What would you like to see out of a creative writing short story?

For my Creative Writing class we have to write a short story, I really want to write some thing along the lines of Columbine, but I'm worried about the reaction of my teacher. As far as I know, he has no personal history with the idea, but ... I don't know. What would you want to see out of a short story for a creative writing class?

What would you like to see out of a creative writing short story?
I wouldn't mind the story at all - as long as it was well researched and accurate. It is certainly a topic that is au courant ... in the news. Don't make it up. Don't cheat your readers. Just find a good POV to write from. As a teacher, I would absolutely accept a sensitive, well written story on school violence, just as long as you weren't advocating it.





You wouldn't be the first to write about school violence. DBC Pierre did it magnificently in Vernon God Little. Check it out and see how he handled it. Amazing book. Pax- C
Reply:You mean the murders at Columbine High School, CO.? If you can fantasize yourself into one of the people there, real or not, it's creative writing...otherwise it's journalism.


If that feels too tricky to you, choose another topic of interest, one that interests YOU, not necessarily the teacher. It just has to be creative, that's all.





That's what I think after a lot of classes of that sort, anyway. Good luck!
Reply:My first impulse is to ask if your are attending Columbine or a nearby school. If so, you might want to make the story something constructive, on the aftermath. BUT--





Why not try a story about a favorite pet, or sibling, a trip that you took that perhaps didn't turn out the way you wanted... and because it is creative writing-- add your own touch to make it totally fiction...
Reply:It wouldn't be right to write about a disaster unless it happened to you personally.
Reply:I wouldn't care about the topic of the story as long as the writer focused on the plot, created believable characters, used realistic dialogue, and neatly tied any loose ends by the conclusion. With, of course, special attention paid to grammar, punctuation and spelling.





It's not about the topic, it's about how you present the topic. Goodness, you could write a beautiful story about cockroaches if it's done right, and totally screw up when trying to describe flowers.