Simon Rose's Blog, page 210

PlayWriting Camp this July with the Calgary Arts Summer School Association

[image error] PlayWriting Camp will once again will take place this summer from July 18 to 22 with the Calgary Arts Summer School Association. This is a half-day camp (either morning or afternoon) for students ages 8 to 12. In a dramatic and fun-filled week, children will learn how to write, rehearse and perform their own unique play in just five days. Children will create the plot, craft the script, write dialogue and hone their acting skills for their very own dramatic production, which will then be performed at the end of the week.Participants of this camp may also wish to attend the CASSA PlayActing Camp on July 25 - 29.

Further details and registration information for PlayWriting Camp can be found here.

Unusual and Marvelous Maps Part Two @ Dark Roasted Blend

Check out my article Unusual and Marvelous Maps Part 2 at Dark Roasted Blend
I've always loved maps and had great fun researching and writing the first article about unusual and marvelous maps, which you can see here. In Part Two, we take a look at some other cartographic curiosities from around the world, from the height of the Age of Discovery right up to the present day. 
Dark Roasted Blend is among the finest locations online to find the weird, the wonderful and the fantastic, crammed with great articles, stunning photography, plus fabulous new content which appears daily.

Creative Writing Class @ West Hillhurst Community in NW Calgary June 2011

Join me for creative writing classes at West Hillhurst Community Centre on 
Saturday mornings from 10 am to 11.30 am, June 4 to 25


People Plotting: Creating Memorable Characters


Without people there is no plot and characters are at the heart of any story. In these workshops, we explore where writers get ideas for the people in their stories, the selection of appropriate names for characters, methods of creating strong characters and how to use descriptive language to build them. Children invent their own unique characters, complete with occupation, career path, friends and family, likes and dislikes, hopes and dreams - in short, anything that makes them come to life and also learn how to write effective and engaging dialogue, plus lifelike scenarios, for their creations.


For further details, call 403 283 0464 ext 105 or e mail 
info@westhillhurst.com or visit the website at www.westhillhurst.com to register for these wonderful creative writing classes.

Book Signing - Sunday, April 17, at Indigo Books Signal Hill in Calgary

Join me this weekend at Indigo Books Signal Hill in SW Calgary, from 11 am to 3.30 pm. I will be signing copies of The Doomsday Mask, The Heretic's Tomb, The Emerald Curse, The Clone Conspiracy, The Sorcerer's Letterbox and The Alchemist's Portrait. 

Indigo Books Signal Hill is located at 5570 Signal Hill Centre SW, Calgary, T3H 3P8. Hope to see you there. 

Author in Residence Program for Schools

For my Author in Residence program, I can be at your school for a week or longer. This allows me to cover certain topics in much more depth than would be possible during a regular author visit. We can also look at working with the students on a specific project.A week in residence can be designed however you would like, to best meet the needs of the students. Here's what a week could look like, based on a school where I spent five days working with students from grade one through seven. However, this is just an example and I am very flexible and happy to discuss your schools unique requirements with you.K/1/2 Story CreationThis highly interactive presentation explores story structure relating to the creation of a well-defined beginning, middle and end. Using a series of seemingly unrelated objects, students participate in creating a story in what is always a lively and fun filled session. Although this exercise is done as a group, afterwards students are so enthusiastic that they want to create their own illustrations to go with the story and expand on the narrative that we have created together. In the weeks after my visit, some schools have added the children's pictures to the story, as they create their own books and design covers for them. These have often been displayed in the classroom or sent home to parents.Grade 3 Fantasy Realms and CreaturesIn two sessions, we discuss the elements of fantasy and the many creatures and characters that inhabit the fantasy realm. In The Emerald Curse, the main villain has created monsters in his laboratory, combining some of the most fearsome creatures on earth. Most students are very familiar with monsters and strange creatures from mythology, books and movies and really enjoy the workshop where they get to invent their own unique mythological creature along with its powers, enemies, diet, habitat and the fantasy kingdom where it lives.Grade 4 SuperheroesThe Emerald Curse involves a young boy who is propelled into a strange comic book dimension, to save his grandfather, the world's greatest comic book artist and writer. The novel was influenced by the comic books and superhero adventure stories I read whilst growing up. In two sessions, we explore the superhero genre, before students create their own superhero, complete with costumes, powers, secret identity, headquarters, friends, family and one or more archenemies. They are also encouraged to draw their creation and some may even write a short story.Grade 5/6/7 Time Travel, Historical Fiction and Writing StrategiesThe Heretic's Tomb, The Sorcerer's Letterbox and The Alchemist's Portrait are time travel stories. These sessions look at where ideas come from and how writers turn them into stories. We examine how history has served as inspiration for authors and filmmakers and learn about the importance of historical research. Students will then invent their own time machine or device, paying attention to detail and to the need for authentic historical settings. We also explore how to write gripping fiction and cliffhanger endings.Grade 8 The Future is NowThe events described in The Clone Conspiracy may be science fiction, but cloning has become very much science fact in recent years. These sessions examine how much technology has developed in the last one hundred years, how the pace of change has rapidly accelerated in recent decades and challenges students to contemplate what types of technology we may expect to see in the century to come.Grade 9 People Plotting: Creating Memorable CharactersWithout people there is no plot and characters are at the heart of any story. In these workshops, we explore where writers get ideas for the people in their stories, the many methods of creating strong characters and how to use descriptive language to build them. Students invent their own unique characters and also learn how to write effective and engaging dialogue for their creations.The time frames for each session above were calculated to accommodate the school's schedule and the number of students in each group. Grades one and two had one session each, while I worked with the remaining grades on two separate occasions. Your school may be entirely different and you may also want to cover alternate topics. You may also prefer to combine classes together in the library, for example, instead of having presentations take place in individual classrooms. However, the above scenario is merely a guideline as to what a week in residence could look like and I am very happy to discuss your school's unique requirements with you.Contact me directly for details of fees and availability for Author in Residence at info@simon-rose.com.

