Fantasy Genre Discussion & Lab

Please turn in your reading BINGO score cards.

Together in your groups, discuss your books. Primarily, use the prompt questions to facilitate your discussion on the fantasy book you were to have read over break.

Prompt Questions:

• Discuss your reading experience with your group members. What made the reading process difficult, easy, or troublesome? 
• Discuss what you learned about the fantasy or young adult novel from reading this book. 
• Discuss what you would have changed had you been the author of this book.
• Discuss how the author used the setting of his fantasy novel. Did the author use the setting to create/contrast characters, develop a plot, create a conflict, develop a theme, etc. for the book?
• Find a particularly well-written description or passage from the book and share it with the other members of your group. What might we learn about writing from reading this selection/passage?
• Find a moment of action in the novel. Share this passage with the other members of your group. What did you learn about writing an action sequence from reading this one? Discuss what you might be able to do differently in your own writing of action sequences.
• Fantasy includes a variety of tropes, just like science fiction. What were some of these tropes in the book you read? How skillfully did the author handle these fantasy cliches in your opinion? If you are critical, what would you have done differently to make the novel better?
• Other. Discuss the book with your peers. If you have other questions/observations about the book, talk about those with your group members. Write your additional questions on the discussion handout given to you in class. 
• Turn in your group member ratings before you move next door to use the lab. 

After your discussion, please return to the lab to do the following:

1. Post a reaction/review of the book you read on your blog. What did you like and/or learn about the fantasy genre by reading this book? Discuss anything relevant from your discussion with your group members.

2. Complete your science fiction story draft(s). Turn your draft in when you finish it so I can read and respond to you (and give you a grade...!) Make sure you proofread your draft before turning it in!

3. If you have completed both tasks 1 & 2, begin mining ideas for your own fantasy story draft. Take a look at the following to prepare your ideas before you begin writing:

• How to write a credible fantasy story
• Daniel Arneson (fantasy author's advice) (click on the links to activate the knowledge!)
• Ben Galley's advice about writing fantasy
• What publishers want in a fantasy story (video)
• NOTE: a query is a letter sent to a publisher asking if the publisher, editor, or agent would like to read the full manuscript of your story or novel. 
• Professional writers (not for contests per se) must write query letters to potential publishers to ask if that publisher would like to read his/her manuscript. Otherwise, your story will be deleted or tossed in the garbage. No kidding!
• We will work on a sample query letter as an exercise in our upcoming assignment.

For each source, please identify at least 3 things each article discusses that would be a good idea or helpful to you as you begin to write/plan your fantasy story. Turn in your answers by next class (see homework). Or, if you finish before the end of class, turn in your homework assignment early!

HOMEWORK: Complete reading your fantasy novel/selection if you did not already complete it. Read the two articles linked above about tips writing in the fantasy genre. Write the 3 things each article discusses that would be a good idea or helpful to you as you begin to write/plan your fantasy story. This assignment is worth participation credit.