“While I absorbed facts about these women’s

lives, I did not stay inside the lines; each of these

stories is unequivocally a work of fiction"
Meghan Mayhew Bergman,
Almost Famous Women, pg. 232
 Bergman writes that she did not feel the bound to
staying perfectly true to each woman’s life in her
collection of short stories. This often happens with
historical fiction. While there is truth to the
historical stories we tell, it is also important to be
aware of what has been changed and worth
speculating why a writer would make that change.

For this project, you delve deeper into the life of one of
Purpose: these women by researching her life using the Library’s
resources.
You will write a paper that compares and contrasts
Bergman’s portrayal to the life on the real woman and
speculate why Bergman makes the changes she does.
 ▪ Projects must be between 1,000 and 1,500 words, not
including the Works Cited page
▪ Projects must be in MLA format and cite the research
Project used in the project.

▪ Students must cite at least 3 sources from the UGA

Guidelines Library
▪ You’re welcome to research any of the women in
Bergman’s short stories
Learning Goal ▪ Your first learning goal is to get comfortable using the
UGA Library’s resources.
#1
 ▪ Not all of the women in Bergman’s characters stories are
real women. Make sure you know which women are
based off real figures and which are made up.
▪ Some women have more scholarly work done on them
than others. If you get stuck, remember your resources
in the form of librarians and your professor.

▪ One idea: If you’re having trouble finding information

Research Tips about a particular woman, focus your research on the
time period or culture that the story is set in.
▪ Look for clues to find alternative search terms in the
text.
▪ Reach out to Prof. Jensen on the Librarians for help
▪ Don’t give up!
 ▪ Learn How to Learn a New Citation Style
▪ In this class we’ll be using the 8th edition of MLA
Learning Goal ▪ If you’re familiar, this will give you more practice. If
#2 you’re not, this is a valuable experience learning how to
learn a new citation style. What resources work best for
you?
 ▪ Write your Works Cited entries as you are researching.
(I swear it makes doing your citations faster, more
accurate, and saves time in the long run.)
MLA Tips ▪ Your Textbook has a helpful section on how to write
Works Cited entries and in-text citations. They’re color-
coded.
 ▪ Write Clear and Connected Thesis Statements and
Topic Sentences.
▪ Thesis statements are the heart of your project. In one to
two sentences, they sum up your project’s main

Learning Goal argument.

▪ Topic sentences are often the first or second sentence

#3 in your paragraph. They act as the guiding thought for
your paragraph.
▪ Topic sentences relate back and support your thesis
statement.
 ▪ A complex thesis will not only answer the questions
about what changes Bergman made in transforming her
Tips for a Strong historical figures into characters, but it will attempt to
Thesis discuss why she might have made those changes or
what affects those changes have on the readers.
 First Year Writing Rubric

https://www.english.uga.edu/sites/default/files/FYC_short_form_rubric.pdf
 ▪ Week 6
▪ Finish Almost Famous Women
▪ Set Project 2 Goals
▪ Begin Research
▪ Week 7
▪ Continue Research
▪ Form Thesis Statements and Topic Sentences into an outline
▪ Week 8
Timeline ▪ Submit outlines
▪ Complete on first full draft
▪ Week 9
▪ Receive feedback from Prof. Jensen
▪ Complete Peer Reviews
▪ Week 10
▪ Submit Final Draft.
▪ Begin Work on Project 3
 PROJECT 3
Creative Representations
Project 3: In Two Parts
The Creative Portion
◦ You will find an almost famous figure of
your own
◦ You will then make a creative
representation of that person and why
you think they need to be better known
◦ You may consider doing a drawing,
sketch of a sculpture, write a song, write
a poem etc.
◦ This is your time to be creative!
The Reflection
◦ This portion will have you write about
your experience making your creative
portion
◦ You will discuss your research process
and use research in this portion
◦ You will talk about what artistic decisions
you made and why you made those
choices.
◦ You will answer the “So What?” Question
Project 3:
Reflection
In reflective writing, you are trying to
describe your thought process as
you worked through a particular
project or event. It’s a genre in
which you try make sense of your
choices to an audience outside of
yourself. In reflective essays, you
describe what you did, why you did
it that way, and if the occasion calls
for it, you might write about what
you would do differently now that
you have been through the initial
event or process.
Reflective writing is generally written
in the first person and is often
informal.
Organization Options for Reflection

Rhetorical
Chronological Interview
Situation
Project Requirements
◦ Reflection portion must be 1000-1500 words
◦ Must use MLA Citations and include a Works Cited Page
◦ Should interweave researched materials and the creative process.
◦ Should explain why your figure’s story should be told in the reflection and how you attempted to do so in
your creative portion
◦ Use 3 Resources from the UGA Library
 Project 3 Learning Goals

RESEARCH ANSWER THE “SO USE YOUR VOICE

WHAT?” QUESTION
Reflection Questions
◦ Why did you choose this person to represent?
◦ What specific parts of their life did you choose to represent?
◦ What parts of their life did you leave out? Why did you leave out those parts?
◦ What medium did you use for the creative portion? Why did you choose that medium?
◦ What ways did your medium limit or expand the ways you could represent your person?
◦ What was your research process like? Was it easy to find information? Was it difficult?
◦ What resources did you use when researching?
◦ If you had more time to work on this project what changes would you make?
◦ Where would you display your work? Do you imagine it in a particular city if it’s a physical object?
Alternatively, where might be published or sold? Who is your target audience?
◦ Was your project influenced at all by your Week 10 Discussion Board?
Some Do’s

1 2 3
Do use UGA Library Do Cite your Research. Do use an informal
Resources Use MLA format for in- tone. Think of your
(We’re continuing our text citations and a reflection as an
learning goal of getting works cited page at interview or a
acquainted with UGA’s the end of your conversation.
library) reflection.
Pick a Dead
Person
• Simply put, the stories of
living people are still in
progress, and your
perspective can
change as the person
does.
• Most of a person’s
history comes out after
they are dead, but give
it a decade.
Project 3 Timeline
◦ Week 11: Research
◦ Week 12: Create
◦ Week 13: Reflect and Put it All Together
Grading
Creative Grade
◦ The Creative Portion Makes up 30% of
the Project’s Final Grade
◦ This Portion of Your Grade is Based on
a Complete/Incomplete Scale
◦ The Creative Portion is Considered
Complete if it is Included in the Project
3 Final Document AND is Posted on
the Week 13 Discussion Forum
Reflection Grade
◦ The Remaining 70% of your Grade is
based on the Reflection of your
creative process
◦ This portion of your grade is based on
answering the discussion questions
(content)
◦ And your content is graded based on
the FYW Rubric