Thanksgiving

Hello everyone! Happy Thanksgiving! If you want a writing assignment today, here: write about what you are most thankful for. Pretty easy right? I wish I had some cool Thanksgiving tradition to start at Words on a Page. If you can think of a good one, tell me! Ideas for Christmas are welcome too! We have some stuff that should be posted soon... well, soon-ish. I'm going to have to make this short, it's time for Thanksgiving pie!

Comedy, Drama and why not to make fun of school assignments.

Today I was too lazy to write a "writing a story" writing assignment. So I'm going to write about nonsense and why I love it.

The other day I made a goofy little CD for myself. I sang a bung of goofy songs I made up, put them on the computer and put them on my iPod. The CD is just plain weird. My favorite song is called "He Probably Hates You Anyways". The song makes absolutely no sense. Which is why I love it!

What does my strange music have to do with writing? Nonsense. Don't be afraid to write things that are.... out there. I'd say about two thirds of my writing is about goofy things. Like my songs, who finds a song about marring Ronald McDonald interesting and profound? If someone did I would like to suggest seeing a psychiatrist. Your writing doesn't nessecarily have to be serious. Sometimes you do have to write serious things, which is very difficult for me! I was assigned some poorly written, over-dramatic, oddly worded books for book reports. I wanted so badly to make fun of them in my writing... but alas, I could not. Instead I made it sound over-dramatic. My friend got a kick out of what I wrote and I still got a good grade because it did sound serious. I'm not giving you a way to do your homework. Don't try that at home! Or school. Or if your homeschooled I guess that would apply to both...

Drama can be written as comedy. You can completely turn it around. Which is fun to do. Here comes the assignment: Write a short piece on any subject, don't make it longer that a page. Write it and make it sound incredibly serious and dramatic. Then write essentially the same thing, only funny. Show both to someone with a good sense of humor. If they don't laugh, write the second one again.
When that is done, you can submit your work to our reader writings page. 

Short, funny things are probably my favorite thing to write. Every time I hear something I think is funny (and would fit on a T-shirt) I write it down. I'm filling up a note book with things like "There's a pachyderm on my trachea" and "suddenly a plane landed in a field and out came Abraham Lincoln in a polka-dot dress, doing the cha-cha". Even now I have "I said sophisticated, not English" written on my hand. And my the way, that isn't an insult to the English, I was trying to act sophisticated and I started talking with an English accent. 


Comedy is also about the words you choose. If you said "last night I ate salsa before bed which made me have a dream about Justin Bieber wearing a tutu" that's funny, but it might be funnier to say "Last night I had a dream that Justin Bieber of all people was in my ballet class. He can NOT pirouette! That'll teach me to eat salsa before bed!" 


This post is getting really long. I'm going to keep writing!


Making fun of things is also good for comedy. Be VERY, VERY careful! Don't make fun of a person. Unless that person is yourself. If you resort to poking fun at things, ask close friends or your mom to make sure it doesn't sound offensive. The way things are written and the way things are read are very different!


Two writing assignments in one day:
That one I mentioned before and write a piece of comedy writing about a famous person from the past (like a LONG time ago) and write a story centered on the comic situations they would get in. (I just ended a sentence with a preposition... ignore that.) Submit your writing to the reader writings page and/or comment! 


In retrospect, it would've been a lot easier just to write a "writing a story" blog post. I'm not looking over what I wrote because that will be a lot more work. Sorry for poor grammar and spelling and whatever. Have a nice day.

Writing a Story: Research

There are some fictional books where you just can't get around it. In order to make you book good you have to do some research. There are different approaches to research. My approach seems to be: get a bunch of library books on the subject, read my favorite one and return them all before I have to pay a fine. Other people just look it up on the Internet. They do it the easy way, and there's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes researching a topic in your story is a good way to get away from the story, but not too far away.

How much do you actually need to research something? It depends. Say you're writing about a medieval princess. You would probably need to know the basic build of a castle, jobs of a royal family, duties of a lady-in-waiting, the clothing worn in that era ect. Chances are if you're writing a book about something you have at least a little bit of knowledge about what you are writing.

