From north to south the cars continued to roar their horns, as they moved in place with the world. The house sat on the hill.

Labels: Creative Writing

Technical Reading Response #6

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
CRN 72392 ENGL P140
Technical Reading Response #6
18 October 2010

1. Rob Cook repeats the same phrase in his poem "The Song of America".
2. Adrienne Rich's poem has isn't structured.
3. Zones and Self-Exam both have a nice flow from start to finish.
Question: How do all these poems relate to each other?
Extended:
1. Rob Cook's poem "The Song of America" starts with the phrase, "I'm raising my child to", then continues on with the line. The next line begins with the exact same phrase. The thing now is that the second part of the next line is different from the first. So the author is only repeating the first part of the phrase, over and over again.
2. The poem "Tonight No Poetry Will Serve" written by Adrienne Rich is short, simple, and easy to read multiple times. It doesn't have a specific structure or format. Although it's still very poetic. I also noticed that she cleverly used verb, adverb, noun, etc in sentences.
3. Both "Zones" and "Self-Exam" flow nice and evenly as you read them. I didn't quite enjoy them as much as I enjoyed the other two, but these had a nice flow so they weren't bad. I had no clue really what "Zones" was about, but I liked how the poet chose his words. "Self-Exam" has more sophisticated language and is a very well written poem as well.

Labels: Creative Writing

Imitation Poem

Labels: Creative Writing

The Road

Labels: Creative Writing, Extra Credit

Exercise 4 Part 3 "No Time For Me"

"No Time For Me"

Sundays were always the same. Wake up, get ready, go to church, arrive back home, and do chores. Almost nothing out of the ordinary occurred. When something did occur, mum and pop would tell me to stop fooling around. I love my mum and pop, so I listened them no matter what.
Mondays were always unpredictable. Mum would wake me up at the crack of dawn, pop and I would jog a mile in the morning mist, then I would frantically rush for the school bus. I love my bus driver because she never forgets to ask how I am doing; she also has an amazing smile. Her figure would say that she isn't a day past seventeen, but shes actually twenty.
Tuesdays were always exciting. Band rehearsal, cross country practice, leadership team meetings, and my favorite one of all---Calculus class. I love math and I plan on becoming a high school mathematics teacher, someday.
Wednesdays were always busy. Take out the trash, clean my room, mow the lawn, and babysit. There's no time for me. Pop would close his shop late and mum would get out of work early to run countless errands. I love working because that prevents me from getting bored, though it does get a tad exhausting, after a while.
Thursdays were always different. Anxiety, loneliness, or stress would consume me. Regardless, major study time would still have to occur before tomorrow's quizzes. I love getting good grades, but as Stephen Covey would say, "To focus on technique is like cramming your way through school. You sometimes get by, perhaps even get good grades, but if you don't pay the price day in and day out, you'll never achieve true mastery of the subjects."
Fridays were always refreshing. No school tomorrow, movie night with my friends, and best of all, I got to see Amanda, the girl I really like. I love how she enjoys the things I enjoy: movies, music, and mathematics; Unfortunately Amanda attends a different high school, so I rarely get to see her.
Saturdays were always the best. Running at dawn, when the tiny wet droplets slid off the leaves of the giant green trees and doing cannonballs into the lonely lake. I enjoy the lake's company. The lake enjoys my company. I tend to lose track of time as I float in this pool of divinity; my mind high above the thin delicate clouds, my body floating in the dark vacant space. I love moments like these because in the rest of this world, there is no time for me.

