Who, What, Where, When, Why?
Brainstorming the Guts of Your Story

The Who and the What are the core of any story: Who is this about? What is going on? Readers what to know as soon as they start reading. That means you—the author—have to know before you write down the very first word. Even if you already have a clear vision of both your hero and the essential “What If…” idea, you still have to fill in the When and the Where and the What Happens Next and the all-important Why: Why did the hero just do that? Why should I care?

This workshop uses a question-and-answer brainstorming technique to help you expand the glimpse of your idea into a full-blown plot, with enough action and detail to keep you writing from the prologue all the way to the climax. As for your hero, we’ll use a different type of brainstorm to show you how to focus on the key traits that make your characters people—alive and believable—even the ones with three eyes!

Free of charge.  Bring writing utensils and paper, and a snack and drink.  This workshop is open to those students entering 7th-10th grades.