Prepared by: Don Mackenzie
Posted on: Sun, 19 Feb 2006
Dreaming is a natural function of ordinary
and creative life.
Dreaming, or more properly "imagining", can be something you do
consciously for any number of reasons. You may be trying to take
yourself out of an uncomfortable situation or imagining the steps you
need to take to achieve a personal victory.
Dreaming or imagining can also be an
activity which sneaks up on
you.
It may undermine your intentions, or if you are more fortunate, point
the way to new successes, as it did for Archimedes in his bath.
Dreaming is a powerful force which writers
should be encouraged to
explore, but caution is needed. The revelation "it was all a dream" is
one of the most offensive devices in fiction. Readers object when they
feel they have been tricked and that the contract between writer and
reader has been broken. A writer must be careful to keep the reader on
side. Surprises are wonderful, but the reader must feel properly
prepared and that the surprise is appropriate.
For this exercise, in three to
four-hundred words, show us a
character whose
imaginings have a particularly significant effect, either within the
story or
on the reader. Be careful to keep in mind the extra difficulties faced
by your
reader.
When critiquing explain whether you found
it easy or difficult to
draw
the line between what was real and what was imagined. Did you find the
writing believable or insightful?
Don Mackenzie's wrap-up
Posted on: Sun, 26 Feb 2006
Imaginings cover a lot of territory, as
this week’s entries showed.
Decisions
were made, actions were taken, and realizations occurred as a result of
imaginings. This group of writers had no difficulty showing
imaginations at
work in important ways, in ordinary life. Some gave us a glimpse of the
complexity involved in the interplay between control and reaction when
scenes
are imagined. Some of my favourite pieces used imagining as a way of
clarifying
or emphasizing a point which was being made in the story.
Writers seemed to have little difficulty
in signalling readers what
was
imagined and what was real.
The crits were particularly impressive
this week. When mistakes were
made, or
weaknesses surfaced, critters noted these flaws with gentle precision.
Thanks to everyone for their contributions
this week.
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