Final Exercise – Telling Tales …
Exercise
Put together your ideas from the previous exercises, and aim to produce a children’s story of about 1,000 words. Use a maximum of three characters, and keep the plot simple but pacy. Check through your story for unwanted moralising, and make sure your central character wins the day against an evil influence or project. If stuck for a plan, use a folk tale to start yourself off. Try to include at least one change of scene – children’s fiction is full of magic ‘portals’ which transport characters to other worlds. Use such a transition if it is relevant to your story. If the exercise goes well, the next step is to expand it into a novel, keeping the writing snappy and bright throughout!
