During the semester, you may think of a topic that you would like to explore more completely.

During the semester, you may think of a topic that you would like to explore more completely. If you wish, you can research that topicas long as it is somehow related to fantasy and fantasy literatureand present your research as an informative essay. You will need to clear your topic with me (via Canvas e-mail) before you begin. Past topics have included dragons, the development of chain-mail armor, musical instruments played during the time of Beowulf, clothing worn during the time of The Odyssey, and cuisine of the Middle Ages. The more original your topic, and the better your research, the higher your grade will be.

This project, like your essays, must be at least 800 words (not counting headers, title, or works cited), must be formatted and documented in the latest MLA style, and must be submitted as a DOC, DOCX or ODT (LibreOffice) file attachment. To help illustrate or demonstrate your topic, you are encouraged to embed images (as GIF or JPG files), sound or video clips, or other aids that can be easily imported into an MS Word or ODT document.

Your best bet for research materials is the CSN Library. The link to their Web page is 
. Through their site, you can even ask for research help from one of the librarians. If you find materials from other credible (and I stress credible) sources, you may, of course, use them. Don’t just do a Google search and land yourself on Jesse or Jane Schmoe’s Web site. A credible source is produced by someone or by an organization with acknowledged expertise or established credentials in the field you are researching. Again, the librarians can help you find such sources. You must find at least two sources for your project through the resources available at the library.

Your special project must be submitted on or before the Friday of the fourteenth week of the course; check the course Calendar or the Assignments page for the exact due date. Your special project will be graded on the originality of your topic, on the correctness (essay format, grammar, spelling, punctuation, and mechanics) of your writing, and on your use of sources and documentation. 

As noted in the syllabus, this assignment can take the place of any one of your essays. That means if you did not do well on one of the first two essays, you can use the special project to try for a better grade. If you missed one of the first two essays, the special project will make up the missing grade. If you want to do the special project instead of the third essay (and save yourself time for the course final), you can do that as well. The special project will not substitute for the course final. You will be allowed only one special project during the semester.