Creative Writing Class Portfolio
Due: ___________
This Assignment is worth 20% of your overall course grade.
Collected Work: 40pts
Compile all of your work for this class in an organized 3-ring binder with tabbed dividers. You may either
arrange your work based or Unit or Genre. Arrange your work in reverse chronological order. The most
recent assignment is on top, the first assignment on the bottom. For drafts, I only need to see the drafts
with commentary and annotation. You do not need to include second copies. If you do not have annotated
copies, include the clean copy. You must have an entry included for each assignment listed. Required
elements and acceptable arrangements are on back of this sheet.
In addition to arranging and including all previous writing assignments in the portfolio you must do three
additional pieces of writing: a new fixed form poem of your choice, a new free form poem of your choice, and
an essay describing your development and progress as a creative writer.
Fixed Form Poem: 10pts
Choose one of the longer fixed form poems we have covered in this class (Villanelle, Rondeau, Sestina) and
compose a new one. This poem must be original, not a revision of a previous poem. Abide by all the
guidelines for the poem as described on the initial assignment. This poem will be evaluated on your use of
concrete and figurative language, you ability to follow the rules for the form, and the overall power and
meaningfulness of piece.
Free Form Poem: 10pts
Write a new, original poem of 80-150 words. In this poem demonstrate your ability to effectively use space,
line-breaks, stanzas, and punctuation to enhance the meaning of your words. You must also use concrete
and figurative language. This poem will be evaluated on the effectiveness of your language, your ability to
use structural strategies to impact meaning, and the meaningfulness of the piece.
Writer’s Essay: 10pts
In 200-300 words write a well-organized explanatory essay describing your development and progress as a
creative writer. Include in your essay significant new understandings about creative writing you have begun
to apply in your own work as well as assignments or drafts where you first began to become aware of these
understandings. Describe challenges you faced as a writer and how you overcame them. Discuss which
assignments you had the most and least success with and explain why. Cite your own work (included in
the portfolio) as evidence in the essay. Be sure to point out how specific parts of your final story and poems
demonstrate your improvement as a writer.
Final Story Final Draft: 10pts
Already a part of the final assignment, the fourth draft of your story should demonstrate all the skills you
have learned in this course. This story will be included in your portfolio grade.
Unit Arrangement
 Character
o Appliance Poem (1 draft)
o Local Color Poem (Rough Draft)
o Local Color Poem (Final Draft)
o Character Sketch (Rough Draft)
o Character Sketch (2nd Draft)
o Character Sketch (Final Draft)
 Dialogue
o Found Poem (1 draft)
o Dialogue Story (Rough Draft)
o Dialogue Story (2nd Draft)
o Dialogue Story (Final Draft)
 Setting
o Haiku (Rough Draft)
o Haiku (Final Draft)
o American Minimalist Poem (Rough
Draft)
o American Minimalist Poem (Final
Draft)
o Sestina (Rough Draft)
o Sestina (Final Draft)
o Setting Story (Rough Draft)
o Setting Story (2nd Draft)
o Setting Story (Final Draft)
o Rondeau (Rough Draft)
o Rondeau (Final Draft)
o Elegy or Ode (Rough Draft)
o Elegy or Ode (Final Draft)
 Plot
o Villanelle (Rough Draft)
o Villanelle (Final Draft)
o Conceited Definition Poem (Rough
Draft)
o Conceited Definition Poem (Final
Draft)
o Final Story (Rough Draft)
o Final Story (2nd Draft)
o Final Story (3rd Draft)
 Class Final
o Final Story (Final Draft)
o Fixed Form Poem (New: Villanelle,
Sestina, or Rondeau)
o Free Form Poem (New: Free Verse,
any subject)
Genre Arrangement
 Poetry
o Appliance Poem (1 draft)
o Local Color Poem (Rough Draft)
o Local Color Poem (Final Draft)
o Found Poem (1 draft)
o Haiku (Rough Draft)
o Haiku (Final Draft)
o American Minimalist Poem (Rough
Draft)
o American Minimalist Poem (Final
Draft)
o Sestina (Rough Draft)
o Sestina (Final Draft)
o Rondeau (Rough Draft)
o Rondeau (Final Draft)
o Elegy or Ode (Rough Draft)
o Elegy or Ode (Final Draft)
o Villanelle (Rough Draft)
o Villanelle (Final Draft)
o Conceited Definition Poem (Rough
Draft)
o Conceited Definition Poem (Final
Draft)
o Fixed Form Poem (New: Villanelle,
Sestina, or Rondeau)
o Free Form Poem (New: Free Verse,
any subject)
 Fiction
o Character Sketch (Rough Draft)
o Character Sketch (2nd Draft)
o Character Sketch (Final Draft)
o Dialogue Story (Rough Draft)
o Dialogue Story (2nd Draft)
o Dialogue Story (Final Draft)
o Setting Story (Rough Draft)
o Setting Story (2nd Draft)
o Setting Story (Final Draft)
o Final Story (Rough Draft)
o Final Story (2nd Draft)
o Final Story (3rd Draft)
o Final Story (Final Draft)