Writing

NaNoWriMo for Kids

~ Beth Mitchell ~ Leave a comment

IMG_6577Today is the first day of November, otherwise known as National Novel Writing Month.

If you have a budding author in your family, you should know about the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program. Kids create an account, set a word count goal, and start writing. The challenge is to write steadily all month and try to finish a whole story.

If kids write on-line using the YWP site, it will track metrics, such as their progress toward their goal and the number of days in a row they’ve written. Kids who meet their goal by the end of the month will be declared winners of NaNoWriMo.

I’m hoping to convince Larrabee to stop munching on his Halloween candy and dive into a new story!

Pixar Storytelling

~ Beth Mitchell ~ Leave a comment

Screen Shot 2017-03-07 at 1.11.25 PMLarrabee and I love Pixar movies. And we love writing stories. So we were very excited when Khan Academy released the first lesson in a course called “The Art of Storytelling” taught by Pixar directors and story artists.

It’s part of a series of courses called Pixar in a Box, and it consists of short videos and activities. Larrabee and I went through it in a single sitting, although we only did the exercises verbally.

One of our favorite activities was reframing movies in terms of a “what if” statement. For example, what if an overprotective father had to cross the ocean to save his son?

Another of our favorite activities was mixings characters and worlds from two different movies. Larrabee came up with an intriguing idea with a Death Star and a Terminator.

We’re looking forward to the next lesson on character. In the meantime, we’ll do some brainstorming. What if…?

 

A Dragon, a Ninja Frog and a Giant Platypus

~ Beth Mitchell ~ Leave a comment

Blaine, Larrabee, and I had a chance to meet Ursula Vernon a couple of years ago at Bookshop Santa Cruz. She is the author and illustrator of the tremendously fun Dragonbreath series.

She told us about how she combines ideas in her books. For example, ninjas are cool. Frogs are also cool. So, ninja frogs would make awesome villains.  (See Dragonbreath #2: Attack of the Ninja Frogs).

She also talked about how she plots her books. She said that she puts her main character into some sort of interesting situation (e.g., he falls into a pit or is attacked by ninja frogs). Then she asks herself:

  1. Why is this happening?
  2. Who is responsible?
  3. What happens next?

She proceeded to brainstorm a plot with the kids in attendance. I don’t remember all of the details, but it featured a platypus. Not just an ordinary platypus. A giant platypus. A Platypus-zilla threatening the town of Santa Cruz.

Her presentation made us want to come home and write a story. Or draw a comic book. Or read (or re-read) one of her books. Hopefully, we’ll do all of the above this summer.

Speaking of Ursula Vernon’s books, the boys and I highly recommend Dragonbreath and its sequels. These books are wacky and funny and full of adventure. They’re ideal first chapter books because they’re easy to read, with a mix of text and comic book panels.

There are eleven books in the series to date. Blaine’s personal favorite is Dragonbreath #3: Curse of the Were-wiener (yes, like a hot dog werewolf). Larrabee is just starting the series, but unlike Blaine, he doesn’t believe in reading books in order. He’s partial so far to Dragonbreath #10: Knight-napped.