There was that movie that just came out. Legend of the Guardians or what ever it was? The one about the owls? Anyways, when I was watching the movie I noticed how detailed everything was (probably because I was wearing 3D glasses) and I wondered how long it would have taken, not just to create the art work, but to learn about owls. Everything was very precise. Someone must have spent hours and hours in a library reading about owls and how they fly and eat and everything else. I suppose they had to find an expert as well. The movie was based on a book, which makes it even more incredible, in my opinion.

That's all I have to say! Sorry this came out so late, I've been so busy and everything has been beyond hectic! I'm hoping to post more often in the days to come. Thank you for reading!

Writing a story: when to revise

 You've written about a chapter of your book. You decide to go back to make some corrections. You keep doing this every few pages. Uh-oh, if you have to make all of these corrections your story just isn't good enough, so you quit. Sound familiar? I think I might have some ideas to help.

These suggestions are just for people who have tried everything and this is their last resort to finally getting past chapter one. It worked for me and hopefully it will work for you. Every writer is different, so these may not be any help. But they're here if you need them.

• The Plot: Forget about the plot! If you are expecting to write about a big exciting thing that's going to happen on page 137, chances are the people who bought your book are expecting to read about it. Frankly, planning out the entire plot of the story just makes it too predictable. "Go with the flow" is a good  way to put it. Let the characters and events lead you through the story, instead of you leading them. 
• Deceiving Yourself: You may think something like: "I think I may have this character's name  wrong, I should go back and check." DON'T!!! Your just thinking that because you want to read what you've written and see how good it is. If you really care that much if the random girl's name is Jan or Jane, you can make a little side note. Or if the writing program you use doesn't have that, use a piece of notebook paper and make notes as worries come to mind. 
• When to Revise: Revise when you're all done! Don't freak yourself about if the story is any good, or if your characters are described well or whatever. I think you can wait. If you MUST have it revised right away, have a friend do it for you. 

Writing a Story: the story

I find that the best way for me to write is to write it all out, don't look back and don't look ahead. Remember everything you learned in school about always making an outline for your work? Don't do it if you're writing a fictional story. BAD IDEA.... usually. It works for some people to make a vague outline and know what's going to happen. That works for some. And that's okay. Write a few short stories first. Try a different style of planning for each one.

There are some things to think about before writing a story such as:

• 1st person, 3rd person (or even, 2nd person)
• When does this take place?
• Where does this take place?
• What kind of writing do I want to use?

Now I'll explain each one.

1st person, 3rd person (or even, 2nd person) The point of view you use to write is very important! You probably know from school which one is which. Make sure you don't randomly go between persons. Wait until the next chapter or section if you are going to switch.

When does my story take place? 
The sixties? Medieval times? The future? The present? Outside of time? You decide! A clever way to make it so nothing has to be historically correct is to put it outside of history. Don't mention any famous people or historical events, that way no one really knows when they are, or even if  in a real place.


Where does my story take place?
A magical kingdom, a science lab, a small town in the middle of Kentucky? Anywhere! But you have to make it fit the story.  

What kind of writing do I want to use? What kind of feeling do you want conveyed through your writing? Do some research on old English literature, the style is very interesting and I find myself using some techniques derived from it.

If you have anything to add, ask me, tell me about, or a story to submit, just comment! And don't forget to visit the reader writings page! I can't wait to hear from you!

-Vladimir Malcolm

Writing a story: Beginning

We've done quite a few "Words on a Page Writing Assignments" so far, and I think it's time I give some step-by-step tips about writing a story. The best place to begin is the beginning, so let's get started!

Don't focus too much on writing a beginning, or any part of the story for that matter. If that's just the way you write, that's okay, but if you usually have trouble writing a story I advise adhering to this rule. Just write it down and go back later if you must.

Keep it short and simple! How many books have you read where the beginning is slow and boring? Things that don't really need to be explained or set up are in the beginning. A short, simple, action-packed sentence is great for starting. Of course, you'll eventually have to revise it. If you just get it on paper, the ideas will most likely flow better than if you were examining every sentence as you went.

