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Fifteen Writing Exercises

Fifteen Writing Exercises
Writing exercises are a great way to increase your writing skills and generate new ideas. They give you perspective and help you break free from old patterns and crutches. To grow as a writer, you need to sometimes write without the expectation of publication or worry about who will read your work. Pick ten people you know and write a one-sentence description for each of them.

Creative writing prompts Here are some creative writing prompts we've developed that you may find useful. We'll be adding to these periodically, so check back often. These have been compiled by many people, please feel free to contact us if you think of any. We'll be happy to add them. Creative Writing Prompts: Story Starters Think back to a time when you say a stranger say or do something that that caught your attention. Creative Writing Prompts: Character Development Your character comes upon a fork in a road and has no idea where to go. Creative Writing Prompts. © 2004, All Rights Reserved. Dark World RPG - Character Flaws List All people have flaws; it is a fact of life. When it comes to writing having a character with viable flaws makes them believable and real. Yet many often have trouble finding the right way to present their characters when creating/writing for them. That’s why we decided to write this, to help encourage writers, and role-players, to dig deeper into character flaws. Yet, what exactly is a character flaw? As an example, look at the image above. Well, for starters, their writers had to look at their flaws and determine why they have them in the first place. Using the list below can help you find flaws to build your character – but your work is not done yet. A common misconception in character building is that players feel they have to use the 'exact' flaw listed, or that the flaws are just 'black and white' no shades of gray. Note: This list was made and intended for those writing in Role-Playing or PBeM games.

Journal Writing Prompts Looking for some free journal writing prompts? A situation might have arisen compelling you to record a piece of your history; to retell some of your family stories, your traditions, and highlight some of your quirky and unusual family members. What do you write about? Maybe you have considered writing your personal autobiography and need some ideas to get you started. I love to simply pick up my pencil and put it to paper without thinking too much about what I am writing about. You will probably surprise yourself and find out that there is alot more substance to you than you originally thought. Journaling Prompts: All About Me Write down your full name. Recommended Links A list of journal writing ideas to get your started. More journaling topics and ideas. Journaling Tools. How to write a journal step-by-step. More journaling prompts: the Clock is Ticking. Quack? Types of journals. What is a journal? Return From Journal Writing Prompts to the Homepage

Poem Themes Poetry Archive Home You can discover work that is new to you by letting the site take you to poems that deal with a theme that appeals to you. Click on a theme to see what poets have written about it. This part of the Archive is full of poems chosen specially for children. Meet old favourites and make new discoveries. The Poetry Archive depends on donations from public bodies and private individuals. My Archive Create lists of your favourite poems and poets and share them with friends. Sign up Browse all poets by name View all poets Browse all poems by title View all poems Glossary of poetic terms View full glossary Browse all poems by theme View all themes Browse all poems by form View all poetic forms

Writing Prompts | Journal Writing Prompt | All About Me | Journaling Topics Personalized Journals | Journal Writing Tips | How to Blog - ScribeTime.net Journaling, Journal writing tips, blogging tips, and personalized journal gift shop. You are here: Home / Journaling / Writing Prompts – All About Me Writing Prompts – All About Me By April Rogers The following list of writing prompts were written and compiled to focus on that all-important person – “You” . Journal writing prompts and exercises – “All About Me”: For many more Creative Journal Writing Prompts, check out our… All New E-Book: 365 Journal Writing Prompts: Spark Your Inner Creativity, Beat Writer’s Block and Explore Your True Self - Available for Download Today! Filed Under: Journaling, Writing Prompts Tagged With: creative writing, journal writing, journal writing topics, journaling, writing prompts Trackbacks Writing Prompts | Creative | Journal Writing Prompts | Topics | Ideas says: June 19, 2012 at 3:19 pm [...] and growth, to make your writing tasks easier, or simply to help you have fun on paper! Search…

Persuasive Essay Topics & Original Ideas for Your Essay! Writing Hacks, Part 1: Starting By Scott Berkun, Aug. 28 2006 (#54) Writing is easy, it’s quality that’s hard. Any idiot who knows 5 words can write a sentence (e.g. For this reason writer’s block is a sham. Consider this: Have you ever been blocked while playing Frisbee? So play. Writing hacks for starting In the grand tradition of lists and books of hacks, writing hacks are clever little actions that give you leverage and put the dynamics in your favor. Start with a word. Write about how it feels not to be able to write. Have a conversation. Read something you hate. Warm up. Make lists. Switch to something harder. Run like hell. Whiskey. Rummage your scrap pile. Smart writers have stockpiles of old ideas to arm themselves against the evils of the blank page. Notes [1] I sometimes write “I have nothing to say” and repeat it on the page. [2] True story. [4] I wrote the novel on and off for 10 years, and finished in 2005 (with draft #5). Further advice:

