The Story Writer's Handbook

Whether it's stories about Mim and her travelling bookshop, or Olive who is a square peg in a round hole at boarding school, or one of her other award-winning stories for slightly older readers, we all know that Katrina Nannestad can write an engaging story that will keep us absorbed for hours. But now, she has turned her hand to helping others write similar stories in this interactive handbook to encourage young readers to "play with words,  scribble freely without a destination in mind, daydream, plan, problem solve and create stories" and feel welcome in "the world  of word lovers, storytellers, and daydreamers."

But this is not a prescriptive text of "how to write a story from a-z" but rather "a playground"  to be used as the reader/writer fancies, as they involve themselves in the sorts of activities that help gather the ideas, and develop the plots and characters that can lead to a story.  Speaking directly to the user, Nannestad shares her ideas with examples and then there are blank frames for the budding writer to fill in for themselves with headings like Writing Goals, Be an Ideas Bowerbird, Writing Wreaths, Splashes of Colour, Dreams and Schemes and many more.  With clever artistry by Cheryl Orsini, they are invited to imagine what might be in Ms Prune's desk drawer, River Milson's rucksack, Daphne Dupont's handbag, and Professor Himmlich's briefcase - all of which can become the germ of an idea - and we know how germs multiply rapidly...

Whether this is given to an aspiring author or used by a teacher as a guide for helping students enrich and enhance their own efforts, it is superb.  My brain is ticking already - I wish it had been available when I was in the classroom situation - both as a student and a teacher!

This review can also be found here.

192 pages                        9780733344008                      Ages 10 and up

Keywords:  creative writing, creative process, Language Arts Curriculum,10 year old, 11 year old, 12 year old, 13 year old, 14 year old