A Resource for Writers and Teachers All you need is a pen and paper and a text or image to get you started. Whether you’re a lone writer or part of a writing group we hope that you’ll be inspired to have go. Start by reading an inspiring text; a good poem or story Consider what you find interesting; perhaps key themes, and particularly effective writers’ techniques. Write. Share your work, read it aloud (to someone else if you’re brave enough) and offer constructive feedback to your fellow writers – we all need to know what works well for our readers, and what might not be so clear. Other writers can give you great ideas to improve your work. Helping them to edit their work will build your creative muscles too. Edit. * The following list gives the key content of the workshops where these poems were created: ‘Cygnet’ by Maddi Hastings, ‘Packed Lunch’ by Matt Varley Read: ‘Mother, Any Distance’ by Simon Armitage. Consider: Shared, everyday activities that reveal relationships Techniques to try: experimenting with line-breaks & layout ‘Aubade’ by Rhiannon Culley Read ‘Aubade’ by Phillip Larkin, ‘The Sun Rising’ by John Donne, ‘Dawn Revisited’ by Rita Ora Consider: explore contrast between day and night, qualities of daybreak Techniques to try: Aubade form, linking emotions to a time of day Skirt Sonnet’ by Jo Castle & ‘shall i compare thee to a cup of tea?’ by Zoe Hammick Read: ‘Sonnet 18’ by William Shakespeare Consider: extended imagery, careful comparisons Techniques to try: unexpected comparisons, the sonnet form ‘Here’, ‘Apartments’, ‘Almost Saved by Vivienne’ by Shania Richards Read: ‘The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock’ by T S Eliot Consider: rhythm and narrative Techniques to try: enjambment, setting the scene through key images, inventive with layout
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