Make Me Giggle: Writing Your Own Silly Story

by Nancy Loewen, Corinne Lee Doerrfeld (Illustrator)

Ready to build a silly story? First, you'll need the right tools. Open this title in the Writer's Toolbox series and discover plenty of tips and tools to get you started. Soon you'll be making readers giggle like a pro!

32 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2009

About the author

Nancy Loewen grew up on a farm in southwestern Minnesota, surrounded by library books and cats. She's published more than 140 books for children. FOUR TO THE POLE (co-authored with polar explorer Ann Bancroft) and THE LAST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN were Minnesota Book Award finalists. Her WRITER'S TOOLBOX series received a Distinguished Achievement Award from the Association of Educational Publishers.

Nancy lives in Saint Paul and has an MFA in Creative Writing from Hamline University. She has two adult children and a cat who sometimes bites her knees under the table as she writes.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Using the plight of an adorable kitten named Fritter whose purr disturbs the other barnyard animals, this book teaches readers how to create funny stories. After all, there's more to doing so than just tossing in a humorous scene or two. The author suggests that budding writers consider characters and setting and then decide which elements to add in order to make the story funny; for instance, word sounds, irony, and exaggeration can all add humor to a story. Fritter's example allows readers to make note of the way the author develops the characters, heightens the tension, and ties up loose ends. The colorful book features exercises that allow readers to try out the writing tips suggested in this book, part of the Writer's Toolbox series.

[Zalila Isa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pernah berhasrat mahu menulis buku cerita bergambar kanak-kanak dan fokus kepada cerita lucu. Tapi hasrat itu hanya dalam hati memandangkan tidak pandai berlucu dan melukis. :P

Membaca buku ini menaikkan semula hasrat yang ada. Apabila baca kisah lucu yang dijadikan contoh latihan, oh, macam ini sahaja? Lucu tidak semestinya sesuatu yang besar. Kisah Fritter, anak kucing yang berdengkur lucu.

Setiap langkah penulisan dinyatakan dengan jelas dan padat.

Akhir halaman, dinyatakan langkah demi langkah panduan menulis, dan tentunya saya mahu mencuba.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty well done writing books for kids. They invent a story and then go over the "tools" they used on that page--Characters, setting, silliness, imagery, word sounds, dialogue, irony, exaggeration, plot, suspense, climax, emotions, ending.
It has good illustration that would interest kids. I would easily use this book in a classroom.

[Tracy Holland]

I love this series of books teaching students how to write. The author provides an example of a well written story, and provides numbered writing tips along the way. Perfect for intermediate readers exploring writing for both he classroom and themselves.

[Danica Midlil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wonderful idea! Through clear example this book shows children the different parts of a story and how to create their own.