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Writers Workshop: The Craft of Writing
By Grant Farley

The Workshop Process:  Before reviewing the Writing Workshop below, read this guide, which is full of useful tips for conducting successful writer's workshops.

Check out ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre's American Collection website at pbs.org for additional teacher information

Overview

This is part of a series of five lesson plans designed for use as a writer's workshop.  Teachers of  creative writing, composition, A.P. Language and American literature courses will find these lesson plans particularly useful.  However, there is enough flexibility built in to allow the plans to be adapted for other classes as well. 

These lessons will cover all three aspects of a high school literary study -- "into, through and beyond."  However, the greatest emphasis will be on "beyond" as students apply what they learn about the craft of writing to their own work.

Each lesson focuses on developing students' abilities with respect to several writing techniques.  We employ passages from key literary masters as examples.  With the exception of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, the lessons highlight authors and works that are presented in the AMERICAN COLLECTION.  Below is a summary of the writers, works and techniques that are covered in the lessons: 

Author

Work

Technique

Langston Hughes

Cora Unashamed

Diction, voice

Willa Cather

The Song of the Lark

Imagery, tone

Mark Twain

Huckleberry Finn

Irony, satire

Tennessee Williams

The Glass Menagerie

Dialogue

Henry James

The American

Syntax, point of view
 

 

 

 

Note:   The plan that you are reading now is for "Cora Unashamed." Click on the titles above to access the other writers' workshops.

Suitable for: High school students of creative writing, composition, A.P. Language and American literature

Objectives

  • Understand the use of diction and voice in a literary work
  • Effectively utilize diction and voice in own work
  • Learn and follow the rules (methods) necessary for a constructive workshop environment
  • Gain a greater appreciation for literature as a craft

Skills Attained

  • Critical reading
  • Effective writing
  • Giving and receiving positive constructive criticism

Lesson Outline

I.  Introduce or review the following literary terms:

  • Diction
  • Narrator
  • Persona
  • Point of view (first, second, and third)
  • Voice
  • Tone

II.  "Cora Unashamed"

    A.  Reading and Comprehension

    1.  Give students background information about Langston Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance.

    2.  Have students read the story with an "eye" (and "ear") toward the literary terms reviewed in part I.

    3.  It may be necessary, prior to a study of the craft of writing, to get students past the emotional impact of the story.  Certainly, discuss the issues of racism and abortion as they relate to this story.  However, since this is a workshop on craft, it is necessary to direct the conversation toward the writing process.  One effective segue is to steer the discussion about racism in the story to the eighth paragraph that begins: "Cora was the oldest of a family of eight children—the Jenkins niggers.  The only Negroes in Melton, thank God!"

    4.  Ask students the following questions about the passage:

      A.  Without looking at the story, tell me if it is told in 1st, 2nd or 3rd person?

      B.  If there was some hesitation or discussion as to what the point of view is in the story, why was it unclear to some people?

      C.  Is it possible for a work written in the 3rd person to have a voice that is distinct from the author's voice?  Discuss the term persona.  It may be helpful to bring in another story by Hughes, such as "Thank you, Ma'am" for a comparison of 3 rd person voices.

      D.  Look at paragraph 8 (the passage cited in A.3).  Why does the narrator use the word "nigger" in the first sentence and "Negroes" in the second sentence?  What does this say about the narrator's attitude (tone) toward his subject?  Do you think the choice of these two words reflects Hughes' views?  Or, has he created a person different from himself to tell this story?

      E.  If students have already covered dramatic irony and or The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn , you may ask the students if there is a difference between the use of "nigger" in that work versus this one.  Of course, the issue of a white versus black author will be noted.  However, also ask if the fact that Hughes uses the word in the 3rd person narrative voice while Twain has it spoken by fictional characters makes any difference either to the tone or impact of the term.

    B.  Follow Up Exercise

    1. Have students write and then share with the class the following assignment:

    Using specific word choices, descriptions and passages from "Cora" as evidence, create an imaginary characterization of the narrator of this piece.  For example: Is it male or female?  Black or white?  Young or old?  Big city or small town?  Educated or uneducated?  Northern or Southern?  Angry, bitter, ironic, joyful, sad, hopeful.....what?  Is it Langston Hughes?

III.  Writer's Workshop 

    Note:  See the document titled The Workshop Process for a recommended structure.

     A. Writing Assignment

    Now that students are familiar with point of view and persona, have students attempt the following writing assignment:

    Persona and P.O.V.

    1. Create a persona that is significantly different from yourself.  In a paragraph, describe that persona.  Give the persona a name, background, personality, diction, attitude, etc.  Do not show your persona to anyone!

    2.  Observe (or imagine) an interaction between two people. (While you may wish to brainstorm this with a group of classmates, it is more effective to make your observations outside of the classroom environment.)  What would your created persona's attitude be toward the people and situation that you've observed?  Write a narrative or description of the interaction in third person, but from the point of view of your persona.  In other words, your work should reflect the diction, knowledge, and attitude of your persona, not you.

    (Teacher's Note:   As an added inspiration, you may ask students to find a picture of their persona in a magazine.  Have them tape this picture to the wall (or desk) in front of them as they write.)

    B.  Workshop

    1.  In a roundtable workshop discussion format, have students share their work from the assignment.  It is best if they read their work aloud.  However, copies could also be distributed and read silently.

    2.  Review the ground rules for appropriate behavior and commentary while a work is being "workshopped."  The workshop process  is a good source for this.

    3.  Each student should attempt to recreate the persona of the narrative voice of their piece.  They should cite specific examples to back up their view.

    4.  Ask each student to read the description of their persona to see how closely the workshop presentation reflected this persona.  If the student used a picture, he/she can show it to the class.

    5.  To follow up, have students exchange "personas" (it could be fun if this was done at random).  Have students re-write their piece from the point of view of this different persona.  Remind them that they are to stay in the third person; it is easy to slip into first person in this assignment.

Assessment

Teachers may set up their own rubrics for assessing student writing and workshop participation.

Suggested Related Works

Any one of the other four works listed in the overview section of this document can be used in place of "Cora Unashamed" for this workshop.  Additionally, Steinbeck's Cannery Row provides an excellent example of a distinctive narrative voice.

Grant Farley teaches at San Pedro High School in California.