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By: Jan Mader,
on 9/13/2012
Sometimes all we need to get started is an idea from out of the blue...a story starter so to speak.
See what you come up with when you finish this sentence:
A summer breeze blew through my hair and....
By: Jan Mader,
on 10/21/2009
By: Jan Mader,
on 10/20/2009
It's all about perspective really. It's about how things seem when we see them, hear them, taste them, feel them, or smell them. Since we've been writing with perception and our senses,, let's keep going!
Let's unleash our imaginations and dazzle our papers with words and thoughts that are free from stress or purpose!
Fantasize and be unconventional! Have fun while you write... be spontaneous.
Write about how green smells or spaghetti sounds or how a book tastes. Write about what a bell feels like or how a stomach ache looks.
This kind of activity reminds us how important our senses are when it comes to writing. It reminds us of the power of words and the wonder of language. It's all about perspective once again!
By: Jan Mader,
on 9/30/2009
When I go to the library (to chose a book to read) I always do the same thing. I open an attractive book and read the first sentence. More often than not, I know right then and there if I want to check the book out of the library. Same thing when I go to the book store.
That first sentence has make me want to read more. Same with editors. If a manuscript you submit doesn't have a first sentence that reaches out and grabs that reading editor by the throat, it's going to go into the slush pile.
I know that all of us don't aspire to become published authors and that's just fine. As long as we are having fun, that's more than fine, it's terrific!
Since we've been painting with words, drawing from our memories, and using all of our senses, we should be good to go with a writing activity I thought of today!
Here goes:
Write one sentence that would make anyone want to read more!
I'll go first:
A whisper-soft breeze blew through her hair like the calm before a storm.
Your turn! You'll do better than me. Come back more than once if you feel inspired to write more than one reader-grabbing sentence!
By: Jan Mader,
on 9/23/2009
If you've written with me for awhile, you've already done this creative exercise that allows us to engage our senses, think outside the box, and describe a season, color, or action.
So, since autumn has officially arrived I'm ready to go outside, take a whiff of the air, listen to the sounds, and just think about what this wonderful season has to offer. I feel pretty darn creative!
Are you ready? Just fill in the blanks:
Fall looks like ____________.
It sounds like ___________.
It tastes like____________.
It feels like _____________.
Fall makes me want to _______.
I'll go first!
Fall looks like the gorgeous warm colors that are found in a brand new box of crayons
It sounds like crunchy leaves and lawnmowers that are taking their last pass at sleepy yards
It tastes like samples of cider at the busy farmers market
It feels like dried up cornstalks that surround me as I make my way through the traditional cornfield maze.
Fall makes me want to stay outside for as long as I can and wallow in the joy of my favorite season!
By the way, you will accidentally write a poem in the process of letting your senses run wild!
By: Jan Mader,
on 9/21/2009
By: Jan Mader,
on 9/13/2009
I thought it would be interesting to write about US all week long! Since know one knows us better than us, we should do a pretty good job!
Five words can tell a lot. They can paint an honest to goodness picture when you throw in a little imagination. My daughter-in-law is a second grade teacher. She asked her students to use only five words to tell about themselves. You may think that's not a lot, but it is...especially if you can read between the lines. One boy in her class wrote: My dad is in jail. Those five words told me a lot about this young man. They painted a picture of his life for me.
I know we did it before, but let's do the same activity as the kids in that second grade class. Use only five words to tell about yourself. Try not to think too hard!
I'll go first: I need to be busy! (What does that tell you about me?)
Your turn! Use five words to tell us about you.
Teachers and parents, as usual, you can do this activity orally or in written form. Don't forget to model the exercise first or you'll get responses like: I have long brown hair. That's not the kind of picture we want to paint! Rejoice in the good time that a simple writing exercise can offer.
By: Jan Mader,
on 8/30/2009
Getting stirred up and excited about language is all it takes to write. A fun exciting way to ignite your spark of creativity is to think about things that you really shouldn't ever do. So, let's start a NEVER EVER list!
I'll go first!