Writing Historical Fiction - Classes for Writers with Chinook Learning Services in Calgary, May 10 to 31

[image error] The Calgary Board of Education provides adult and continuing education through Chinook Learning Services. This spring, I am pleased to be offering the following classes in Calgary.
Writing Historical Fiction - Tuesdays, May 10 to May 31 Do you want to bring history to life? Then you need to know what history to put in and what to leave out. In this course you will examine the writing of historical fiction and the need to fully immerse yourself in a particular time period to make your storytelling more believable. You will learn how to write effective, authentic and appealing historical fiction, how to turn your ideas into compelling stories, understand what exactly defines historical fiction and different historical time periods, how to create believable settings and plausible characters and how research plays a crucial role in the creation of your novel. Historical fiction, when it is done right, when its facts are compellingly used, will take the reader into the story of real people from long ago.
Register now at Chinook Learning Services.

Online Writing Workshops for Children and Young Adults

With my Online Workshops for Children and Young Adults, through a series of e mail assignments, details of which are available here, we explore where ideas come from and how to turn them into stories, basic story structure, plot development, creating characters, developing dialogue and more to help develop writing ability. A set of workshops can be started at any time. Following registration, all assignments are sent by e mail and are completed at your own pace, to be sent to me by return e mail. There is no time limit and participants may take as long as they wish to complete their full set of workshops.

Check out Online Workshops for Children and Young Adults today.

Peculiar Postage - Unusual Stamps from Around the World @ Dark Roasted Blend

[image error] Check out my article Peculiar Postage - Unusual Stamps from Around the World at Dark Roasted Blend.
Stamp collecting and philately are very specialized areas and it is not the purpose of this article to conduct a definitive study of postage stamps, in terms of their rarity, financial value and so on. Rather, this is an examination of some of the more unusual and curious postage stamp designs from all over the globe.  Dark Roasted Blend is among the finest locations online to find the weird, the wonderful and the fantastic, crammed with great articles, stunning photography, plus fabulous new content which appears daily.

Sir Rodney and the Delicate Dragon - Looking for Interested Publishers For This Wonderful Picture Book for Younger Readers

Calgary illustrator Val Lawton and I have teamed up to do some creative work on spec.
When I'm not busy writing my next novel, and Val's not working on illustrations for her next children's picture book, we've been transforming my manuscripts for younger readers into book dummies -- or miniature picture books -- that we can then approach potential publishers with.

Our first foray was with a manuscript about a renaissance dragon -- a dragon who likes the finer things in life. We broke the copy up into pages, and Val created draft images to accompany those pages. It's an interesting exercise, as you realize along the way what needs to be illustrated, what DOESN'T need to be illustrated and what copy is superfluous. Here's the draft cover -- notice that everything's done in black & white, and very loosely rendered ... the interior images are likewise. Val scans all the images, and set the text in Photoshop.
The beauty of creating a book dummy or a mock-up, is that you get an excellent feeling for the story's pacing and flow -- and most importantly, if the story is compelling enough to get readers to turn to the next page. Another reason Val likes to make book dummies is that it makes a nice little package to hand over to a kid to critique-- whereas a sheet of thumbnails needs some explanation.

For interested publishing houses, story synopses and book dummies are available on request. You can see examples of Val's previous books and a portfolio of her work, such as the illustration on the right, here or visit her blog at http://vallawton.blogspot.com/

Summer Camp in Calgary in Parkland: Playwriting and Drama - August 15 to 19

[image error] This half-day camp in Parkland in SE Calgary runs from 9.30 am to noon from Monday August 15 and an afternoon session will also be available, if the numbers of participants warrant that. The camp is open to children who are in grades three to six or ages eight to twelve.
Playwriting Camp provides children with the opportunity to use their incredible imaginations to create their very own dramatic production. They will discover how to craft the plot, script and dialogue, plus perfect their acting skills while rehearsing their own play, before a performance at the end of the week.

Parkland Community Centre is located at 14660 Parkland Blvd SE Calgary T2J 6L5
Fees are as follows:Park 96 members: $85 Non-residents: $95
Fees include GST, cheques are payable to Parkland Community Centre
Visit the website at http://www.park96.com/, go to events, scroll down for details of the camp and to link to the registration form or call (403) 271-7516 for further information.