Final Portfolio Pieces
1. Hypertext Fiction – Branches
3. Biographical Reference Writing
Please click on each of the above to follow the links to the final portfolio pieces.
Blog Assignment – 3 Perspectives during a Hail Storm
Week 9 Assignment - BLOG WRITING: a week of blog entries as a creative writing exercise in itself, developing existing piece as longer assignment if preferred.
Each of the following posts show the perspective of three individuals who were all in the same area at the same time one very wet afternoon.
Blog Assignment – Perspective 3
Luke didn’t mind the rain. He needed to get from his house back to his friend’s house before the film started, so a light shower wasn’t going to slow him down. The hail that had just started however, was different. Luke pulled his coat over his head and passed the Greengrocers where he saw a girl sheltering. He didn’t have time to stop.
He turned right up by the park. There was no one to be seen – not in the park or around the phonebox. Everyone else, he thought, were obviously sensible enough not to go for a walk in such weather. As Luke powered forward past the park, he felt an odd urge to turn around and look behind him.
As he did so the rain started to ease and a cat walked slowly across from the park and sat in the middle of the path. Luke shrugged and carried on towards his destination.
Blog Assignment – Perspective 2
Jess had nearly completed her Sunday afternoon jog around the village. It had been a good one – the sun had been shining the whole way round and had now started to go that deep plum colour which looked attractive, but was a sure sign of rain. Jess was ready for it, and, still being quite a long way from home, took refuge in the phone box near to the entrance of the park, as a hail storm began.
Jess felt like she had been stuck in the phone box for hours when a large fast-moving creature on four legs accelerated towards her. Unsure of what it was, Jess felt nervous – the only thing she could liken it to was a panther. Not completely trusting of the security of the door on the old phone box, Jess crouched down out of sight and waited.
Gradually the thudding on the roof turned to the calming sound of light rain. Jess peered through the glass doors and, apparently clear of the mysterious creature, decided to make a run for it. She squeezed quietly through the door and started running towards home, having to dodge a cat in her path who wasn’t going to move for her. Jess looked back momentarily at the tabby cat and then continued running.
Blog Assignment – Perspective 1
Charlotte was tired and restless after a day of rehearsals for the forthcoming Christmas Pantomime and attempting to learn her lines – Snow White was a talkative girl. At exactly thirty three minutes past four Charlotte left the village hall and headed down the road towards home. As she passed number forty-five it started to rain and by the time Charlotte had rounded the corner and come to the end of their back garden, the rain had turned to hail.
A lazy walk turned to a brisk jog as Charlotte headed to the overhang of the closed Green Grocers to seek shelter. The hail had continued for four minutes when Charlotte caught sight of a mysterious black cat-like figure, though much bigger, making its way discretely from one side of the road to the other, from nearby the Post Office to the narrow path that led to the park.
Charlotte squinted in an attempt to see the figure through the falling balls of ice and followed it with her eyes. As the hail began to ease and fall back to rain, she darted out from the shelter and across to the pathway, slightly hidden by bushes and overhanging branches from the apple trees in the adjacent garden. All that was to be seen was a fat ginger tabby cat sat in the middle of the path, seemingly oblivious to the rain.
Improving the ‘Story with Links’
Week 8 Assignment – REVISION OF WORK: post entry on how to develop hypertext photo story (or other piece if preferred).
The opening sets the scene and introduces some action, alongside introducing more concise description of the dog and the house of the main character, Jenny. I think the short concise paragraphs in the main text and links providing clarification of who/what ‘Todd’ is, for example, work well and contrast the safe, relaxed atmosphere inside with the uncertainty of the goings-on outside.
I think this could be a suitable structure to base further links on, which could take the perspectives of those present in the story so far to add depth to the piece. The present links give too much away, leaving little to imagination. The new links would also allow the reader to escape from the main narrative and develop other ideas about the story opening, especially as this is the point of a story that sparks off initial reactions and first impressions from the audience.
Below is a piece of text which could create a new link to show the perspective in the first person of another character, and I aim to add others. These characteristics could then be developed later on in the story.