1. Never ever stand up fast if you've put tons of bath oil in the bathtub.
2. Never ever stick your tongue on a frozen metal post.
Your turn! Have fun. Get creative! One thought will lead to another...I promise!
Teachers: Kids absolutely love this activity. I should dig out some of the lists I have from past school visits and share them with you. They are hysterical! You can make the activity even better for your students if you join in the fun and go first!
By: Jan Mader,
on 8/26/2009
Quick! What does ANGER smell like?
By: Jan Mader,
on 7/31/2009
I love words. I am fascinated by how words can change my perspective in a matter of seconds. I want you to feel that wonder too! Kids should have gobs of experience with the magic of words and so should we. Words are a way to stretch our thinking and make our writing more exciting.
Everyone should play with words and that's what we are doing!
What image comes to your mind when you think of the word soft?
Feathers come to my mind.
Here's how I might show soft in a sentence: The snow felt like feathers tickling my face.
Your turn. Think of the word soft. What does your mind's eye see? Can you show me soft in a word or two? Give it a try! Don't be shy. If you think of something after you've already been here, come back! Don't forget...we're creating our own thesaurus!
Feathers was my word to show soft. What's yours?
By: Jan Mader,
on 7/27/2009
Do you want to create more word lists that you can store for future use or do you want to do something else? I've got tons of ideas and writing activities that we can do. Lists can be fun, easy, and extremely useful later on.
You tell me. What do you need? What do you want? I've got it! For now, please leave me a list of three things that you'd like to do when we write together. Think of it as a game. Writing is fun. When it stops being fun, we need to move on.
Please indicate what your goals are at the top of your list. If you're an aspiring writer, say so. If you're a teacher or homeschooler ready to head back to the classroom, I need to know that too.
If you just like to write for the fun of playing with words you've come to the right place. Let's IGNITE TO WRITE!
I'll sit tight until I hear from you! My mind will be whirling patiently.
By: Jan Mader,
on 7/23/2009
We've come up with some pretty amazing lists in the past week. First we listed words that showed movement. Then we listed words or phrases that described a person we knew (or had seen). We created a setting and then we described the place more by using words or phrases that showed spacial direction.
To be perfectly honest, you guys came up with better ideas than me. That's what I like about writing with you! It's lonely being a writer. It's fun having creative people who love to write and create.
With that being said, let's look back at our lists and write a quick paragraph using some of the words or phrases from each list. The words or phrases can come from your list - or someone else's list.
Here's my paragraph:
As Mary drifted past me she brushed her long ashen brown hair away from her face. I watched as she ambled under the umbrella of trees and looked out toward the lush green pastures. Mary is as mighty as she is tiny. It didn't surprise me a bit when she shoved open the heavy metal gate and picked up the overturned water trough. It surprised me even less when Mary gave every horse that came up to see her an affectionate pat. As she engaged each horse, drifting more into their world, I felt as though time stood still.
Your turn. Write as little or as much as you want. Just refer to the lists and have fun! I just did!
Just so you know, I'm leaving for a horse show tomorrow afternoon. I won't be back until Sunday evening. I'll check my blog then. Wish me luck!
By: Jan Mader,
on 7/14/2009
Let's start another list. This time let's make a list of words that indicate movement of any kind.
Think outside the box for this one. Leaves rustle when they move in the fall wind. Rabbits scurry when they dart out in front of your car. You get the idea. Have fun with this exercise!
Now it's your turn. List three words that show movement. Be creative!
1.
2.
3.
We'll use these words for something else later on, I promise! The more lists we get, the better. Please pass this activity along to anyone who likes to blog. Bloggers are writers!
By: Jan Mader,
on 7/11/2009
I visited Suzanne's blog yesterday and she listed five things that made her happy last week. Her words made me think. I'm big on lists. I think they get creativity flowing. They're quick. They're easy. They can be saved and used for future writing projects.
So this week will be our list week! For starters, list five things that will make you smile this week. Here's my list:
1. my kids, husband, sister or all (I combined them...couldn't help it)
2. my animals
3. a phone call
4. my friends
5. blogging with you!
What will make you smile this week? List five things! Please share.
