Declaration of Dependence: Teen Maturity

Your son is eleven years old. He wishes he could play ball as well as his dad does, and he hugs you freely. Your daughter is ten. She loves to look through your jewelry box, and she plays up to her dad.

Now jump ahead a few years to a time when your kids will no longer regard you as perfect. Your son is 17 and chafes at having to obey you and do his school. Your daughter is 16 and spends more time on her mobile device than it took you to deliver her.

These can be painful days for us—days when we feel our teens pulling away from us in their quest for independence.

They have a surprise coming.

How to Complain Constructively

SHARON’S BLOG

True story: I was eating dinner in a restaurant recently when I heard a woman in the booth behind me state, “This is an abomination!”

My ears perked up. My curiosity was piqued. I rarely hear the word “abomination” any more and wondered what could be so horrific as to need that word. I imagined she and her dining partner were reading a magazine article on human trafficking or perhaps watching a YouTube video about persecution in Indonesia.

I strained my ears to learn what she was referring to.

You and the Jurassic World

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

Many exciting stories have come from scientific ponderings. Take, for instance, Frankenstein. It was written by Mary Shelley while the scientific world debated the idea of reanimation. Could something dead, a frog, perhaps, be reanimated by electricity? And if a frog could be brought back to life, what about a human? And if a human could be brought back to life, does that mean we should?

So Dr. Frankenstein sews together pieces of cadavers and, after many failed attempts, actually brings to life this cobbled-together thing, this human, if you can call it that.

Eighty years later, H. G. Wells is exploring a similar topic in The Island of Dr. Moreau. Can humans and animals be joined together?

Science Goes Awry?

Fast-forward 200 years from Shelley’s Frankenstein. What happens if scientists

What Would You Read to a Dog?

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Dogs and cats are going places they’ve never gone before. They’re visiting children in daycare, older people in assisted-living facilities, and patients in hospitals.

Love on a Leash is an organization that is filled with therapy pets—pets that are specially trained by their owners to make people happy, reduce stress, and help educate people about the benefits of owning pets.

One fun thing these dogs and cats do is go to school so children can read to them. Children who have trouble reading out loud or who are shy enjoy reading to a dog or cat that will sit there and listen to them.

Show, Don’t Tell: Emotions in Stories

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

One of the first rules story writers learn is this: Show, don’t tell.

What does that mean? Check out the following examples to see what I mean.

Show It

When you write a story, try not to tell your readers what your character is feeling, like this:

Jeremy was angry.

Instead, show your character in action, like this:

Storywriting: Put Your Character into Hot Water, Part 2

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

In a recent tutorial, you practiced plunging your character into hot water with two powerful methods many writers use. You can find that prompt here.

This week you’ll examine three more methods of getting your main character deep into a story. As Stanley Elkin reveals, “I would never write about someone who is not at the end of his rope.”

Storywriting: Put Your Character into Hot Water, Part 1

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

You have an idea for a story but don’t know how to get it going. Or you would like to write a story but are out of ideas.

When you write a story, you have to throw a lot of things at your main character, things he or she would rather not have to deal with. In this prompt, you’ll learn two proven methods to get ideas and plunge your character into hot water. In this prompt, you’ll explore three more.

Dialog Does Not Have to Be Boring

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Have you ever read really boring dialog in a book? You know, like this:

    “Jane,” said Tarzan, “have you ever noticed how much the monkeys love me?”
     “Yes, Tarzan, I noticed it,” said Jane. “In fact, one is climbing on you right now.”
     Tarzan scratched his head. “He’s pulling on my ear. Isn’t that cute?”
     Jane smiled up at the little scamp. She raised her hand to pet his furry back. “You know, Tarzan, I think he’s my favorite one. What should we call him?”
     “I know!” said Tarzan. “Let’s call him Scamp!”
     “Why, Tarzan! That’s just the name I was thinking of!” said Jane.

Yuk! How boring. But why? Why is that dialog boring?

Advertising Jingles

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Allan G. Odell saved his company from ruin and made it quite popular.

How did he do it?

In the 1920s, a new shaving product was born called Burma-Shave. It was different from other shaving creams because, now, men didn’t have to lather up some cream or soap with a brush and apply it to their faces for a shave. They simply used this new cream that came in a tube. But the product did not catch on. The company was in trouble.

Then along came Allan Odell with a brilliant marketing scheme.

Writing in Summer?

SHARON’S BLOG

It’s summer. A sweet breeze of relief flows through the family tree and tickles the leaves. You hear a child giggle.

But you’ve worked hard on this year’s writing classes, and you want to make sure that your children’s writing skills don’t completely deteriorate during summer vacation. What can you do?

Summer is fun, and your children’s summertime writing activities can be fun for them and for you as well. Otherwise, it’s not really summer!

The most important feature of writing in summer is

Declaration of Dependence: Teen Maturity

How to Complain Constructively

You and the Jurassic World

Science Goes Awry?

What Would You Read to a Dog?

Show, Don’t Tell: Emotions in Stories

Show It

Storywriting: Put Your Character into Hot Water, Part 2

Storywriting: Put Your Character into Hot Water, Part 1

Dialog Does Not Have to Be Boring

Advertising Jingles

Writing in Summer?

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