The Research Paper: Developing Historical Questions What Is It? A way to teach students how to develop historical questions. This is the beginning of a multi-step research paper process that encourages sophisticated historical thinking. Rationale It’s no secret that high schools across the country are turning away from the decidedly “old-school” research paper in favor of shorter writing assignments or a variety of “new-school” technology based projects like blogs or webpages. Description Our research paper process guides students using a system with a seven-part structure (more detail on the entire process can be found here). Teacher Preparation Identify and model the qualities of good historical questions, as described in Handout 1, throughout the course (e.g. as lecture openings, test essays, class discussions, and at the beginning or end of structured debates). Sequence in the Classroom Each student develops a list of subjects about which she is interested (e.g. music, politics, arts, family life). Example Common Pitfalls Fischer, David.

Essays | Writing The standard types of written assignment required of a university student are usually: an academic essay a report a dissertation The third, the dissertation, is always a summatively assessed piece of work, and this is therefore dealt with in the The following pages offer advice on writing essays or reports whether they are assessed or whether they are purely a means of developing your intellectual, writing (and time-management) skills. Essays The essay is a particularly academic form of writing, and is a standard method of developing and demonstrating a student's intellectual abilities at almost all levels of a humanities degree programme. An essay needs: an introduction, telling the reader what the essay is about a main body, containing the ‘meat’ of the essay, where you outline your particular point of view, while demonstrating awareness of other perspectives or interpretation a conclusion, summarising the content of the essay clearly and concisely An essay requires you to: Reports

6 Traits of Writing – Professional Development - Argumentative v. Persuasive Writing ShareThis The adoption of college and career-ready standards has included an addition of argumentative writing at all grade levels. Interpreting expectations among the types of argument (e.g., opinion, persuasive, argument, etc.) can be difficult. Begin first by outlining the subtle, but significant differences among them. Download a chart that defines each and their purposes, techniques, components, etc. Students are used to aggressively convincing a reader to take their side in persuasive writing. When introducing argumentative writing to students, describe it as a debate on paper--with both sides represented by facts, evidence, and relevant support. key facts of the case, the issue, for both sides. A second strategy to introduce argumentative writing is to reveal two essays on the same topic--one that's written persuasively and one that's written argumentatively.

How to Narrow or Broaden Your Topic Be prepared to be flexible with your topic idea! If it is too broad or vague you will find too much information and will need to narrow the focus.If it is too specific or specialized or new, it will be difficult finding enough information to write your paper this quarter. In that case, you will need to broaden your idea. How to Narrow Your Topic Example:I'm thinking of doing a paper on fashion. Hint: Ask Yourself Questions About Your Topic: What do you know about it? Sample Topic Narrowing Chart: How to Broaden Your Topic Example: I'm thinking of doing a paper on whether genetically altered soybeans are safe for consumers. This topic as stated is seeking to answer a question for which there may be no answer yet -- more scientific and long-term research may need to be done. Hint 1: Look for parallels and opportunities for broader associations: Could you examine other bioengineered foods, in addition to soybeans? Hint 2: Brainstorm! Sample Topic Broadening Chart:

Picking Your Topic IS Research! When you pick your topic, it's not set in stone. Picking and adjusting your topic is an integral part of the research process! Anne Burke: Project Lead, Scripting, StoryboardsKim Duckett: Team LeadDaria Dorafshar: Graphics and AnimationMara Mathews: NarrationJason Evans Groth: Audio ProductionAndreas Orphanides: Writing, Editing, Technical InfrastructureSarah Craig, Jennifer Garrett, Adrienne Lai: Additional Writing and Editing This video is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States license.

Refutation Paragraphs 2 Sample Refutation Paragraphs (Each these samples have 2-paragraph refutation; some essays may only have a 1 paragraph refutation while other essays, like research papers, may require a much longer refutation) Charter Schools Vs. Public Schools (School Choice) By Mark Liles Thesis: School choice turns out to not only be a bad idea; it’s also a violation of our constitution. Refutation: ...[Introduce Opposing Arguments] Considering the many challenges facing public schools, it’s understandable that many people would be eager to pursue new options. [Counter Arguments] One of the biggest dangers of school choice is the power behind large corporations specializing in opening and operating charter schools. What I liked about this refutation: The writer calmly and clearly outlines the true concerns and reasons why people oppose the opinion. Also, towards the end of the first paragraph, and throughout the second paragraph, the writer spends time clearly attacking these opposing views. ........

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