OTHER WORD CHOICES:  chance, accidental, haphazard, unsystematic, hit and miss

AND yes, arbitrary is another word for Random.

Here are two off the wall words that I found that also can be synonyms for Random:

Stochastic:  (stuh-KAS-tik) adjective: Involving chance; random; probabilistic.
     Etymology:  From Greek stokhos (aim, target, a pointed stake for an archer to aim at). Earliest documented use: 1662.
     Usage:  “Medicine is a stochastic science — no doctor can predict the future.”  Sandeep Jauhar; When Doctors Slam the Door; The New York Times; Mar 16, 2003.

Ergodic: (ərˈgädik) of or pertaining to the condition that, in an interval of sufficient duration, a system will return to states that are closely similar to previous ones: the assumption of such a condition underlies statistical methods used in modern dynamics and atomic theory.
An easier way of saying this is:  a system will randomly change states but will eventually return to its original state.
Etymology:  early 20th century (1926) from German ergoden, from Greek ergon ‘work’ + hodos ‘way’ + -ic
Usage:  In an ergodic forest, while the size, shape and spacing of individual trees may vary, their distribution in any given area is the same as any other area. http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Theoretical+speed+above+which+birds+and+drones+are+sure+to+crash…-a0277579590

POV (Point of View):  Point of view in literature is probably the biggest single area of novel writing that aspiring writers have problems with. More specifically, they often can’t decide whether to use first person or third person point of view.  This can be the single most important decision a writer makes about their novel and if it is not handled correctly it can guarantee a novel’s failure.

First person:  the “I” voice; all narration written as if the narrator were speaking directly to the readers. The narrator is one of the characters, not the author as in omniscient p.o.v.
Third person: the “s/he” voice; a mix of the other two, a compromise between first person and omniscient p.o.v.
Third Person Limited(limited to one person): This is probably the best bet for beginning writers. Here, the narration refers to all the characters by third-person pronouns (he, she, it), each self-contained scene follows the viewpoint of one specific character.
Third person multiple: your viewpoint is limited to more than one character. You’ll need at least one other viewpoint if you include scenes in which your protagonist is not present. But always confine yourself to one point of view per scene. Don’t switch viewpoint unless you’re starting a new scene.
Omniscient: a point of view not written from “inside” anyone’s head; unseen narrator knows what all the characters are thinking.  Janet Burroughway describes, in WRITING FICTION, the total omniscient author as “God.

You can freely switch viewpoint characters when you change scenes, but it’s a little tricky to switch in a short story. You have to make sure you are not confusing the reader. Using a blank line helps. In novels you can shift at the end of a chapter, or with a blank line within a chapter.

Well, you guessed it!  There was no class on 16th.  Dan and I were the only ones who were not involved with vacation, hiking, long car trips, etc …

So, I held on to the activities and we did them this week.  The first activity this week provoked much laughter and group interaction while the second activity was a little more introspective.

Here are the activities for this weeks workshop:

1. Group Fiction Free Flow
1. Everyone takes a blank sheet of paper.  They write the beginning of a short story for 5 minutes.  The prompt is: “You’ve left town – ditching your old, miserable life – hoping to start a new life for yourself.  You’ve given yourself a new name, fake background and style.  Write about your first encounter in your new town.”
2. Pass the paper to your neighbor.  Read what has been written and turn your paper over to signal you have finished reading.
3. Continue the story for 5 more minutes.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until the story returns to the original author.
5. Note: For large groups, break into smaller groups of 4 or 5.
   This week’s sample is from this group writing.  And will be posted shortly.
2. Write following the Free Flow Guidelines.  The prompt is, “Write about a time when you were lost.  This can be emotionally, spiritually or literally physically lost.

This week’s vocabulary …

This week’s writing/grammar …