Junior & Young Writers: Week 11 [Wild Words] - World Building 2

Hi Writers,

For week 11, the group revisited their custom-made worlds. First, though, we checked in as

types of buildings. One week was really busy, like the Empire State Building, and another

week was like an endless set of stairs because it went on and on.

After some warm-up games, Claire read the opening of ‘The Hobbit’ by J.R.R. Tolkien, and

we discussed what we liked (or didn't like). Taking inspiration from the extract, the group

created homes of their own, describing what they looked like, explaining any history, and

defining any societal values (how are they displayed?).

Anna created a cute 'Mt Kitty' featuring a wishing well at the top. Henry. J described a castle

in the sky. Indie thought up a fancy mushroom house. Henry. R created a futuristic AI house

that hovered above the ground. Hamish made a zombie town, and Elsie described a zombie

brain lake near a 'dreams dragon'.

Next, the group, with the optional aid of prompts, created characters to add to their settings.

Implementing these characters helped them bring their worlds to life, and what better way to

further make their worlds three-dimensional than to add some mystery!

Elsie developed her idea of a girl who went missing when the other characters in her story

found a text on the missing girl's phone with a meeting time and place with an unknown

person. Anna focused on creating a revelationary dialogue between her two main

characters, Arlo and Tommy, which revealed a potential murder plot. Hamish had used his

time to make a choose-your-own-adventure, which he shared with the group.

In the older group, we again checked in as types of buildings. This time, we had a snail shell

because one week dragged on. We also had a building with scaffolding to represent a week

with more homework than expected. Another week was like an apartment block that went on

for ages.

After reading the opening of 'The Hobbit' and playing some warm-up games, the group

moved on to creating their own homes. Berry created a home for 'the Boss', a character she

created the week prior, where all the furniture and décor look like himself. Daisy created a

purple pebbled house that, using the sea shells, was charged with protective powers from

the sea gods. Sonny imagined the roofless houses he had described last week, and Ava

described hives where adorable creatures called 'Willubs' lived up high, staying safe from

the world below.

Claire read an extract from 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe' by C.S. Lewis, in which

Lucy goes through the wardrobe for the first time and encounters Mr Tumnus. The group

then created memorable characters for their worlds.

For the mystery exercise, Ava described a scene where a Willub watches some mythical

dwarves pull out sets of bloodied wings they had stolen. Leo's character, Wilto, saves Diggy

from a bully using magic. Catherine described a sci-fi-esque scene from the point of view of

a person watching someone with an implant in their neck that broadcasts their memories.

I really enjoyed seeing such unique and magical worlds come to fruition over the two world-

building sessions.

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