Some of the most frequent comments (and frequently asked questions) that Crack-A-Story gets from secondary school students are these sources of much torment: ‘I don’t know what to write about’…’I’ve got nothing to write about…’ ‘What do I write about?’ …
To begin this exercise, please have a look at the photo of the leaves, and read the following: She worked hard to sweep the leaves into their spot. Then she took a breath before she began again. Sweeping, sweeping, always …
Adjectives (descriptive words) can lift your writing and speaking by taking your audience (reader, listener, viewer) deep into your story. Adjectives can paint pictures for the audience, but beware: adjectives can also clutter or confuse the audience. So, try to …
When we write, it’s common for some of us to use long-winded or fancy words. But, why do we do that? Is it to impress our readers, teachers, or exam markers? Sometimes the long-winded words can be effective, but they …
A ‘caption’ is a title or a very brief description that can help tell the story of a picture. Captions can be funny, serious, poignant, political and more. In this exercise, we encourage you to be funny (although you don’t …
The ‘everyday’ things we so often take for granted can add great meaning and context to our storytelling. Have a look at this clip, then think about how you could incorporate the identified feature into a story or two. This …
Stories are like onions. They can have many layers. But you don’t have to write pages and pages of words to make your audience think. Here’s a brief exercise about being brief. Have you ever written a ten-word story? See …
We all have our favourite places. The beach. The backyard. The park that overlooks the hills that roll as far as you can see. In this exercise, imagine you are at your favourite place (or perhaps you can go there). …
DOORS AND WINDOWS Oh, windows are well enough, shining their golden welcome in the night, wide-eyed on mornings of blue days, or playing ‘I Spy’ with blinds that wink at you giving only a hint, a glimpse of things without, …
