Archive for Get the ball rolling...
{ March 9, 2008 @ 8:31 pm }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
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—> Take a character from a piece you’re working on, and make them a baby. The exact age is up to you, but they should be about the age of a toddler. (Note: They should not be themselves stuck in the body of a toddler, they should be themselves as a baby.) Now, choose a point of view, and tie in plot conflict and character development that we discussed previously. What happens to your character next? What do they think of: naptime, diapers, high chairs, car seats, older siblings, baby food, etc? Be creative!
{ March 9, 2008 @ 8:30 pm }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
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—>Fill in the following things about your choice of plot and conflict in order to flesh out your idea and follow it through your piece to the ending so you know where your piece should end up.
WHAT is the problem in the story? (if there isn’t one, you have a problem)
WHY is it happening?
IS it already happening? (Did it start before your piece started? If so, what caused it?–tell us about how it started)
HOW does your character deal with this?
HOW does the character develop throughout this conflict?
WHAT happens after the problem has been solved?
HOW have your characters changed during your piece?
ARE your characters better or worse off than before?
DID they learn anything?
{ March 6, 2008 @ 9:16 am }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
{ Tags: character traits, characters, conflict, dialogue, habits, plot, writing }
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—> Pick a ‘problem’ and write a piece in which your characters solve the problem, using only dialogue to tell the story. The problem can be as small as missing the bus or losing a coat, but you must develop the main character’s personality in order to tell a story through the conversations they have with the other characters. Keep in mind- the dialogue should sound realistic. For instance, if your characters are best friends, they are not going to greet each other by name when they first run into each other during your piece. They already know the other person’s name. Similarly, they will not necessarily ask what the other person was doing; if one character is on the school soccer team and at practice after school, their best friend (should) know this, and know where this first character came from. This forces you, the writer, to be creative in writing this piece and develops your skills in writing dialogue. Remember to include things like habits in this piece- do they stutter when they’re scared? Does it annoy them when the other paces, to the point where they have to point it out?
{ March 6, 2008 @ 9:14 am }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
{ Tags: arguments, character traits, plot, reactions, writing }
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—> Put your character in a situation in which he or she faces a problem: arguing with another character. Based on the character sketch you’ve created, you should be able to judge how they will react to different things- if they hate people getting in their face, someone doing this in an argument will cause them to react accordingly. If they burst into tears when they don’t get their way, this is the perfect time to show this trait.
{ March 6, 2008 @ 9:13 am }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
{ Tags: attitude, Character, emotions, personality, writing }
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—> Fill out the following (feel free to add to it) to ‘get to know your character’ better. Even things that don’t relate to your piece should be filled in, since it will make your character seem like a real person to you. Be imaginitive! If you were this person, your _______ would be like _________….etc.
NAME:
AGE:
HEIGHT: (approximately)
WEIGHT: (approximately)
BODY TYPE: (body shape)
FACE TYPE: (shape)
COMPLEXION: (color)
EYES: (color, shape)
HAIR: (color, style)
CLOTHING STYLE:
SPEAKING STYLE:
GENERAL DEMEANOR: (attitude, emotions)
CAREER: (job)
PREJUDICES: (what do they HATE?)
BEST QUALITIES:
WORST QUALITIES:
WEAKNESSES:
HOBBIES:
TALENTS:
Favorite saying?
Method of transportation?
Immediate plan?
Long-range goal?
Kind of education?
What kind of house/home/apartment?
What city/country/location?
Does he/she have a pet? What kind?
Best friend?
Favourite food?
Financial situation?
Hobby?
Skill?
Moral attitude?
Philosophical attitude?
Favourite book?
Last-read book?
What is the bedroom like?
Spouse/mate/steady date/significant other? Why/why not?
Parents? Siblings? Kids?
{ February 29, 2008 @ 5:07 pm }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
{ Tags: adjectives, description, Setting }
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—> Pick one adjective, and follow that to another adjective that comes to your mind. An example of this is choosing the word ‘blue’ again, after which I think of ‘icy’, which makes me think of the word ’sharp’, and the word ‘windy’, and so on.
After you have 10 adjectives, link them to your work by trying to describe the setting using the words you have. Don’t try to pick words that describe a setting you may already have in mind, the point is to look at a setting in a new way than you had previously.
An example using the words above: They sound like they would be describing someplace cold and remote, but instead they could be used to describe a crowded beach like this-
‘The ocean sparkled, a glittering blue that could only be achieved on a summer’s day. In her hand, the icy soda shed water onto her legs and towel. The sharp glare of the sun reflected off of her sunglasses as she scanned the crowded shore; a cool sea breeze lifted her hair off of the nape of her neck.’
{ February 29, 2008 @ 5:06 pm }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
{ Tags: keyword, revision, Writer's Block }
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—> Choose a topic or keyword (it can be as simple as the topic ‘blue’) and write exactly 100 words about the topic. Your piece can be an extremely short story, a poem or song, but it must be complete (have a beginning and end).
When thinking of what to write, think of the meanings of the word; the keyword blue can mean the color blue, or the mood, or the name of something (ex: Blue’s Clues, etc) You can explore this through your writing. Another thing to keep in mind are your characters- since you have only 100 words, its difficult to bring a lot of characters into your piece.
*Writing in this manner can help break up writer’s block because you’re exploring lots of different ideas and finishing many small pieces. Also, this helps with your revision skills, because you must file down what you’re saying to the absolute essence of your ideas in order to say everything you wish to say within the word limit.
{ February 29, 2008 @ 5:06 pm }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
{ Tags: brainstorm }
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—> Set a timer for five minutes, and during that time don’t let your pen leave your paper. Keep writing words, anything that comes to mind, from a daydream to a dream to lists to ‘I don’t know what to write, I don’t know what to write, I don’t know what to write…etc’. Do not cross anything out, just keep writing. You’d be surprised at how long five minutes is when you really get writing.
{ February 26, 2008 @ 4:18 pm }
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{ Get the ball rolling... }
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The hardest part of writing is the part where you put the pen on the paper, right?
Here’s where you start- this section is dedicated to prompts and brain-dumps you can use to get a piece started. I hope to expand this section and add to it, so keep checking back for new ideas.
