Letter to a friend

This is the very last exercise in the ‘Unlocking Creativity – Online’ writers course I have been undertaking these past four weeks.

I was supposed to be writing a letter to a friend, extolling the wonders and virtue’s of the course.  Sadly I could not do this as I believe the course spent more time caring about giving positive feedback to mediocre stories than it was to objectivity and contextual accuracy.  As such, the letter I wrote, see furthest bottom, is rather short, more of the bones of the prescribed piece than the piece itself. Apparently should you not be able to say anything nice, don’t say it at all.  What a load of bollocks.

Regardless of that particular opinion, I did enjoy the writing exercises for the most part, and I have taken a certain amount away from it. I would agree that it was money well spent.

As always something lays embedded within the picture above. Click it when you are ready.

Without further ado, “lay on McDuff!”

Hamish

CLOSING EXERCISE

To finish the course on a positive note, please write a letter to a friend describing your experience of the course and what you took away from it.

Tap into what has inspired and excited you during the course.

Please consider:

• What you and your fellow writers learnt about the craft and process of writing
• What discoveries you made? What surprised you? About yourself and your fellow writers.
• Have you seen your own and other people’s writing improve?
• How do you intend to carry the writing lessons forward into your life?

Post no more than 350 words on the Writers’ Board and call this Letter to a Friend in the Subject Field

Then please comment on at least two of your fellow writers’ letters and share your experience of being on the course with them.

And my letter reads thus ->

Week Four – Letter to a friend – 05APR15

Berikee

New Norcia

Western Australia

6509

05APR15

 

Dear Friend,

 

Hello sugar jaw’s, and how the devil are you? Supercool would be understating how well everyone beneath this roof is.

 

I have just completed an online writer’s course. Please find below the final exercise of ‘Unlocking Creativity Online’.

 

Of the many things gleaned from this course, the main snippet I am taking away from the course is a basic breakdown of how to structure a story, regardless of length. This being the main reason I undertook the same.

 

Of the many things I encountered within the last four weeks, the only real surprise I had during this undertaking was the heavy reliance on student comment as a critique method in exercise assessment.  In conjunction to this, many writing exercises aimed at a word count of being no more than 250 words per piece. I was again surprised that tutors themselves did not stick to this rule.

 

Whilst I did not follow anyone closely enough to determine an improvement in their writing, I was happy to find my own improving. Utilising the outlined story structure as delivered within the course is the direct cause of this.

 

Of the tools I sought pre-course, I am happy to finish up with a greater understanding of the same story structure I spoke of above.  It is my intention to continue writing using those techniques learnt specific to this.

 

Other than that, the wife hasn’t sold me off to black market live organ traffickers, and I believe the police just picked up Fred Flintstone for driving around with bald feet.

 

 

 

Yours in fiction,

 

 

 

N