Creative Writing - B&W, Grey Area?

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Stuff we played with in our December 26, 2024 gathering:

BRAINSTORM LISTS

1. Black-and-White Rules: List situations where the “right” and “wrong” answer feels obvious or straightforward.

2. Gray Area Scenarios: List examples of situations where it might be hard to decide what’s right or wrong.

3. Right vs. Right: List choices where both options feel “right” in different ways.

4. Heroes and Villains: List characters from books, movies, or stories who are clearly “good,” clearly “bad,” and ones who are somewhere in between.

5. Shades of Gray: List emotions or experiences that are not just “good” or “bad” but more complex (e.g., bittersweet, guilty pleasure).

6. Changing Your Mind: List times in your life when you changed your opinion about something you once thought was black and white.

7. Cultural Gray Areas: List customs, traditions, or rules you know of that might be seen differently by people from other backgrounds.

8. Conflict Resolution: List strategies or compromises people might use when they can’t agree on what’s “right” or “wrong.”

9. Unexpected Outcomes: List times when doing the “right” thing had surprising or unintended consequences.

10. Personal Gray Areas: List decisions or moments in your life where you struggled to decide what to do because the answer wasn’t clear.

BRAINSTORM QUESTIONS

1. What does “black-and-white thinking” mean to you? Can you think of examples in your life or in stories where someone saw things only in absolutes?

2. What does it mean when people say something is a “gray area”? Can you think of a situation where it’s hard to decide what is right or wrong?

3. Have you ever changed your mind about something you thought was absolutely right or wrong? What caused your perspective to shift?

4. Why do you think people like having clear rules and answers? When might it be helpful to embrace uncertainty?

5. Can a “villain” in a story ever be justified in their actions? Can a “hero” make bad decisions and still be a hero?

6. Think of a time when two people had very different perspectives. How could they find common ground?

7. What would the world be like if every decision had to be entirely right or entirely wrong? What challenges might that create?

8. Different cultures often have different ideas about what is right and wrong. Can you think of examples where something that seems “black and white” to you might be seen differently by others?

9. Think of a story or movie where the ending didn’t clearly resolve who was right or wrong. How did it make you feel?

10. If you had to choose between two imperfect options, how would you decide what to do?

VISUAL INSPO:

1. “White Rose with Larkspur No. 2” by Georgia O’Keeffe (famous for soft gradations of light and shadow, exploring subtle contrasts)

2. “Black and White Lines” by Sonia Delaunay (pioneering female abstract artist, known for vibrant patterns and dynamic contrasts)

3. Rubin Vase Illusion (black-and-white image of a vase or two faces)

4. Duck-Rabbit Illusion (optical illusion of a duck or a rabbit depending on perspective)

5. Black-and-white spiral optical illusions

6. Dorothea Lange black-and-white portraits (exploring light and shadow to highlight human complexity, e.g., “Migrant Mother”)

7. Urban shadow photography (black-and-white photos of cityscapes with dramatic light and shadows)

8. Portraits with half-light and half-shadow

9. Chessboard patterns (symbolizing strategy and opposites)

10. Yin-Yang symbols (illustrating balance and duality)

11. Paths diverging in light and dark forest scenes

12. “The Third of May 1808” by Francisco Goya (contrasts of light and dark to emphasize moral complexity)

13. “Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird” by Frida Kahlo (not strictly black-and-white but deeply symbolic and emotional gray areas)

14. “Autumn Rhythm (Number 30)” by Jackson Pollack

15. Black and white gradient backgrounds (search for printable templates to shade or annotate)

16. Yin-Yang templates (for students to color or write within)

17. Pathway illustrations (e.g., “fork in the road” drawings or simple pathways splitting into two directions).

18. “The Wave” by Katsushika Hokusai (a black-and-white woodblock print with complexity and movement)

19. Leonardo da Vinci sketches (use of chiaroscuro to show light and shadow)

20. “Untitled (Grey and White Abstraction)” by Agnes Martin (delicate interplay of tone and space by a minimalist master)

POETRY PROMPTS

Shades of Certainty
Write a poem exploring the contrast between absolute truths (black and white) and the uncertain middle ground (grey). What does it feel like to exist in a space where the lines blur?

