This week we went over our plots, everyone read them to the class and we asked clarifying questions. I was impressed at the imagination that went into developing these plots. These stories are off to a great start!
I had a few parents ask me why the students needed to write their ending before they even get started on their first chapter. I have found that beginning writers are great at starting stories, but have an extremely hard time finishing a story if they haven't mapped it out before hand. It is like taking off in an airplane but having no idea of the destination. Most famous authors have mapped out their entire story before they begin writing their first sentence.
After a month of working on heros, villians, maps and plots; the students are now ready to start chapter one! We went over what should be included in chapter one, but the length of the chapter is up to each writer.
Every adventure story begins with an event critical to all that follows it. This event is not only the first of the major story events (or things that get in the hero's way) of your novel, it is also the cause of everything else that happens to your hero. This critical event is the hook that will entice your reader to keep reading.
Your reader wants to know what kind of story they are getting into, this question should be answered as soon as possible in chapter one, hopefully within your first paragraph. The reader also wants to know who the hero is and why they should care about them.
These three things should be covered in chapter one, it is up to the author to decide how much detail they want to include. All stories are to be written in first person and need to be typed and saved on the computer; this allows for easy corrections and changes. If you are struggling with getting started please contact me, all my information is listed on the right side of this page.
Greek
derma- skin
holos- whole
rhinos- nose
iatros- doctor
schole- free time
Latin
ludo- play, mock
medicus- physician, doctor
sanus- healthy
cornu- horn
cutis- skin
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