Alone on a Wide Wide Sea “It was a different world I was sailing in down there, the wildest place I’ve ever been... South of 60° between Cape Horn and the Antarctic peninsula there’s no land to break up the ocean swells, so the waves travel uninterrupted for hundreds of miles and they’re just massive.” “I had to be out there avoiding the breaking waves, especially the hollow ones, the ones that look as if they’re going to swallow you up. Sleep was almost impossible in seas like this, in weather like this. The wind screamed all the time. It was a constant pounding. I was on edge, listening to the boat, trying to work out if she was just complaining, or whether she was telling me something was really wrong.” “You should see the waves she’d be shouting at… They’ve travelled all around the world just to meet us here – Aren’t they nice? aren’t they kind? – building up all the time. Up to 200 metres long, I promise you. Awesome, magnificent, majestic, amazing, exhilarating, overwhelming (running out of adjectives so I’ll stop). They’re wave monsters that’s what they are, and when one decides to break it’s like an avalanche that goes on and on, and Kitty 4 does snowboarding then surfing through the middle of it, raging white water all around, the air snowing foam.”
Illustrations © Tim Stevens, 2006
Storytelling challenge: Can you tell a simple story in more than one way, changing the language you use depending on your audience?
You should: • Think of a very simple story, such as a cat getting stuck in a tree; walking round the corner and bumping into an old friend; a friend daring you to go into a spooky house. • Tell the story to a partner several times. Each time you tell the story, imagine that they are someone different, for example a small child, a very strict teacher and your best friend.
You might: • Choose a specific audience once you have finished telling your story several times then try writing the story for them, thinking carefully about who you are writing for and tailoring your language accordingly.
Stuck for ideas? If you get stuck, here are some questions to prompt your thinking: • Will your tone be chatty and friendly, or more formal? • Would your audience understand slang terms, or do you need to stick to more standard phrases and words? • Should you try and use poetic language or devices like similes and metaphors, or should you stick to straightforward description? •Would your audience be able to understand complicated words, or do you need to keep your language nice and simple?
Alone on a Wide Wide Sea