Link would be on – ‘the other’s arm’
He’s always thought of himself as above me. Day after day he’d tell me what to do, instruct, demand – I’d had enough – I wanted it all to disappear – be gone. Why couldn’t I instruct myself? Just for one day, a day in which I could escape forever.
I envy the tree – it escapes everyone else with its height and its beauty. People leave it alone because it shrinks them. I want to be like that.
Edited version of Laura’s Short Story
Original
Nothing made sense. Clouds and trees and aeroplanes and whizzing and fizzing and moving around. Take me back, take me back to your back garden.
Two months gone, you’d been gone two months. Only two months had passed and aliens could have landed, world war 3 collided, Barack Obama assassinated… and I couldn’t have cared. Less or more or round about or in-between there was a big null and void sign on my forehead, a big null and void within.
There was once shopping and fucking and talking and laughing and now there is just nothing. Once there was no nothing I was no one, but now removed I am a someone with nothing because you are gone. You can count this as my Dear John letter I never wrote to you. The one you sent to me.
Edited
Nothing made sense. Clouds and aeroplanes whizzing around. Take me back, back to your back garden.
You’d been gone two months – aliens could have landed, I couldn’t have cared. Less or more or round about there was a big null and void sign on my forehead and within.
There was once shopping and fucking, talking and laughing – now there is nothing. Once there was no nothing, I was no one. Now I am someone with nothing because you are gone. Count this as my Dear John letter I never wrote to you. The one you sent to me.
The Run – a Short Story
He had decided to enter the marathon over a year ago now. He had chosen his charity, collected sponsorship and trained hard every day – admittedly some more than others when the temptation of an uninterrupted evening in front of the TV had simply got too much to ignore.
Despite the ups and downs along the way, Chris was now just half a mile from the finish line of the London Marathon.
As he struggled slightly to keep up with the pounding rhythm of the feet all around him, Chris glanced sideways. A large black and white cat filled his line of vision – it was breathing quite hard. Chris slowed slightly to let it pass and noted briefly that it was running for the ‘Cat’s Protection League’ – of course.
Finally the finish line was in sight. Crowds of people were gathered there, clapping and cheering every one as they crossed the line. He’d done it.
Hypertext – Opening to a Story
Week 6 Assignment – HYPERTEXT: Hypertext writing/photo story (’flash fiction’ approach).
Jenny lifted her eyes from the screen and had to spend a few moments focussing on the real world to avoid disorientating herself. She had subjected herself to six hours sat at the computer, trying to finish her assignment due in just two days time.
Todd looked up at her and lifted his weight off of her feet, as the draught from outside rushed over her, like it had been waiting for an opportunity to strike. Jenny shivered and placed her feet back in her slippers, watching the fog gathering outside the window.
She walked in to the kitchen as Todd squeezed through the door way, pushing her to one side. He trotted to the back door and sat attentively on the mat. Jenny looked from Todd to the window and back to Todd again, whose bold glistening eyes pleaded with her emotions.
‘Five minutes’, she muttered.
The gate at the bottom of the garden could barely be seen through the thickening fog, gathering up the immaculately laid lawn, creeping up towards the house and engulfing the garden ornaments that studded each length of the path, as it went.
Jenny made her way up the lawn, quickly losing sight of Todd, who was only identifiable by the swishing sound of the fallen leaves that he thrust to the sides as he bounced through with immense enthusiasm. She opened the gate, and in his usual style, Todd barged through first unannounced – Jenny had expected no less.
The oak tree that stood slightly to the left of the field beyond the garden was as far as Jenny was willing to walk Todd, considering the weather that night. As they approached it, Jenny heard the sound of disturbed leaves again, but Todd was stationary at her side and the rustling was more pronounced this time – not as subtle as Todd’s delicate footfalls.
It was a human, possibly two. It was a man, two men. Though the fog made everything indistinguishable, Jenny’s eyes managed to meet with one of the strangers. He gave a quick double take and began to back away, grabbing the other’s arm in the process. Jenny pulled Todd’s collar and walked swiftly back towards the house. She jabbed the key into the door and slammed it shut after them. There was a flash of light outside the house, followed by doors slamming and a car ignition starting. Then the car sped away down the lane at speed.