First impressions are important! When a story doesn't pick up by about the tenth page. I don't really bother to read the end. Have something at least a little exciting!  The story I'm currently working on is filled with exciting and interesting things. Of course when you're writing about an orphaned princess who's village was destroyed and ends up living in the village of people who destroyed the village, it's gonna be cool. (More on the story later).

Stay on topic. If your story is all over the place, no one is going to get it because it won't make sense. Keep it fairly consistent, but not to much. Exciting, but not crazy.


Introduce your character in a unique way. Don't start off a first person story by saying "Hi, I'm Joe." Or anything too similar. Booorrrinnng. Sure, it's good in some situations, but that beginning is so slow and over used. Introduce it with the beginning of the told story, we'll get the idea, if not, go back and add a better introduction later.

When can I describe my character? When he or she looks in a mirror, or when some on comments on their looks or when it just fits. You'll figure it out. If not: reread the story, think about it and nothing else or ask us.

My beginning sounds sort of cheesy, what do I do? Rewrite it over and over until you're satisfied. or maybe the cheesy beginning fits. Ask some friends who have read the beginning and ask how you can make it better.

If you think of any thing more to add (or just want to say something) comment below!

Writing about you.... or not.

Dairy:
Adjective

 of, for, or pertaining to milk, cream, butter, cheese, etc.: dairy products; the dairy case at a supermarket.

 

Diary:

noun

a daily record, usually private, esp. of the writer's own experiences, observations, feelings, attitudes, etc.

  

That definition of diary is a wonderful explanation of today's "Words on a Page writing assignment". You may already have a diary, if you don't keep reading and if you do, keep reading. Something I have never been able to do is keep a diary, or log, or journal, or what ever you want to call it. It just doesn't work. I forget about it, or decide I'm just not that exciting. 

Ever since I was five I tried to keep a diary. Ever since I was five, I failed. Until not too long ago. Here's what I did and what you're going to do: get a blank 70 page notebook. As often as possible, write in it. At the top, write the date. When I'm writing about myself I change my name and exaggerate a little. That way, there's no risk of you quitting journal writing because you find yourself boring. 

Another thing I do is write just random things. It's like I'm writing page 97 of a book. No beginning, middle or end. Just writing to write. It doesn't have to make sense or sound good. It doesn't have to fill up a page. Just make sure everything you write had the date on it. You'll be glad in the future when you look through your old notebooks. 

If you have a story in your journal you're especially proud of, submit it here for the world to see!

 

 

  

 

Do You See What I See?

"Write, write, write!" Chances are, if you get a book on writing you're probably going to read those words. And you know what, practice makes perfect. No, I'm not going to ask you to sit around at you local mall and write down everything you see. If you do that, you'll just get weird stares. Instead, I'm going to ask you to pay attention when you go to wal-mart, or the mall, or wherever! Just don't stare, that's rude. Just make a mental note of people who walk by, or the person who checks out your groceries. Keep a notebook in your car to write it down. After a few different trips to the grocery store, look over the people you wrote down. Choose your favorite and write a short story with him (or her) as the main character.

Characters: Imperfection

I am hoping that Freya will write a post on finishing a story soon. I can never sick with stories, so I'm hoping her post will help. In the mean time, I will write yet another  post on characters. Today is imperfection.

Ask any person, and chances are, they will say that no one is perfect. If they say that, they are correct. Jesus was the only person who ever lived that was 100% perfect. It's true that some people were close, but close is not 100%. So naturally, you can't have a perfect character... with a few exceptions. If your character is perfect, or close to it, at least call attention to it in the story, otherwise people are going to think your characters are weak and unrealistic. If your characters do have flaws, don't let them say sorry every time. Unless you're writing a bigography on a Saint. No one can identify with characters who don't hurt, or get angry and mean it. They can to be mean sometimes, or rude, or even hateful. It is okay to do that to your character, even when he's the hero.