Grey is Where We Live
Describe a moment when you realized life isn’t as simple as right or wrong. Use the metaphor of fog or twilight to convey the complexity of human emotions or decisions.

Black and White Memories
Recall a vivid memory and reimagine it as a black-and-white photograph. How does the absence of color change its meaning?

Grey Conversations
Write about a dialogue or conflict where neither side is entirely right or wrong. How do you navigate the grey in relationships?

Monochrome Landscape
Imagine a world where everything is either black or white. Write about what it lacks, and how the presence of grey might transform it.

The Grey Within
Reflect on a part of yourself that you neither fully embrace nor reject. What does it mean to live with contradictions within your soul?

A Study in Contrasts
Write about a subject that appears simple on the surface but reveals complexity upon closer inspection. How do black and white become grey through understanding?

Shadows and Light
Explore the interplay of light and shadow in a physical or emotional sense. How do they shape what we see or feel?

Grey Days and Silver Linings
Create a poem that turns a bleak or uncertain time (a grey day) into something hopeful or beautiful (a silver lining).

Ink Bleeding on Paper
Use the image of black ink bleeding into white paper to symbolize the inevitable blending of opposites. What stories emerge in the overlap?

POETRY STYLES TO TRY

1. Villanelle

• Style: A structured form with 19 lines, consisting of five tercets followed by a quatrain, with two repeating refrains and a rhyme scheme of ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA.

• Why It Fits: The repetition of refrains mirrors the cyclical nature of uncertainty and the interplay between absolutes and ambiguity, perfect for exploring grey areas.

2. Sestina

• Style: A 39-line form divided into six sestets and a concluding tercet. The end words of the first stanza are repeated in a specific order throughout the poem.

• Why It Fits: Its intricate pattern reflects the layered complexities of grey areas, where themes repeat but evolve.

3. Free Verse

• Style: No set rhyme or meter, allowing for creative freedom.

• Why It Fits: The lack of structure echoes the undefined and fluid nature of grey areas, letting the theme unfold organically.

4. Pantoum

• Style: A series of quatrains with a repeating pattern, where the second and fourth lines of each stanza become the first and third lines of the next.

• Why It Fits: The looping repetition can highlight the overlapping and blending of black, white, and grey.

5. Terza Rima

• Style: A form of interlocking three-line stanzas with a rhyme scheme of ABA BCB CDC, etc.

• Why It Fits: The interwoven rhyme scheme symbolizes the interconnectedness of opposites and the subtle shifts in tone within grey areas.

6. Concrete Poetry

• Style: The poem’s shape visually represents its theme, often using typography to create imagery.

• Why It Fits: Visuals like gradients, shadows, or monochrome patterns can underscore the contrast and blend of black, white, and grey.

7. Elegy

• Style: A melancholic poem reflecting on loss or contemplation.

• Why It Fits: Its meditative tone suits prompts dealing with emotional ambiguity or unresolved tensions.

8. Epistolary Poem

• Style: A poem in the form of a letter.

• Why It Fits: Addressing someone or something directly creates intimacy, which works well with prompts exploring relationships or internal conflict.

9. Ekphrasis

• Style: A vivid description of art or an object, using the poem to bring it to life.

• Why It Fits: Describing a black-and-white photograph or an abstract piece of art aligns with prompts focusing on visuals and contrasts.

10. Sonnet (Petrarchan or Shakespearean)

• Style: A 14-line poem with a set rhyme scheme (e.g., ABBA ABBA CDECDE for Petrarchan).

• Why It Fits: The formal structure provides a disciplined framework for exploring dichotomies and resolutions within grey areas.