Labels: Creative Writing

ENGL - Poem

"I Want It Now" by Roald Dahl

Gooses, geeses
I want my geese to lay gold eggs for easter
At least a hundred a day
And by the way

I want a feast
I want a bean feast
Cream buns and doughnuts
And fruitcake with no nuts
So good you could go nuts

No, now

I want a ball
I want a party
Pink macaroons
And a million balloons
And performing baboons and
Give it to me now

I want the world
I want the whole world
I want to lock it
All up in my pocket
It's my bar of chocolate
Give it to me now

I want today
I want tomorrow
I want to wear 'em
Like braids in my hair and
I don't want to share 'em

I want a party with roomfuls of laughter
Ten thousand tons of ice cream
And if I don't get the things I am after
I'm going to scream

I want the works
I want the whole works
Presents and prizes
And sweets and surprises
Of all shapes and sizes

And now

Don't care how, I want it now
Don't care how, I want it now

Labels: Creative Writing

Technical Reading Response #5

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
CRN 72392 ENGL P140
Technical Reading Response #5
4 October 2010

1. Both stories include a lot of nature.
2. "A Spoiled Man" and "Oh, Death" both include the death of an important character.
3. The authors in these stories reveal major facts about the characters in the middle of the stories.
Question: How do these stories make you feel about death?
1. In the story "A Spoiled Man" the seasons and enviroment are carefully, but effectively painted and described. "Oh, Death" also has some descriptive quality. "A Spoiled Man" really brought the story to life with it's flowing imagery of each subtle plant, road, and land.
2. The protagonist in "A Spoiled Man" was and elderly man named Rezak that needed nothing but the bare necessities of life. Rezak died a lonely, sad, old man. In "Oh, Death" a character named Rick needed nothing but enough money and supplies to meet ends meet to support his family. Rick died young and broken man. Both Rick and Rezack passed away. One that wanted to be alone for awhile, and one that was lonely and needed somebody.
3. In "Oh, Death" it started off in a positive note. The characters seemed to get along without any tension in between them. Until almost halfway through the story, the note takes a turn for the worse. The author includes this page somewhere in the middle of the story explaining why the character is behaving in that particular way. In "A Spoiled Man" it wasn't until mid-story that I found out why the character is in the situation they are in. Both of these stories do a very well job in leading the reading to the juicy truths hidden behind these character's actions.

Labels: Creative Writing

Exercise 4 part 1&2

Sundays were always the same. Wake up, get ready, go to church, arrive back home, and do chores. Almost nothing out of the ordinary occurred. And when something did occur my mum and pop would tell me to stop fooling around. I love my mum and pop so I always listened.
Mondays were always unpredictable. Mum would wake me up at the crack of dawn, pop would jog a mile with me, and then I would rush for the school bus. I love my bus driver because she always asks how I am doing and she has an amazing smile. She doesn't look a day older than seventeen, but she is actually twenty.
Tuesdays were always exciting. Band rehearsal, cross country practice, leadership team meetings, and my favorite one of all-- Calculus class. I absolutely love math and I want to become a high school mathematics teacher someday.
Wednesdays were always busy. Mow the lawn, clean my room, babysit, and take out the trash. There is no time for me. Pop would close the shop late, but mum would get out of work early. I love working because that keeps me from getting bored, though it does get a tad exhausting after a while.
Thursdays were always...different. Anxiety, loneliness, stress, and tiredness would overcome me. Regardless, major study time would still have to occur before tomorrow's quizzes. I love getting good grades, but as Stephen Covey would say, "To focus on technique is like cramming your way through school. You sometimes get by, perhaps even get good grades, but if you don't pay the price day in and day out, you'll never achieve true mastery of the subjects."
Fridays were always a breath of fresh air. No school tomorrow, movie night with my friends, and best of all I got to see Amanda, the girl I really like. I love how she enjoys the same things that I enjoy: movies, music, and mathematics, but Amanda attends a different high school so I barley get to see her.
Saturdays were always the best. Running at dawn, when the tiny wet droplets slid off the leaves of the giant green trees. Doing cannonballs into the lonely lake. I enjoy the lake's company. The lake enjoys my company. I always lose track of time as I float in this pool of divinity; my mind high above the clouds, my body floating in space. I love moments like these because in the rest of this world, there is no time for me.

