Writing Challenge Week 2

And the all seeing eye keeps watching..

Well it's that time of week again - Tuesday :) which means a new pre-term challenge for A215.

This week's task: 'Write a vignette with "we meet again as your prompt", this may be interpreted however you wish. There is no minimum or maximum word count'.

Pah!! I was lured into a total false sense of security with last week's poetry task, I didn't even contemplate that we might be asked to write prose at somepoint - silly girl. Now I'm extremely worried and hope I can do it justice. If not I shall put it down to a learning curve :)

First and foremost I didn't even know what a vignette was an hour ago, and unlike my usual child in a sweet shop excitment over learning a new word, I found myself filled with absolute consternation.

A little visit to my best friend google, pointed me in the direction of another dear friend, wiki who informs me that in its original meaning, a vignette is 'something that may be written on a vine leaf'. Still not much of a clue then..it's literary meaning however, is 'short, impressionistic scenes that focus on one moment or give a particular insight into a character, idea or setting. Nope, sorry, I still don't get it. haha. But it is necessary for me to leave my poetic comfort zone and venture into new territory, and I relish a challenge so it will be done..tomorrow (or the next day)!!!

Well it is late and a fresh head always best for a task I say. Night followers, T xx

Writing Challenge Week 1

And the all seeing eye keeps watching..

I am approaching the 3rd year of my Literature degree with the OU, Next module A215 (Creative Writing) starts Octber - 2weeks before my due date!!!! Wonder how that one will pan out? So a fellow A215er, Paula has set a pre-module weekly challenge, via our facebook support group, to get our creative juices flowing and get us used to writing on demand and writing to a deadline...Thanks Paula :) You can follow her blog here http://paulaklewis.blogspot.com/.

Tonight's challenge..to be completed by next Tues 16th Aug, for those of us who wish to accept the mission, is to write a poem 40 lines or less around the theme of brutality. WOW!!! I'm used to being asked to write about 'safe' or 'nice' things like love or the seasons or hope etc, this one feels kinda unnerving, but in a good way..I'm looking forward to this challenge.

Well it's certainly got me thinking and my brain has exploded onto a million different tangents..as soon as I saw the word all I could think about first and foremost was the domestic violence and abuse of which I suffered almost 10yrs before leaving..hard hitting stuff, excuse the pun. Then I think in other areas of my life where brutal situations come to mind, like losing my mum when I was only 16 and supposed to be sitting exams..so I left school with no qualifications. Brutal! And losing the daughter I'd always wanted..she only got to see 19 days in this life, this world. Brutal! The word brutality goes hand in hand or cuff in cuff with the police, with police brutality being a much coined phrase these days and a many repeated event..so brutality goes with power and control..or lack of it. Thinking of police brutality forces to mind, by association, quite the opposite, brutality of the average joe such as we are experiencing in Britain at the moment. We are in the midst of anarchy with full scale riots and looting spreading like the plague throughout the country. Scary stuff!!! The biggest thing this word has conjured up for me is a haunting image in my mind's eye of a pair of dying swans, necks intertwined. Elegant, graceful, poignant, yet disturbing in equal measures. I'm not sure where this image is coming from as I don't readily connect swans with brutality..I shall have to peruse and ponder a while - overnight at least and see what I can come up with in the way of poetry. I'm not procrastinating, honest :)

Sweet dreams followers..I'll be back before you know it. T  xx