Have fun thinking and writing. Remember that writing starts in your mind and heart. I'm smiling already!
By: Jan Mader,
on 7/6/2009
You guys are so good, I think it's time we combine our creativity. I'm going to start a story. What I'd like you to do is to add to the story. Just a sentence will do the trick. In order to do this, you're going to have to read the first sentence here on the post and then read the comments as they come in...I'm excited already!
Are you ready? Here's the beginning of our story:
We were sitting around the bonfire last night when the most amazing thing happened.......
You take it from here! This story belongs to US. It's ours to play with. It's ours to give it colorful characters and delightful twists and turns.
I can't wait to see where our story goes. Since I started it, I think it's only fair that I end it on Thursday. So until then, let's create our very own masterpiece. Feel free to come back and add more to the story as you see how it develops! In fact, I think that would be a great idea.
Please share this activity with your blogging friends. They more people we have, the more interesting our story will be! Kids are always welcome here.
By: Jan Mader,
on 6/28/2009
First of all, let me assure you that nothing - absolutely nothing - is going to change at either of my blogs.
You have filled my life with such joy and creativity that nothing (well almost nothing) will stop what we're doing here. I love to share my creative ideas with you and I love to read your blogs and your comments to my posts.
Actually, I can't think of much of anything I'd rather do than communicate with you.
That being said, my new business website is up and ready to go. Would you do me two favors? Please go to my website and tell me what you think. Then please share my website with anyone you know who might even remotely need a writer, want a speaker, or need to spark some creativity in complacent employees. I want to do it all.
Creative people come up with creative ideas. I decided since freelance work is so scarce right now, I was going to market myself. With your help, I can get my website circulating.
Thank you so much.
I can't leave you without a creative writing exercise to do together. So let me think for a minute. How about if you (or your kids) personify your pencil.
Here's what I might say:
I am Jan's pencil. I can tell when she's stressed out because she chews my eraser down to the metal. I can tell when she's in a hurry because she moves me way faster than I'd like to go. Sometimes my lead breaks. Then Jan has the nerve to shove me into a grinder until I have a point again. When Jan is happy she uses me to write about her family and pets......
You get the idea! Give it a try. Have fun. Let your kids do this too. In fact, do it at the same time and then compare notes. Remember writing is fun. It's therapeutic. Keep wallowing in the love of language! Spill your joy right onto your papers!
Oh! I almost forgot! My new business website can be found at http://www.ignitetowrite.com/
Really...please let me know what you think. I welcome your advice, suggestions, and criticism.
By: Jan Mader,
on 6/19/2009
Looking for some creative minds to go over to my other blog and leave your comments. You can also click on my very cool paw print.... to get there.
I asked the question: Is grass a vegetable? I'd love some fun answers. I know you guys can do it....please hop over!
Ask your kids to help you. Better yet, ask them to help me!
By: Jan Mader,
on 6/19/2009
The Carnegie Library in Washington Court House is full of creative kids and terrific librarians. How do I know? Because last week my dear friend Kathy (who is also a writer) and I traveled there to conduct a creative writing workshop.
We braindropped. We painted with words. We used our senses to create the most descriptive showing sentences you've ever seen. And most of all, we had fun.
Every time I spend an hour or two with kids, I'm reminded why I love to write so much and why I'm so inspired by kids. They have more creativity in their thumbs than I have stashed in my very old memory. All Kathy and I have to do, is create an environment that says, "What you have to say is valued and respected and we are honored when you share it with us!"
The children's department at Carnegie is lucky. Their children's librarian, Anne Quinn, is the kind of educator all children deserve to have. She brought out the best in me, so it's easy to see why kids flock to the children's department. Her rich laughter is contagious. If I were a kid, I'd park myself as close to Anne as I could get and soak in every book she suggested I might like to read.
My guess is that if the kids in Washington Court House like to do journal writing, half their journals would mention Anne, the library, and summer fun.
My school visits are over for the summer. Now it's on to more library visits. I think I'm the luckiest writer in the world!
By: Jan Mader,
on 6/15/2009
Stories are so much fun. Often, I'll write the ending of a story before the beginning. Why? Because it gives me direction. It gives me someplace to go. Does my ending always stay the same? No. But it can.
