Creative Writing Workshop Presentation

THEA Newspaper CIRCLE GAZETTE

by Children for Children CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

YOUNG WRITER

THE

CIRCLE GA ZETTE

TELL ME A STORY! LANGUAGE: LANGUAGE:

A particular kind of system for

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encoding and decoding information.

WRITTEN LANGUAGE: LANGUAGE:

Exists only as a

complement to a specific spoken or gestural language, and no natural language is purely written.

WANTED Writers and Artists

IF YOU CAN TELL A STORY, YOU CAN WRITE IT…

Written language stands on its own: No body language assistance.

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

HOW TO WRITE IT? THE CIRCLE GAZETTE

It’s Easy!

1. SET SOME BOUNDARIES Structure

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2. LET THE STORY FLOW Get it all out!

3. BE YOUR OWN EDITOR Shape it up

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

UNSTUCK YOURSELF If you can’t think of a first sentence, write the second one.

If you can’t think of a good beginning, try the end.

WRITING CREATIVELY

WHERE DO WE START?

WHAT TO WRITE? Learning Community Coverage Stories Poems Letters to the Past Public Letters Literary Reviews Field Trips –Experiential Accounts Clubs Local Concerns & Entertainment Community Reporters – What’s Happening Out There?

Interviewing …

On Stage - Theater Reviews Cinemania - Movie Reviews Toys & Games – Reviews Original Recipes Bringing the World Closer: National and World Issues National & World Reporters More Did you know? - Sports, History & Science Trivia Announcements Classifieds

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CHOOSE YOUR: GENRE … different ways to tell a story

Prose

Fiction

Adventure

Poetry

NonNon-Fiction

Drama Comedy

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

Let’s set some boundaries …

STRUCTURE

THE CIRCLE GAZETTE WHO? Place Photo Here, Otherwise Delete Box

WHAT?

Characters

WHY? WHY?

Plot Sequence of Events

Setting

WHERE? HOW?

WHEN?

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

NARRATOR The person who conveys the story to the audience

A character in the story? A character outside the story ?

How far outside the story are you?

Š 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

WRITING CREATIVELY

HOW TO WRITE IT?

… AND THEN WHAT?

START (beginning) Generally: Introduction of characters. Establishing setting.

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KEEP GOING … (middle) Develop plot. What’s Happening?

Why? How do the characters move through their situations and problems? How do they get out of them? Why is this situation important to the characters?

(TWIST)

Take all the pieces of your puzzle, position yourself as the narrator and …

TELL THE STORY •Convey the events.

FINISH IT! (end) Wrap it up… Solve the problems, draw conclusions, deliver your message.

TIPS • Stay away from excessive use of “then”, “so” and such other “clutches”.

• Get to the point!

• Value your words: Say what you mean, mean what you say.

• Make it clear.

•Describe richly but be precise.

•Be flexible. Stand ready to take your plot and sequence in another direction.

•When in doubt: stick to the plan.

•Don’t pay attention (YET) to rules: capital letters, punctuation, number of sentences, spelling.

•Less is more. Keep it achievable and simple: It goes a long way! © 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

WRITING CREATIVELY

FROM DRAFT TO FINISHED PIECE

BE YOUR OWN EDITOR Place Photo Here, Otherwise Delete Box

Place Photo Here, Otherwise Delete Box

FIRST & SECOND DRAFT You’ll be surprise of how much you can discover just by reading your story aloud to yourself: missing words, lack of fluency.

After you’ve done your first revision, get a second clean draft.

REFINED, FINAL VERSION •Bring it out: Share it with someone you trust that can give you an honest feedback.

•Be open minded and receptive of comments.

•Think about it. Leave and take recommendations using your best judgement.

•Incorporate changes.

•Read aloud again. Does the flow improve?

•Let it sit for a night. Distance yourself a bit and then come back to it: quite likely you’ll find something to improve.

Now is time to shape it up. Read it aloud to yourself and to others!

ASK YOURSELF: •Does it make sense?

•Can you follow the story?

•Can a stranger understand what the story is about?

•How does it sound? Does it flow? Check punctuation.

•Boy! What did I mean here?

•Scratch away, write little notes everywhere.

•Check your spelling, ask for help if necessary.

•Can sentences be understood in more than one way?

•Is it something missing?

•Write your second draft! Keep cleaning and shaping. © 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

NEWSWRITING READY TO BECOME A YOUNG REPORTER? News: Events or information that people want or need to know about

New

Fresh

Real

•News need to be presented OBJECTIVELY. Stay away from personal opinions.

•Narrator: Third person. Genre: Prose.

•Get to the point: Use the fewest words necessary.

•Make it right and clear: No ambiguities.

•Choose the right words.

•Good reporters pursue accuracy. Double check your facts.

•Stay away from exaggerations.

•Use quotes correctly.

•Avoid redundancy.

•Get good interviews.

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

WHEN YOU SPEAK …

BODY LANGUAGE Completes the message

WHAT TO DO WHEN THE MESSAGE IS DELIVERED IN WRITTEN FORM?

BE DESCRIPTIVE

© 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.

THE CIRCLE GAZETTE A Newspaper by Children for Children

SUBMIT YOUR WORK Email us at: submissions@enrichmentcircle.com

•Share your work with our community of writers, artists and readers.

•Subscribe to The Circle Gazette.

•A great reader makes a great writer: Select high quality publications and read them often.

•Join us every month at the library for more on sharpening your writing skills.

Everybody is a great writer! © 2010 THE ENRICHMENT CIRCLE, Inc.