Pick Up Your Pen!
T
his month, I’m inviting
you to have fun and create
a story using autumn or
Halloween as inspiration. Your
main character could be at a
Halloween party, out foraging
for berries or nuts or making
jam. The only ‘rule’ is that you
need to include the word
‘scarlet.’
As a starting point, think of the
following:
• A character. Who are they?
Give them a name.
Use the senses as much as you
can. Colours, sounds, smells and
textures all help to bring a story
to life for the reader. The good
news is that you only need to
write approximately 250 words
(3 short paragraphs).
Don’t worry about getting it in
the right order to start with. Just
get the ideas onto the paper and
tidy it up later. Reward yourself
for trying – and do send me the
story. I love reading the stories I
receive and wish we could
publish them all. Send your
entries to me at sue.r.johnson@
outlook.com by Saturday 2nd
November. I will award a small
prize to the winning entry.
Many congratulations to last
issue’s competition winner Gill
Smith.
The following writers were short-
listed: Bernie Martin, Lindsay
Tether and Steve Anderson.
Sue Johnson
www.writers-toolkit.co.uk
• A place. For example, an old
house, a wood or a café.
• A problem. What does the
character want?
Sue Johnson
Poet & Novelist
• Who or what is getting in their
way?
• What happens next?
Creative Writing Workshops
Critique Service & Talks
Tel: 01386 446477 • www.writers-toolkit.co.uk
The Ammonite by Gill Smith
J
osh found it difficult to make
friends; he tried but the boys
in his class seemed so confident
and brash. It hadn’t helped
starting halfway through a term.
When the school announced the
geography field trip to the coast,
he hoped for an opportunity to
mix with the boys in an environ-
ment outside the classroom.
He went to the local library to
research the area they would be
visiting.
He was amazed to discover that
Whitby had a number of claims to
52
fame. Bram Stoker wrote Dracula
whilst staying in the town and
Captain Cook had been apprenticed
to a Whitby ship-owner. And the
famous Whitby jet was derived
from monkey puzzle trees and
took 180 million years to form.
This was fascinating stuff and he
was bursting with the need to
share it. He’d even printed some
pictures of jet and ammonites to
show the boys on the coach, but
they were too busy swapping
jokes and crisps.
He loved the smell of the sea and
the feel of the pebbles underneath
his feet as he walked along the base
of the cliffs, searching. He didn’t
expect to find any Whitby jet but
he hoped for some interesting
shells.
His shouts attracted the boys and
he was quickly surrounded. He
opened his hand and shyly
produced the Dactylioceras
ammonite; a perfect specimen.
Suddenly he was the centre of
attention and the boys were his
friends. It felt great.
To advertise call 01684 833715 or email: [email protected]