Writing Exercises for Family Entertainment: 6 of 6

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This is the sixth in a series of articles to explore the theory that learning to write can be a form of family entertainment.

By now hopefully you agree writing itself is fun, and learning to write can provide an opportunity for family entertainment.

If you are just joining us, the goal of these exercises is to give you the opportunity to improve your writing skills while simultaneously having fun with your family. Clear and compelling writing is a key attribute in today's working world. It can also be an advantage in our personal lives for advocacy of our causes or even to reach out to loved ones. So take the time to evaluate if your family might enjoy the simple exercises outlined in these columns to improve your writing skills while you have fun with your family.

In the first exercise, family members described cooking dinner using at least three action verbs to tell us how the cook actually made the dinner, and concluded with a description of the result—with the caveat that it was not intended as a way for teenagers to critique their parents' or sibling's cooking.

For the second exercise, each member of the family took turns writing and then reading a paragraph describing a room that none of the other family members had ever seen. They then spent ten minutes drawing that room.

For the third exercise, each family member wrote a paragraph describing something that each of them sees every day, and asked the other family members to identify it, with the objective to identify it as quickly as possible. In the fourth exercise, we assumed the family was on a trip and asked each member to write a paragraph describing something new that they were all seeing together for the first time. In the fifth exercise, we wrote a comprehensive paragraph describing a person as a first step toward character development.

For the current exercise, we are gong to explore writing dialogue. You will write 5 to 10 sentences of dialogue that occurred between you and one other person during your day—at school, at softball practice, at work, in the store, on the street, or while taking your driver's test. After each family member completes drafting the dialogue, two members other than the author will read the dialogue out loud in character to the rest of the family—one of them will be you and the other will be the person with whom you were having the conversation.

As you write the dialogue, keep in mind the following:

• What started the conversation: your coach asked you to stay so he could tell you something; your teacher asked you to stay after school; the principal called you to his office; your boss asked you to work all weekend; your wife said she has to talk with you immediately

• Once you have offered the reason for the dialogue, first tell us your reaction to the request: you were annoyed, you felt like someone punched you in the stomach, you were short of breath, you were elated, you were concerned

• Be sure that each statement follows the other – or if it doesn't follow logically, explain why.

Dialogue is an important way to engage a reader in a story, so it is important to make it as realistic and descriptive as you can. However, first, try to capture a conversation as you had it. That will help to drive future dialogue creation. Again, teenagers, this exercise is not intended to give you the opportunity to make fun of your parents or siblings.

Joyce T. Strand

Author of the Jillian Hillcrest Mystery Series

Joycestrand.com