Weaknesses are another thing. Even superman had  a weakness. So did Mr. Incredible, he had a soft spot for junk food and his family. The weakness doesn't always have to be negative as you can see with the latter example.

So make your characters real. Make them human. Give them bad habits. Give them a short temper. It's okay, you can do it.


Fill all the lines of a notebook page with flaws you can give characters. Keep it for future reference.

I

Characters: friends

Most characters need a friend or friends. If my main character, Charlotte Marie Clementine in this case, is a teenager who has her head in the clouds. Now we need to come up with some friends. 1-3 close friends is about how many you want, more and you may have trouble giving them all distinct personalities. Now back to "Char" (short for Charlotte). I usually give female characters one female friend and one male. That way you have a little variation. Something that I like to do is have the male wish he didn't have to tag along with the girls, but he didn't have a choice. I like to have one friend the same age as my main character and one older or younger. Remember, these 2 characters are not your main character's only friends. Just the ones he or she hangs out with the most.

Characters part one: the main character

Note: These steps are for if you stuck and/or writing a book. These steps aren't necessary for a good main character.

Characters are the back bone of of a story. There are a lot of things to think about when you create your main character.

1. you need to come up with a basic idea of what you want you character to be like. Let's say I'm writing a story about a human teenage girl, who usually has her head in the clouds.

2. I would come up with a name to suit the character. I'm going to go with the name Charlotte Marie Clementine. If you write a lot of fictional stories, I advise you to have a list of girl's names, boy's names, fantasy names, last names and a list of names for fire fighters, writers, scientists, etc. for minor characters who won't be mentioned very often. Phone books are great places to find first and last names.

3. Get a piece of note book paper and write on the first side things like the character's hobbies, eye color, hair color, family, etc.. On the other side, write a paragraph describing the character. Here's an example of that paragraph with one of my minor characters from BtLoN:

"Tasha is a quiet, barely teenager who is in her first year of college. Her bubbly sister, Nia, is constantly getting on her nerves. Tasha's interests include: poetry, violin, piano, singing and ballroom dance. She plans on being a music teacher after college."

4. Give your character some flaws. Let's say that Charlotte has a bad habit of biting her nails and she trips when she goes down the stairs. Maybe have you main character be self-conscious or made fun of for something.

5. Give your character some personality and add whatever else you see fit.


Next weeks "Words on a Page writing assignment": co-stars

Inspiration

One of the hardest parts of any art is when you lack inspiration. For writers it is most commonly referred to as writer's block. First thing to do is stop thinking of it as writer's block. That name sounds rather depressing, as if there is a wall blocking you from the words that so desperately want to enter your mind. Think of it as a "temporary lack in inspiration". Ah, yes, that sounds good. There are many ways to get rid of this temporary lack in inspiration. You may already have something you do that helps. Some People take long walks on a peaceful night, some go out and jog, others write 50 random words, some doodle. Whatever works for you! Here are some other ideas to help:

1. Start talking to yourself! Talk out what just happened in your story. You can even act it out! This also helps me with figuring out the character's speech habits.
2. Scrap it. Save the document or piece of paper you have, you do not want to loose anything you write! Now, try starting over from the part where you started having trouble.
3. Exercise can help too. Get your blood flowing! If you've been sitting in a chair for two hours writing, you're just begging for exercise. Believe me, it works.
4. Write something else. If you're like Freya and I, we like variety, we're never trapped with just one project (which sometimes means we don't get them done when we need to). Start, or work on, another project.

If those things don't work. Make the troublesome part what you think about all the time. You're bound to come up with something sooner or later!

A writer's responsibility

Writers make mistakes, we're humans, it's what we do. When you write, the first thing you should think about is, "Why am I writing this? What message do I want to send to people?" This will help you avoid problems. There are some cases where what your writing is really good, holy even structurally sound. Unfortunately, we humans go misunderstand. If you're confused think about this: You're IMing your best friend. Like most best friends you joke around and Probably have some inside jokes. Freya and I have so many it's like we speak another language. Then you join a chat group or get on and chat with someone else. You accidentally used an inside joke that she doesn't get and is seriously offended. You didn't make a mistake, but in writing you can't use a joking tone of voice. Thus, leading to misunderstandings. It's our jobs, both as writers and as Christians to prevent and fix misunderstandings. They have potential to be destructive.