Writers: Give it a try. I've written the ending of a story (one I actually wrote ages ago) below. You write the beginning and middle. A short paragraph or two to will fill in the gaps and give the ending some meaning.
After you're done, I'll tell you what the story was really about and who I wrote it for...actually, you do some writing and on Thursday I'll post my original story in its entirety. It will be fun to see the different directions we can go!
As usual, parents, you can talk this through with your kids. Let them help you. Make it a joint effort. Share the fun and love of writing together.
Here's the ending for you:
My hands were shaking like a washing machine out of balance as I reached out to hand her the crumpled up note. "We think this m-m-might be yours," I stammered. Hattie started to turn on heel and slam the door, but something made her change her mind. Her withered hand took the note from me, and as she begin to read, tears fell from her eyes and softened her wrinkled face.
"Thank you," she said.
It was as simple as that.
By: Jan Mader,
on 6/13/2009
I'll get right to the point here. We've been writing together since January and I'm happy as a clam. Since writing is as natural to me as picking up the phone and talking to my best friend, this blog takes me no time at all. I love writing with you and I love the new blogging friends that I've made.
Since this is an interactive blog, I need to know what you'd like to do for the summer. Do you want to keep on just doing what we have been doing or would you rather do something else? I am willing to do anything (well almost anything) you'd like.
For those of you who truly do want to get published, we can work on that. For those of you who need to talk about igniting the spark of creativity in your children, we can do that too.
The reason that I'm saying all this is that soon I'm going to have a webpage up. It will direct people to my blog and it will offer services for a fee. I am not going to charge any of you anything. But since my freelance work is so down, I need to turn Ignite to Write into a business.
We'll see how all that goes. When you're creative, you're creative. Writing is what I love. Writing is what I do. I just have to figure out a new way to make it work financially for me.
Nothing will change for you at all. I would just like your feedback. Your visits to my new website will be greatly appreciated. It will help to encourage advertisers for me. That's all I will ask from you. As soon as my new website is ready please check it out. I'll make it interactive so it will hopefully be almost as much fun as this blog!
That's it. Thank you for making my life so interesting and this blog so much fun!
Jan
By: Jan Mader,
on 6/7/2009
First of all, thank you for all the stories about your animals. I loved every single one of them. Each tale that I read could be made into a book. Some could go into anthologies or magazines. Others could go into picture books. And some could become that special series that kids can't wait to get their hands on to read again and again.
You are all terrific!
Now back to the business...I mean fun...of writing! I visited a second grade classroom last week and since last week I was feeling a little off, I decided to make it easy on myself. I wanted no prep time, just kid time.
Frequently, at the end of a school year, kids are asked to write about what their plans are for the summer. I decided to take a different approach. I asked the kids to write one sentence about what they learned during the school year. I told them it could be about anything from friendship to division.
The kids did what I asked. They wrote a sentence. One girl wrote, "I learned how to multiply."
Another boy wrote, "I learned about the water cycle."
Yet another child wrote, "I learned about rules."
Those were all good sentences...grammatically. But you know me. I wanted those sentences to jump off the paper at me.
Caleb said, "You want those sentences to B I N G, right?"
I love Caleb. He gave me goosebumps. I wanted those sentences to bing and boing like a ping pong ball!
So, long story short, "I learned how to multiply," turned into "My cat had two tiger kittens last year. Last month she had three kittens. Only one was a tiger. The other two were as yellow as the sun. 3 x 2 = 6. My cat has had six kittens!"
"I learned about the water cycle," turned into, "Rain falls from the clouds and makes the creek behind my house get so deep it covers the bridge."
And, "I learned about rules" turned into, "I learned not to run on the blacktop because if I fall, I could skin my knees. I only run in the soft grass so if I fall I won't get hurt."
WAY TO GO KIDS.....WAHOO!
The kids painted pictures with their words. That's what I want you to do.
Writers: Write one sentence about something you have learned in the past year. Then paint a picture with your words to SHOW what you learned. This could get really interesting if you braindrop first!
