This is the assignment for class on Monday, 5 May.

Peer Edit for Nano-, Micro, and Short-Short Fiction

You should have two stories with you today. I would be surprised if after receiving quality constructive criticism from your conferencing team you are not able to improve each of them. After reviewing the questions you will need to answer about your work, discuss the questions with your conferencing partners. Then take turns sharing your current draft and discussing each of the questions with your group. When you are done discussing you may revise your piece and then finish the assignment described below. This assignment is due AT THE START OF CLASS on Tuesday, 7 May.

Nano-Fiction is a story of exactly 58 words. Micro Fiction is a story of between 88 and 100 words. Short-Short Fiction is a story of 250 words or fewer (but more than 175). You are two have two stories, and each of the two must be a different type of story.

Conference Partner 1 ____________________________________________________ (print legibly)

Conference Partner 2 ____________________________________________________ (print legibly)

A) On a separate piece of paper, using complete sentences, paragraphs, etc. answer the following questions about your first very short fiction form:

What form did you choose to submit? Why did you choose this form?

State what you like about your story. Use an example or examples from your text.

State what you think would make your story better (using a quote is nice).

Does your story have an ironic twist? Why or why not? What is your ironic twist? On a scale of 1-10 or other scale of your choosing how much of a twist is it?

What did you do as an author to make the twist not be “out of the blue” but instead something that makes sense once it happens in the story? (Or, how will you revise your story so that the twist does not “come out of the blue” if it currently does?

What other changes will you make as a result of your conferencing? Why will you make these changes, or why will you not make any changes?

State what grade you think you should earn. State reasons for this being an appropriate grade.

B) On a separate piece of paper, using complete sentences, paragraphs, etc. answer the same questions about your second piece:

C) On a separate piece of paper of paper please write a short essay that explains I your own words:

How very short fiction is similar to other kinds of stories and how it is different.

What is it like to write very short fiction for you? Is it easier, harder, different (how?)?

What if anything you learned from this unit on very short fiction?

When complete, assemble your work in this order:

This sheet; first story (shortest piece) then appropriate self evaluation; second story then 2^nd self evaluation; Assignment C.