Now for the assignment. Pretend you wrote a news paper article, not saying the nicest things about the mayor. You have to write another article to make what you did right. I encourage you to use a Bible verse this week. And, as always, you may send us your story in the comments, we'll read it and you might end up praised for your awsomeness! Remember, only comments on the post or relating to the subject matter will make it onto the blog, the writing entries are looked at by us and posted by us. If you would not like your story published on the blog, tell us so in your comment.

Next Week: Inspiration

-Vladimir

Haiku

The haiku is quite popular. The traditional Japanese style, also the most
common, consists of 5 not rhyming syllables 7 syllables and 5 again. These poems
are usually profound and beautiful. The haiku is hard to do do on cue. But with
a little practice you'll be haiku-ing up a storm. Here is an example of a haiku
(yes, I made it up

Beautiful cherries

A light breeze in the springtime

Light has come again

That would be the Japanese style. There is also a more modern American style of haiku which is a short line, long line, short line about a profound subject. Here's another original example:

Day will break

Sun will shine on still water

I will smile

Choose a style (or do both) and submit your haiku in a comment. We might just celebrate it in a post! Remember that poetry is a writing style that probably has more profound creativeness than other writing styles. So experiment! Maybe get a book or do some research on poetry.

Next Week: A writer's responsibility

-Vladimir

P.S. small problem with publishing! The writing assignment of the week is still about writing a paragraph. This was supposed to be published June, 11.

Writing a paragraph

Today I encourage you to something that you may find difficult: write a paragraph. Not any old paragraph. I want you to to find a small object, a bland object. Take it and examine it. Think about the texture, the colour, the shape, even the smell! Now put it away and DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES LOOK AT IT UNTIL YOU FINISH THIS ASSIGNMENT!!! Now get out your notebook and a pencil (never a pen). You are now going to write a seven sentence paragraph on this object. Make sure it is exciting and it praises your little object.

Start with a good outline:

I. pen cap
a. What a pen cap is used for
b. why a pen cap is important
c. what does the pen can look like
d. how has a pen cap helped me
e. how has it hurt me
f. why I shouldn't lose my pen cap
g. Closing sentence: restate something

Of course you don't have to do it just like I did. Even if you chose to write about a pen cap!

Now write your paragraph:

The pen cap is rather self-explanatory, it is used to can pens. Pen caps are important because they keep your pens from drying out. These helpful little things are usually a matching colour to your pen and are made of a rough plastic. When I need to write something important, such as a check, the pen cap keeps my pen from drying out. I have hurt my self on a pen cap by stepping on it. I shouldn't lose my pen cap because my pens will dry out and I won't be able to sign checks or legal documents. The pen cap is often taken for granted, I will no longer forget about the importance of the pen cap.

Now that was pretty rough, but it was just to give you an idea. So try it out and see what you come up with!

Next week: the haiku

A letter

Today I do not write something to entertain you. Instead I am going to ask you to do something. Yesterday I wrote a letter. I did not send it, and I may never send it. What you're asking yourself right now is probably: "Why write a letter if no one is going to see it?" First of all, because I love to write. Second, I felt I should write a letter to this person, whether he/she reads it or not. I ask you to do the same. Get out a notebook (any kind will do) and a pencil. Good. Now, I would like you to write a letter. To anyone you want. A famous person, a friend you haven't seen in years or even better, someone you absolutely cannot stand. Make your letter polite and kind. Try to make it one page long, front and back. This sounds easy enough, but is it?  You may find yourself challenged. Try to add a Bible verse (DO NOT USE "CURSE GOD AND DIE"!) and / or a profound quote.

Next week's "Words on a Page writing assignment" will be writing a paragraph... but there's a little surprise....