Four Things I Learned About Writing After a Week With a Four Year Old

I spent the last week on vacation in Tennessee visiting family. While fun, it was exhausting (and after having spent way too much time in airports, I am convinced that the airline we used--which shall remain anonymous--hates us). But I was able to learn something interesting from my four year old cousin. She is incredibly adorable and never runs out of energy. Or, at least, she doesn't let you know when she's running out of energy. When she starts to get tired, the stories that she tells get more and more elaborate and creative. Even when she is wide awake, she is constantly playing with toys and dolls, and she uses them to act out her stories. After a week of this, I was able to take away some interesting themes that can very easily be applied to fiction writing.

Here are four things I learned from a four year old.

"Take a Look Outside the Box" by Victoria Hecker

Here is a poem by member Victoria Hecker. Enjoy!

Take a Look Outside the Box (A Dull Blue Light)

 

 

A dull blue light

Consumes our eyes

Blocking our minds

Burning our vision

A life leaves in it

Lives lead in it

Crossing wills

Crossing ways

Only one fate is held

And flicker, flicker

In the dark

Friday Funny Fiction #9

Check out Friday Funny Fiction #1 to learn how to play this game!


And in the end there was death. That's all I remember.
The end. That's all, everything that came before disapeared as suddenly as the end had come. Only the death remained in my memory.
This was the fate of a Time Lord... to see every little thing you love destroyed and decimated... leaving alone once more.
I climbed into my TARDIS and adjusted my deerstalker hat before shedding my long coat and scarf. Poor Watson. He hadn't seen those Weeping Angels coming.
But I couldn't focus on him. The world needs saving. And I'm the only one who specializes in that.
I set out to begin my plans.
Roadtrip, anyone?

Short Story: "The Stone Garden"

Here is a short story written by one of our members! Enjoy!

The Stone Garden

by Tessa Lapointe

            Gwayne.

            The word sounded in the young man’s head as he slept: Gwayne. The boy’s name. It had been happening for weeks now. This night, though, he dreamed of a girl his age standing in a garden of stone. The flowers were delicately carven and inlayed with harsh jewels, and the trees were formed of marble with golden leaves. Chains were bound about her legs and wrists, keeping her from moving. Her eyes were as grey as the rocks, and even sadder and colder.

Guest Talk: Literary Agent Sandra Bond

A few weeks ago, we had the pleasure to meet with Sandra Bond of Bond Literary Agency. She gave us some wonderful information about the publishing industry, and what we as young writers should be doing and working towards. Here are some of the highlights of her talk (some answers have been edited and/or condensed for reading ease):

Short Story: "The Lord's Game"

Here is a short story written by one of our members. Enjoy!

The Lord’s Game

By Tessa Lapointe

The drums sounded to the beat of Nicholas’s footsteps. He had dressed in his finest clothes for the occasion: a deep blue velvet coat over a snow white shirt, and black breeches made from deer skin. His boots shone in the harsh sunlight, though they were splattered with mud from the road he had marched along. Before leaving, Nicholas had made sure his hair was perfectly combed and his face clean shaven. He was determined to look his best, even now.

            Nicholas bowed his head respectfully to the women in the crowd as he passed them, flashing a smile practiced many times in the mirror. It had always been a façade, but now the mask of confidence was even more important to keep up. No one could know just how scared he really was.

Friday Funny Fiction #8 "May the Fourth be With You!"

Look at Friday Funny Fiction #1 for instructions on how to play this game. Enjoy!

"May the Fourth be with you!" my brother shouted.
"Today is May the Sixth, dummy," I sighed.
"Aww, and I was so looking forwards to binge watching Star Trek," he said.
"You mean Star Wars you idiotic heathen! Who in the world mixes up Star Trek and Star Wars! I disown you, you are no longer my son. Leave!"
"But father--" I said.
"I am NOT your father!" Father said. "Not even like Vader was to Skywalker!"
"Don't be like that, Father. I know you love me, just like Anakin's nonexistant father!"
"I love you like ISIS loves the world!" his father said.
"You want to take him over? That's not very appropriate for a dad."
Regardless, the father tried to Jedi-mind-trick take over his son anyways.
"Father, I think you need a psych eval. That only works in movies."

Book Review: "Who Could That be at This Hour?" by Lemony Snicket

Book: All the Wrong Questions #1: Who Could That be at This Hour?
Author: Lemony Snicket


A mysterious town no longer by the sea. People far more mysterious, with secrets and secret motives. A stolen statue of a mythological creature that was not really stolen. A clueless chaperone with a truly astounding amount of hair. This is the life that almost-thirteen-year-old Lemony Snicket is dropped into during his apprenticeship in the town of Stain’d-by-the-Sea.

The first book in the fictional autobiographic series “All the Wrong Questions” by Lemony Snicket, and prequel to his books, “A Series of Unfortunate Events”, Who Could That be at This Hour? chronicles the first of four wrong questions asked about a perplexing mystery and the perplexing people involved. The fast paced plot, complete with the humorous yet thought-provoking narration fans of “A Series of Unfortunate Events” will expect, will have you itching to read more. The characters are surprisingly sincere considering some of their over-the-top quirks, but the seeds of suspicion that are sown will make you wonder—along with the protagonist—who exactly can be trusted. One of the best books I have ever read, any mystery fans will find themselves unable to put it down.


Rating: 5/5
Recommended for: Ages 10+
Reviewed by: Tessa Lapointe

Friday Funny Fiction #7

Though these riddles aren't necessarily humorous, I hope you have fun trying to figure them out! Thanks to Hattie Stuart for riddles 2 and 4!

Riddle #1

My name is Breaker of Stones, Filler of Holes. I am in eyes, in sadness, in joy, in pain. I live high above, and far below. I am the giver of life to all. Who am I?

Writing Prompt

Write a story using with the title of "The Lord's Game" and using these words in any order and at any place in the story: Paced, Ghost, Treasonous, Brevity, Verbose, Comport.