Writers Gold Mine

Written by the author of the Circle C and Goldtown fiction series, this curriculum is designed with boy writers in mind—but I think any young writer with a penchant for story and a spirit of adventure will enjoy this creative writing program. The controlling metaphor for this text employs the goldmine and wild west, sometimes alluding to the Goldtown stories. So, you’ll find creative ways for students to retain concepts: for example, words to avoid are called “dead words” and are destined for the “coyote hole;” plot events are called the “gold of the story.” What a fun way to introduce these skills!

  Lessons 1-4 instruct on characters, point of view, and a key narrative skill of “show; don’t tell.” In Lessons 5-8, students learn about “writing cameras,” nutshell summaries, and story beginnings. Throughout, the lessons are written in a straight-forward and aim-toward-practice method. Step by step students will learn about and then create 3-dimensional characters, dialogue, setting, the story’s problem, plot events, and resolution. Then, they’ll write and revise. With the final goal of publication, this write-in text helps students create a story with purpose, develop interesting characters, exciting scenes, learn to self-edit, and then take their story to print (via Lulu.com or Amazon as possible recommended resources). Throughout the text you’ll find “quickdraw reviews,” writer’s hints, task examples written by other authors, and space to write within the book. For older students, this could be added to their regular ELA program as a special 1-semester project—or as a potential 1-year project for younger students who are more enamored with fiction than 5-paragraph essays. 142 pgs, pb. ~ Ruth