Teachers and Parents: Braindrop first. Then do the same activity that I did with the second graders. Have fun! Join in...what DID you learn in the past year?
PS...Later this week I'm going to post a story for you or your kids to end. I just have to get that story written. Hmmm....maybe I'll make it really challenging. We'll do it in as few words as possible. Stay tuned!
By: Jan Mader,
on 5/21/2009
Rather, let's rewrite a song. Everyone knows the song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, right? Let's have some fun with it...remember playing with words is absolutely positively fun!!
I'll go first. Here's my new song:
Twinkle twinkle cruddy ring
Dirt and dust have shot your bling
Years and time have made you dull
Not like rings still at the the mall
Twinkle twinkle cruddy ring
Dirt and dust have shot your bling!
Your turn! Only one rule: Start and end with the twinkle twinkle part. If you can't think of anything, ask your kids or grandkids or neighbor's kids! I'm sure they will give you some twinkling ideas that are far greater than mine!
By: Jan Mader,
on 5/4/2009
Think in similes and you will paint with words without even trying. Your words will come alive and seem to jump off the paper. Since writing starts in our hearts and minds, colorful thinking and talking translates into lovely exciting writing.
Fill in the blanks below and you'll see what I mean! You can use as few or as many words as you like to complete the sentences.
The bearded man looked as old as ____________.
The bearded man looked as young as ___________.
The day faded away like ____________.
The clouds poured rain as ____________.
Her face was like ____________.
The dog was as still as ____________.
Please share. You will see that everyone's words paint a different picture. These pictures create sentences that beg to be read!
By: Jan Mader,
on 5/1/2009
Okay. I give up. This past week (or week before last) one of you wrote a poem about the testing that our kids endure this time of year. It was thought provoking and direct. I asked if I could post it and YOU said I could.
I'm losing my mind. Who are YOU? I would really love to post your poem.
Please get back to me!
Jan
P.S. Please go check out my new blog. I just posted a story that honestly happened..... http://jan-mader.blogspot.com/
By: Jan Mader,
on 4/24/2009
Just fill in the blanks...plain and simple. Then SHARE!
Spring looks like _______.
Spring smells like _______.
Spring tastes like _______.
Spring sounds like _______.
Spring feels like _______.
Spring makes me want to _______.
At the end of the weekend, I'm going to share some of your creativity (from this exercise and LAST WEEK). Barbara...yours is first! Stay tuned......
exposed the tick that crawled up my neck from the backseat of the car. Looking for a pair of tweezers was not in my plan for the day and neither was freaking-out. I hate ticks almost as much as I hate horseflies so I did what I had to do.
...and that was weird because I don't have much... ? ;)
LOL,
Janet
PS
I liked your sentences.
And I liked yours! Too funny!!!!
and it made me think of days at the beach with warm sand and cool waves. I love the beach, the sand, the waves and breezes blowing through my hair.
Anne and Sasha
dried off the sweat as I hiked uphill. What a wonderful feeling! :-)
A summer breeze blew through my hair and took me on the ride of my life. You know that incredible feeling of being swept of your feet by the breeze and the sweet breath of a kiss that has yet to come from a brand new love.Anticipation is pure bliss.
A summer breeze blew through my hair and sudddenly I realized that I had been asleep for hours.
My intentions were to just lie and listen to the lulling of the crashing waves. But now as that summer breeze ruffled and tossed my hair,,, bringing me back to reality....
it all came back to me,,,,,
Wow. Now I remember why I love to blog!!!!
A summer breeze blew through my hair and I was perplexed, as I was indoors at the time!
Jan I am planning on giving you a big shout out next blog post, now this jolly campaign is winding up! You were one of the first to encourage with this blogging lark, so have much to thank you for! lol xx
Well so much for the daydreaming. Now I have to find those tweezers and get rid of this tick so I can get back to the important task I have planned for today. If I don't get the supplies I need and finish this then tomorrow the world will .........
A summer breeze blew through my hair and I realised that, despite everything, this beautiful place would never change. In a world of turmoil, it had remained constant and consistent in its untarnished beauty.