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12 June 2024

Posted by Millie Townsend

Is that Pure Gold?

What a treat to visit the Mayflower Young Writers this week! 

 

Ali got us warmed up with a poetry challenge – we had five minutes to write a poem including the words:

 

Fizzy

Bog

Discombobulate

Pillow

Dabble

Screech

 

Responses had a common theme of anxiety and dread – perhaps due to still being in exam season – with brilliantly poetic lines such as ‘the bog of anxious rememberences’ and the ‘bog of responsibility’ featuring some ‘carbonated nerves’. But there were a few glimpses of hope and freedom (and a little ‘dabbling in witchcraft’). 

 

Ali then brought out her ‘Sparkling Box of Wonder’ and we all selected a little piece of wood with a question written on it – for example ‘Is that pure gold?’ which prompted longer pieces of prose. Everyone read their pieces aloud and the variety was notable. We had a Detective Mystery – A Slimy Potions Lesson – An Irritating Teacher and a Bothersome Brother – and one story set in 2099.

This activity also prompted some thoughtful discussion on whether writing in the 2nd person is elegant or annoying; the best way to describe the protagonist in a 1st person narrative and how not to trip yourself up if your writing ever gets made into an audiobook! 

 

The remainder of the session focussed on getting into the detail of character design. We thought about the questions that would really illuminate character – everything from ‘What do they keep in their bag/pocket?’ and ‘Worst memory?’ to ‘Are they a cat or dog person?’ and ‘What is their favourite emergency snack?’ 

Once we’d shared our characters with the room (notably a lot of cat people!) Ali challenged us to some quick fire questions about our characters that really pushed us to get to know them - questions like 'Why are you wearing that?' and 'Did you hear what I said?' 

 

I've been a bit stuck with one of my characters lately, so this activity really helped me to breathe a bit more life into them. In fact, the whole session was a great reminder of how important it is to play with words and experiment with new character voices. I think we all came away knowing our characters much, much better.    

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