• COMPOSITIONAL RISKS

    "Compositional risks" refer to attempts made by an author to do something interesting, engaging, and unusual with his or her writing. A compositional risk occurs when a writer uses language in an unusual way to obtain a desired effect on the reader. The use of these can enhance writing by communicating the desired message to the reader. They also make writing more interesting to read and improve the overall quality of the piece. Successful compositional risks show a writer’s skill and can make your work unique in a good way; unsuccessful compositional risks make it unique in a bad way. It is a "risk" because your attempt might make the writing great, but if it doesn't work, it could make the writing terrible.

    The NJASK 6-point Holistic Scoring Rubric rewards controlled attempts (i.e. - attempts clearly done on purpose by the writer, not accidentally) at using compositional risks, even if the attempt fails.

    Below are the various types of risk you could try to use in your writing:

    • Advanced "stretch" vocabulary

    • Anticipating the opposition/varied perception- for persuasive, this means showing the other side of the argument and then proving why it is not accurate/effective/etc.

    • Data/statistics/numbers/facts integrated into the writer's argument, not just thrown in for effect

    • Dialogue that drives action and adds content- make sure you use quotations, spacing, and indents correctly!

    • Direct and indirect quotations

    • Figurative language- alliteration, analogies, clichés, hyperboles, idioms, irony, metaphors, onomatopoeia, personification, repetition, similes, vivid description/imagery, etc.

    • Motif or extended metaphor throughout

    • Point of view – unusual or unexpected, directly addressing the audience, quirkiness, sarcasm, shifting roles, interview technique

    • Revisit an introductory idea in the conclusion- must be reworded or restated in another way

    • Rhetorical questions - leading or closing with effective questions that do more than repeat or restate the prompt question- a question asked only for effect or to make a statement, not to get an answer. Do you want a boyfriend who drinks, smokes, and disrespects you?

    • Shift in rhetorical mode- expository thought journey, narrative anecdotes, and poetic techniques

    • Shifting times and events (for narrative/explanatory/speculative)- flashback, foreshadowing, frames/scenes

    • Surprise/unexpected twist

    • Unusual topics

    • Varied sentence structure- length, subject last, compound and/or complex sentences, italics, varied punctuation, dialect

    • Voice/imprint of self- humor, sarcasm, irony, dialect, mood/emotion