Labels: Creative Writing

Exercise 3 pt. 2 RE-EDITED

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
Creative Writing ENGL P140
27 September 2010

"Quicksand" - Exercise 3, part 2 (re-edited).

It can't be her, but it is, but could it really be her, or is it just some illusion, because it is pretty hot out here, even in this summertime shade, but I shouldn't worry, for my father will arrive any second now, so she won't get a glimpse of me, yet the worse could still occur, for she can decide to approach me, causing me to look down at the ground, and my worn out shoes would be firmly planted, so inelegantly and stiff pointed her direction like a compass, and she's the boat in the distant sea, but now the tide is moving in and she is actually getting closer, and here I am feeling like I had just finished running a mile: my heart pounding against my chest, my hands both clutched into fists, my palms completely polished by the sweat, my body shaking from both anxiety and fear, even though both of us are quite apart, still I felt like falling off the face of this earth, because the seconds dragged on for hours, though suddenly then my father arrived.

Labels: Creative Writing

Creative Writing: Exercise 3 - Short & Long. Part 2

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
Creative Writing ENGL P140
20 September 2010

Exercise 3 - Part 2

Is that, no it can't be, but it is, could it really be her or is it just an illusion, because it is pretty hot out here, even in the summertime shade, but my father will arrive here any second now so I can getaway from this prison, without her seeing me, or worse; what if she decides to approach me, I would have to look down at the floor, at my worn out shoes, that will point her direction, like a compass; dammit, she's walking closer, and here I am feeling like I just finished running a mile, my heart tackling my chest to escape, my hands clutched into fists, my palms completely polished with sweat, shaking from anxiety and fear, even though both of us are a few feet apart, I felt like falling off the face of this earth; seconds dragged on for hours; then my father arrived.

Labels: Creative Writing

Creative Writing: Exercise 3 - Short & Long

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
Creative Writing ENGL P140
15 September 2010

Labels: Creative Writing

Creative Writing Assignments

Labels: Classes, Creative Writing

Ted Sanders' "Obit" - Technical Reading Response

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
Creative Writing ENGL P140
1 September 2010

Three Observations:
1. Ted Sanders manages to start the story with a future event that is yet to happen.
2. The author also uses very descriptive methods to paint a mental image.
3. Sanders also used a unique form of repetition throughout the story.

Discussion Question:
How is this story significant to you?

Three Observations (Extended):
1. The story started off with the character at a young age, describing his death in his adult years in a random location, which turned out to be a restaurant of some sort. This was an unusual story setup that had me reading it over a couple times to make sure that I understood what the author was trying to tell me.
This method was one I couldn't quite capture and familiarize myself with so knowing the flow of the story was difficult to me. I give the author points for the approach, the story was that bad, but it did leave me with thoughts towards the end which means the story is successful; just not my cup of tea.

2. Sanders used very descriptive details to tell the story and setting. One part that really stood out for me was the tree in the front yard of the yellow house. The author painted the tree's image clearly in my mind and I could really picture it almost if it were real. You could almost recognize the tree. From experience, I used to have a big tree, similar to the one Sanders wrote about, which was in our old home's backyard. I used to stand against it and compare my tininess to its giant body. So the details in the story were all in all superb.

3. The repetition is kind of hidden. It didn't stand out like it usually does in other stories, but I liked kind of like that it was hiding. The repetition of the author's foreshadowing of events was quite noticeable, but there was another use of repetition that caught my attention reading the story over the second time. At one point of the story the author introduced a new character; the new wife. He described her as the woman who smelled like "well water". I thought that was quite hilarious since he mentioned her like that multiple times in the story.

Labels: Creative Writing

Being Gorgeous

One hour had passed and there was still no sign, nor hint, of what was going to occur proceedingly. He was hopeful, the next idea he'd hatch would be an golden egg. He was working on his rather petite wooden writing desk, previously owned by his grandfather when he was an adolescent, passed on down to him. His pencil's point was only a tip away, until then suddenly; a blankness occurred.

