This workshop was a must for all those interested in writing for children within the
9-14 year old age group. The evening began with an invitation to choose three cards
from the intriguing ‘Acme’ box, with each card having a different topic written on it.
These we used later to concoct a children’s story.
Before we began our exercise, Maggie gave us sound advice on the ‘what, and what not, to do’
when writing for children. The following is only a sampler:
Make the opening fast paced, with the main character going straight into action, as children have a short attention span.
Use lots of dialogue to move the story on quickly and break up the page, making it less daunting to read.
Always read dialogue out loud to see if it sounds natural and never try to write ‘teen speak’ as it will sound false.
The use of photographs or horoscopes could help with building characters.
Plotting can be done using mind maps or ideas written on paper.
The ending of your story must be upbeat.
And so to the exercise…
This activity was to help the brain make connections it would not normally make – and didn’t it do just that!
Some of the results were hilarious. They included Granny’s lost pearl earrings, a boy jumping off a trampoline and his nose ending up in a cheese sandwich, step families, oak trees, time machines and a poisoned Russian spy who has a finger cut off. What marvellous imaginations our club members have!
Many thanks to Maggie for a most entertaining evening filled with lots of helpful hints. None of us have an excuse now for not entering the competition on the 14th November.
Helen Jeffrey