WALT - Build up before the climax -

Mereana liked the track and she could run all the way down without stopping, down the steep places holding on to the broom bushes to stop herself from sliding, over the rocky places, along the top of the bank, through the onion flowers. At the top of the bank she could climb-down using the footholds that the big children had made, but today she kept to the track so that she wouldn’t get dust on her clothes.
Sometimes she would stop there at the bottom of the track to watch the big children playing soccer with a tennis ball, but there was no one on the park today. She crossed the green and went up the path to where the Crescent began.
At the top of the path she stopped, looking out for the girls, but there was no one on the road, no one on the footpath. She began to hurry, not looking at gates, or people’s letterboxes, or people's houses, but just looking straight ahead. No one played hopscotch on the footpath, no one skipped on the road.
It was when she rounded the corner that she knew the two girls were there. They were sitting up on the terrace looking down.
‘It's her,’ she heard one of the girls say, and the other girl called out a name.
Mereana didn’t look at the girls, but walked quickly looking straight ahead the way her mother had told her.
Then one of the girls called, 'You’re not allowed past here,” and called her the name again.
Mereana didn’t look and didn’t stop, and the girl said, 'We’ll take your bag and throw it in the bushes if you go past here.
She kept going, looking straight in front of her. As she passed them the two girls came scrambling down the bank. The bigger one snatched the bag from her and ran ahead, pushing it into a hedge.
‘There,' the girl said. 'Leave it there. If you get it we'll cut you with glass!’
But Mereana was going to the shop for her mother. It was her mother’s bag, and the money was in the bag wrapped in a piece of paper. Anyway, the girls had run off now. They were climbing the bank again. She didn't look at them, and when she got to the hedge she pulled the bag out and walked quickly.
Then she heard the two girls scramble down the bank and come running up behind her. They pushed her over. One of them held her while the other one cut her with glass.

Dramatic Monologue

Narrative types

Short Story Web

Short Story Unit Resources

Going to bread

Monday, 31 October 2016

Short Stories - Narrative

Literacy - Narrative Session 

Check out this workshop on storybird for so tips on how to create an effective opening:

First Lines Workshop

Your task for today is to write the opening of your short story. 

it can be beneficial to write more than one type of opening to your story.

Some different types of writing can be:
- Action
- Dialogue
- Reaction

-Begin by choosing a topic or theme for your writing.
Some examples of interesting themes are given below:
10 Short Story Ideas
25 Creative Writing Prompts

I would like you to choose one of these Harris Burdick pictures to base your writing on. Let's check them out!

The Mysteries Of Harris Burdickfv from aquaglia

Wednesday, 26 October 2016

The Bike

Sunday, 16 October 2016

Short Story - Setting the mood - Intro

Writer's Workshop #4 - Setting the Mood (sourced from Storybird.com)

The Queens of the Tweens, have a writing exercise to help you set the mood. When you’re a filmmaker, setting the mood is pretty easy; all you need is a little bit of scary music to terrify your viewers! But when you’re a writer, you must use the most precise words to convey that same feeling of impending doom. Take a look at how Avi—a master writer and one of our favorite mentor authors—sets a mysterious, eerie mood at the beginning of his medieval fantasy novel, The Book Without Words: “It was in the year 1406, on a cold winter’s night, when a fog, thick as wool and dank as a dead man’s hand, crept up from the River Scrogg into the ancient town of Fulworth. The fog settled like an icy shroud over the town, filling the mud-clogged streets and crooked lanes from Westgate to Bishopsgate, from Three Rats Quay upon the decaying riverbanks to Saint Osyth’s Cathedral by the city center. It heightened the stench of rotten hay and offal, of vinegary wine and rancid ale. It muffled the sound of pealing church bells calling the weary faithful to apprehensive prayers. In a neglected corner of town, at the bottom of Clutterbuck Lane, with its grimy courtyard and noxious well, against the town’s walls, stood a dilapidated two-story stone house. The first-level windows were blocked up with stone. A single second-floor window was curtained.” Avi never tells his readers that this place has an ominous atmosphere, but we certainly feel it. Let’s dissect the different strategies he used to convey the mood in his paragraph of description. FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE Strategy: Avi uses two similes to describe the fog. It is not just a simple morning fog that clouds up the streets for a few minutes in the morning! It’s a fog that is blanketing the village in a not-so-pleasant way. Reading the words “dead man’s hand” in the first sentence of the novel immediately jars the reader. Examples: “… a fog, thick as wool and dank as a dead man’s hand…” “…fog settled like an icy shroud.” ADJECTIVES Strategy: Carefully chosen adjectives turn run-of-the-mill, innocuous items like streets, courtyards, and wells into the picture of gloom and doom. Examples: mud-clogged streets decaying riverbanks grimy courtyard crumbling city walls rotten hay rancid ale vinegary wine ancient town apprehensive prayers noxious well dilapidated two-story stone house neglected corner VERBS Strategy: Although Avi only describes the setting in this opening paragraph (we have yet to meet any characters), verbs make the village move, which only adds to its mystery! Examples: “…crept up from the River Scrogg…” “It heightened the stench of rotten hay and offal.” “It muffled the sound…” SENSORY DETAILS Strategy: Focus on what makes the setting unique by touching on the five senses. Examples: Sight: “The first-level windows were blocked up with stone.” Smell & Taste: “…the stench of rotten hay and offal, of vinegary wine and rancid ale.” Touch: “cold winter’s night” Sound: “the sound of pealing church bells” NAMES Strategy: Naming places in your story can be a lot of fun. The words “rats,” “clutter” and the sound of the word “Scrogg” have a certain connotation that gives the reader a sense of what this place might be like.  Examples: Three Rats Quay Clutterbuck Lane River Scrogg Now examine a paragraph of setting description that you’ve used in your story and try using these strategies to help you set the mood!

Wednesday, 5 October 2016

Short Stories