Survival Short Story Example

Use the panels menu to choose a layout. Consider the style of book you want.  For the survival story, simple might be better.  If you are creating a graphic novel style, choose interesting layouts for all pages and variety is better for graphic novels. 

Use the text style choice in the comics menu to create interesting large titles. 

Great job getting through the tutorial! Remember to collaborate with your groups to help you get through the e-book and ask questions.

Make sure to add your questions to the Need to Know List!

Go to the next page to see a started e-book example. Each person's story and graphics will enhance the e-book that your group produces. Good luck!

Artist Statement "Final Dance" - Stoneware Tile, 2016 - Amy Robertson

     This artwork represents the struggles of the character in my survival short story. The three images of the human form represent the three choices he had to make along the way in order to survive. Each decision had consequences and challenges that could have led to death or survival. The challenges that the character encountered were both emotional and physical.

     The word dance is important to the story, as the character was a dancer and decisions he made along the way to live impacted his future abilities to not only walk again but to do the most important thing in his life, dance. To never dance again but to live could not seen like a way to life the rest of his life. When his leg was stuck under the heavy log he had to make decisions about his entire life in order to survive. His career, his life, his passion.

     As I created this work, I considered the book "Into the Wild" and how the discussions in class helped me understand what goes through a person's mind when they are struggling to survive. His journals impacted me deeply, and helped me to consider what choices I might make in a survival situation. When I interviewed a friend who had survived a kayaking spill and almost drowned after begin swept down class 4 rapids I wondered what the alternative might be if one doesn't fight to live. His near drowning story involved everything around him slowing down and how peaceful he felt as he was under the raging water even though the water was loud and pulling him down.

"Final Dance" Stoneware Tile, 2016 Amy Robertson

You have written your short survival story and you are ready to create an e-book. Go through this basic tutorial on e-book making with <a href="https://app.bookcreator.com">Bookcreator</a> to help you get started.

     If you have an idea for the cover add it. You need a title and your name. If you are not sure of the cover yet, then leave the cover basic for now and return to it after you have put your story together.

     If you create an image with text in another program, save it as a jpg so you can import it as an image straight into the e-book.The next page has an example of a cover I might use for a book I am writing. 

Lost, then found. A short story

Use the text choice in the media menu to add basic text.

Consider layout and and visuals you are adding to the story. Once you add text, cropping the text boxes is done by dragging the corners of the text boxes. See the image below to see the large blue dots on the corners. These are for re-sizing.

This will be how pre-written content is easily added to an e-book. Copy and paste directly from your Word document or Google Doc. Below, you can see how the text box looks. You can add a recording too!

I could not image a way out. It did not seem possible.

     Out into the darkness I walked and ran, then walked again. I caught my breath and wandered through the trees, looking over my shoulder every time I heard a snap of a twig or a rustle of leaves. I was lost and it had been hours since I had fallen down that steep ravine. The day has started out so fun with friends and now this.

     As I waked through the darkness I felt the cold drops of ice on the back of my neck. Snow! What else could go wrong as I stumbled over tree roots on the forest floor. It was like climbing over broken bicycles cluttering the ground. Full bicycles that had been laid out on a path in front of me. tormenting me in the dark. I saw nothing as I felt my way through the woods, thick with snow now covering my clothes and everything around me. Why did I leave my friends and go my own way?  If I had not been so angry about the party they had the night before this would not have happened.

     Hours I struggled through the cold and dark, but the snow began to lighten the way and soon I could see glimpses of my surroundings. As the snow tapered off I could see what appeared to be a small house in the distance.

Once you are in this view you can move pages around and insert blank pages.

Now might be a great time to view all your pages. This image show that you can easily view then in the pages menu. 

The three dots at the bottom right of each page in this view allows you to insert pages. delete, or more...

The formatting panel entitled "i" allows the user to make a variety of changes to content for the text and the page.

Right click any text or graphic to format colors and sizes. Click on format to see many adjustments that can be made and click format to alter the image or text. 

The "i" panel also opens to format content.

Add images, maps, and embed videos into your e-book by clicking the Media tab, then choose Import. Your choices open into a new menu like the one below.

Choose media menu and choose shapes. You can alter the colors and sizes of shapes.  You can also send shapes to the background and type on top of them. You can do that with comic text and shapes too. 

Adding content is simplified. The + is for adding media, comic graphics, and shapes. Below are the three panels for adding content.

Above is the overall work space. Menus are at the top left and right and all the writing and designing happens on the digital pages. Adding content is easy with the + button. The next page shows the three panels available within the + menu. The black arrows on the left and right turn pages.

Formatting pages can be fun, but be careful. You do not want your book to seem elementary level unless that age is your audience. Your survival story is more than likely geared to high school and above, so keep the look clean and professional. You can still have fun with the layout, but this example is suited for a different type of e-book.

Ok- so that's two pages of the short story that you viewed. I would keep adding my text and content until I completed the entire story. Have group members proof your work. Use as many pages as you need.

Don't forget your Ceramics Work &amp; Artist Statement!

Include your ceramics object and the artist statement at the end of your story. On the next page is an example you can see to give you a basic idea, but format yours so it flows with your story. I would add the ceramics work at the end of the story, but if yours fits elsewhere, do it!

Name

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