Hi Everybody. This is where we will practice our critical writing skills on subjects related to short fiction. For this first Coffeehouse post (DUE WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9), I wish to students to consider these two questions: First, name one fun thing that you did this summer that surprised you, or motivated you, or made you feel good. My answer to this is that I took a paddleboarding lesson. Always wanted to learn how, and it was pretty fun, but also stressful. I took my lesson on Jamaica Bay. The problem is that I have a fairly serious fear of sharks, so I was very timid and worried about falling in. I fell in once, but luckily, the sharks did not eat me.
The second question that I would like students to answer is this: which of the three stories we have read so far is your favorite? And why? [“The Captive,” “The Black Cat,” and “The Lottery”] I won’t write my opinion here because that might sway students too much. At any rate, these coffeehouse posts should be conversational, friendly, and experimental. This means that you don’t have to be overly formal, but you should stretch yourself in terms of vocabulary and sentence structures. And, of course, please proof your work carefully before publishing.
How do we post to OpenLab? It’s pretty simple. Once logged in and on our class site, go to Dashboard, and find Posts > Add New on the top-left. Then, click the Category type. This is very important or it will show up on the Home page. Once you click the category “Virtual Coffeehouse,” then you can start typing. Proofread your work, then save. Then, you can preview it. Finally click publish.
Here’s a short video I made last semester on how to create and post a Virtual Coffeehouse post:
Here are the more formal directions for Classic style editor:
Or using the Block editor:
Cheers, Sean
Professor, I don’t know what’s going on. It’s not letting me post, so I’m gonna post in the comment section and figure it out later…
What I did over the summer was really a bold move because before the summer, I never left my house because of the pandemic because I was so scared. My friends came to get me one summer night to hang out. Ever since that night, I’ve been out almost every weekend. That’s what really surprised me throughout the summer. I’ve been cooped up in my house for 4 months and the fact that I took a chance and left my house really surprised me. Of course, I take proper precautions when I go out, I have my mask on at all times, I don’t go in large crowds… I don’t even like being around people. I have wipes and hand sanitizer on me at all times.
My favorite story out of the three is “The Black Cat” because of the mystery it holds, for me at least. It was giving me Law and Order: Special Victims Unit vibes because of the way he killed his wife. Don’t get me wrong I did enjoy the other stories but it didn’t capture my attention like Edgar Allen Poe’s story did. I truly enjoy it, I read it more times that usual. I truly enjoyed it.
Hi Kianna,
I will count your homework as on-time, so not to worry. Stick around after class and we will figure it out together.
-Prof. Scanlan