English

Due the Sunday of Week 11 at 11:59pm via Blackboard

What steps should you take to complete this assignment?:

Review our notes from Week 7 for support. Have a think: do you want to “tell an interesting story, describe a memorable event, observe the details in your world, imagine a possibility, or reflect on who you are and what you believe?” (Gonchar, 2014.)

This is your opportunity to write in a way which draws upon personal opinion and lived experience. There are no hard-and-fast rules for this style of “memoir-based” writing; however, some thoughts to consider:

· You may choose to use the first person: “I”

· You may wish to mimic a spoken-quality.

· It can be helpful to imagine you are orating a story to a friend. Complete factuality isn’t always necessary. The act of remembering is reconstructive, and may involve misremembering and reimagining details.

· You may seek to capture the essence of what is important, and colour in the memory gaps.

· Consider audience. Why is this story interesting to readers? What it the most suitable language and tone for your anticipated audience?

· Descriptive language and literary devices engage your readers.

· Hook your reader with a personal anecdote or story. How can you immediately grab your reader’s attention by introducing your essay with a statement that shocks, alarms, or rouses curiosity?

· You may wish to follow an A to B trajectory, with a beginning, a middle, and an end.

· You may opt for a cyclical structure, returning to your introductory hook at the end as you conclude your essay.

· Ethos: how can you establish credibility in your essay?

· Logos: is your story logical? Do you include the ideas of others to reinforce the validity, and stakes, of your own story?

· Pathos: can you make an emotional case for your position? Return to your story: how did this experience affect you?

· You may write in complete sentences with correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Short, “incomplete” sentences may be useful, however, to add depth and movement.

· Always proofread your essay thoroughly.

Your essay must:

· Be formatted to APA standards

· Include an APA cover page

· Include an APA reference page (if external sources are used)

· Be a minimum of 500 - 700 words long

Looking for inspiration? See “500 Prompts for Narrative and Personal Writing,” also linked in Blackboard: https://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/500-prompts-for-narrative-and-personal-writing/

How will your essay be assessed?

Use the criteria below to check your own work before submitting.