Labels: Creative Writing

Alice Munro's "Some Women"

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
Creative Writing ENGL P140
13 September 2010

Three Observations:
1. The story begins with a thought of the protagonist's present following with consecutive memories of her childhood.
2. She compares and contrasts very effectively.
3. The story is almost entirely a memory.

Discussion Question:
Why or why not is the protagonist/author's memory reliable?

Three Observations (Extended):

1.) The introductory paragraph to the story begins with "I am amazed sometimes to think how old I am." Then it proceeds with "I can remember when the streets of the town I lived I lived in were sprinkled with water to lay the dust in the summer--...etc." It threw me off a little when I first read it, but then I noticed that it was just her recalling how she has aged and how things have changed ever since she was thirteen.

2.) Alice Munro really knows how to compare. At one point in the story she compares Mr. Crozier's ears, or the flesh, to plastic. She notes however that back then they used to call it celluloid instead of plastic. Those little comparisons contribute a lot to the overall story. They make the memory more realistic. If it lacked descriptive comparisons it probably would have cost the story some of it's graspingness.

3.) The author tells the story from her perspective. She begins the story with a present thought and ends the story with a similar thought. The last sentence says "I grew up, and old". It could be an entire lie, or a misconstrued memory, twisted to mess with the reader. Who knows since the author's the one in control of the memory.

Labels: Creative Writing

Creative Writing: Exercise 2 - No Punctuation

I desperately grasped for each and every one of those final difficult and painful breaths of air during the last few minutes of my life since I knew that I was going to die very soon from this sharp stinging pain that occurred throughout my entire body as I was laying here meanwhile the heat scorned the insides of my body like a churning piece of butter on a stone grill helpless being cooked alive before I felt my blood dry out like a Datil Yucca that was nearby to my left side which had my arm laying down extended across the sandy floor paralyzed useless to me for further use since I had to rely on only my sight and sound since now I could only hear the last sound of the saddened lone winds of the desert and that was the final sound I heard that I can recall before everything went black.

Labels: Creative Writing

Jess Row's "SMSG" - TRR

Daniel Contreras
Professor Neal Blaikie
Creative Writing ENGL P140
8 September 2010
Three Observations:
1. Jess Row told a story that HAS to be read more than once to fully understand it.
2. The point of view and tense used in the story makes it really odd story.
3. After fully reading the story, it painted a picture, almost like a memory.
Discussion Question:
What was the author’s message he tried to convey in the story? (If any)
Three Observations (Extended):
1.) If you read the story only once, and you can fully understand it, you must have cheated by looking on the internet/back of the book for an author example. Or you are an alien counterpart of Lady Gaga. Either one is probably why. The first time I read it most of the story made absolutely no sense to me. The second time around I was getting an idea of to what was occurring. The author tells the story in a way in which events and ideas just fit themselves together, awkwardly & un-neatly. That calls for the story to be read at least twice to grasp what the author is writing about.
2.) I couldn’t tell what the point of view the entire story was really. It was everywhere. He wrote some of it in first person for the most part, and the tense really threw me off course as well. The two made the main character seem like an outsider, a complete outcast if you will. Even though he is experiencing a tough situation and is getting support from townsfolk he still seems like a roaming shell, living both lost and emotionless.
3.) The author set a mood in the story, which I felt was a bit melancholy. The protagonist is dealing with the death of his little daughter; also the memory visits him, even if he likes it or not. He is like the center of a bunch of negativity. He retires early (wait isn’t that a good thing), his wife is away in business trips, he finds out one of his kindergarten friend whom was later-to-become a homeless man froze to death in the middle of the busy city, and to top it all off – his daughter dies. The whole story is like a newspaper article. There are the occasional jobs, social problems, and deaths.

Labels: Creative Writing