Zeitgeist:
Well, I think that plan is preferable to writing as Hitchens from beyond the grave if that's what you're asking. The date and publication is a really minor thing; what matters is how and why you're using his voice. If you can answer those questions confidently then you'll be fine.
And just so you know, there are penalties for assessors who skim read or assign a vastly inappropriate mark. Because everything is moderated, they keep track of teachers whose judgements are off, and they usually just get rid of them if they have enough strikes next to their name (as in, they don't mark essays for VCAA anymore... they're still teachers though.)
Don't put too much onus on the assessors, the exam isn't full of as many variables as you think, and it doesn't just come down to a subjective impression. There are very real improvements you can make between now and then, so don't be disheartened!
mnewin:
That depends. If all you're lacking is sophistication, then you could still pull a mid-high band response. However, if where you struggle is relating your discussion to the prompt, then that would sway the mark considerably. I'd recommend going through the context section in the first post since there are some strategies there for elaboration and transition.
The first person voice can be good for intros, so long as it's clear and the link to your piece isn't too messy. Sample hybrid essays (on AN or in Assessor's Reports) might give you some other options. There's also an historical example that I was keen on using, though it didn't work for me in the exam. Link in the OP
Zezima:
Line breaks are totally up to you. If you think it would improve clarity or legibility then it's probably a good idea. You can always request an extra script book which shouldn't take longer than a few seconds to fill out. (From memory it's just your student number, and possible the date?) An assessor would rather read a spaced out piece that's legible than have to strain their eyes to pick out the non-crossed out sentences in a densely edited mess, so go with whatever works for you.
And no, your plan isn't even scanned. If they see weird little reminders scrawled in the margins, they just ignore it. You won't lose marks for anything you write there, but you also don't gain any, so don't rely on a plan to explain yourself or clarify your ideas; the essay is the only thing that matters.
Billion:
Rarely will a VCAA prompt be that vague. 'Theatrical techniques' could be anything; staging, blocking, mood, dialogue, motifs, etc. There's no concrete list, but I'd say try and acknowledge the performative aspects of the text. So many students ignore the fact that a play is meant to be performed, and they just treat it like a hard copy textual analysis. I can't think of anything to avoid, specifically. No Sugar is a new text so you're unlikely to get a structural question in the first year, but maybe go through the text and just work out what the most dominant devices and features are in case you need them for evidence
Mykindos:
Yep, you can go well and truly beyond the text provided you know how to link things. It's not compulsory though, and for many students the close examples work better anyway, so don't feel like you have to throw yourself into researching for the next two days.
A brief sample of things can be found here:
External Examples faredcarsking123:
Yacoubb beat me to it. Conventions like that aren't a big deal, the assessors are only really fussy if you alternate between 'single' and "double" quotations for no reason, or if you don't capitalise the author's name. Honestly, you wouldn't even have to mention the publication as the intro only really needs to cover the author, contention, form, and maybe tone or audience.
The analysis is where the marks are; but yeah, single quotes for a title, otherwise just rely on the conventions in the Background Info. They can't take a mark off if they've done it wrong too
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