1. Creative Writing Choose two of the five beginnings below and answer the following for each: 1. How does this sentence work as a beginning? 2. What questions does it raise? “Nothing happens by accident. I learned this the hard way, long before I knew that the hard way was the only path to true, certain knowledge.” “The vibrating clangour from the four great piston engines set teeth on edge and made an intolerable assault on cringing eardrums.” “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” “The North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance agent promised to fly from Mercy to the other side of Lake Superior at three o’clock.” “My high school friends have begun to suspect I haven’t told them the full story of my life.”

2. Writing Strong Beginnings What not to do: http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/writing/sixtrait/or ganization/leads.html As a side note, it’s probably best to not get writing advice from someone who spells corner with a “k.”

3. Writing Strong Beginnings You don’t have to write the beginning first! It doesn’t matter if the beginning of the rough draft sucks. Drop your reader into the thick of things. Give them a reason to keep reading.

4. A note regarding your literacy narratives... These are narratives, not essays. Write them accordingly.

5. Moving Along 1. If you’ve not completed your first drafts, do that first. 2. If you have completed your first draft, go back over your draft and revise your beginning. 3. If you’ve done all of these things, spend the rest of the period revising your first draft. 4. Your drafts are due at the end of the period.