- So, how does it all work? The research process + writing, and the entire course holistically?
Well, you either have it as a class or in individual sessions with your mentoring teacher and you talk to them about what you want to do, and they'll guide in in terms of suggested reading material, what to do about, and answer any general questions you have.
- What do you use as a log book? An arts diary, exercise book etc? What's better?
I used an A4 Visual Arts diary, it was helpful for sticking in various articles/pictures that I found worth of interest, as well as the general writing of logs. The other students did too, as did the year before - we had a chance to go through their works when it got sent back from the Board of Studies earlier this year. One student also used a larger Visual Arts diary, that could work also but the idea of carrying around something that big puts me off.
- Does your logbook have to be aesthetically attractive (the layout of content etc) and creative? (I'm assuming it's the same as drama in that sense).
Not necessarily, most of our logbooks were pretty much plain writing with a picture/article/whatever pasted in every now and then. I do remember one guy who made his log look like some kind of artwork, it looked like a crazy catalogue - every page was colourful, he'd used coloured cardboard and pasted abstract shapes and metallic cardboard for the headings, it was a bit much to be honest.
- How often and when should one be writing and adding to their major work and log book? What worked best for you?
You log when you feel like you have something important to put down, but if you're finding that you haven't written in weeks, well that's a problem. I'd suggest forcing yourself to write at least once a week if you're not such a frequent writer.
- What's better you think, a compilation of short stories or one long story?
Whatever, its up to you. Although I think a long story would be better - just personal taste.
- If I do short stories, in what way are they supposed to be interrelated?
Well, not necessarily. You can make them completely different to one another, although I wouldn't know why you would.
That's where the personal reflection comes in I suppose. Everything is up to you but try to have some kind of logical coherent train of thought with your work that others will be able to understand.
For simplicity's sake, yes, they should be related.
I mean, it depends. If you were to do two short stories around a single event but from different perspectives, then that would be okay.
The Short Story word limit is between 6,000 and 8,000 words.
If you were going to do 2 stories, they would have to average between 3,000 to 4,000, and if you were going to do 3, they would have to average between 2,000 and 2,600 words. I really doubt you can make a very good work with such a low word limit. I wouldn't push past 2 stories.
- And finally, what is the word limit?
It depends on the medium you are doing and they are as follows:
- Story Story(ies) - 6,000 to 8,000
- Poem(s) - 3,000 to 4,500
- Critical Responses - 5,000 to 6,000
The other mediums are more time limit based.
Good luck with it.
Oh, remember to find some kind of link to the Advanced/Extension course - your work has to have been influenced from something you've learnt. I did Crime Fiction for Ext 1, so I could have made a Crime Writing piece and linked it back to the Extension 1 course, for example.
