Writer's Workshop - Launch Lesson 7
Today we will learn how to begin our writing piece like professional writers do. The lead, or opening, of your story is the invitation you give your reader to dive into your story. It’s REALLY important. Great leads don’t just happen, they are carefully crafted by writers.
So let’s look at how some great writers have crafted some of their best leads.
Thank you, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
“The grandpa held the jar of honey so that all the family could see, then dipped a ladle into it and drizzled honey on the cover of a small book. The little girl had just turned five. ‘Stand up, little one,’ he cooed. ‘I did this for your mother, your uncles, your older brother, and now you!"
The first thing I notice is that the author wants us to picture a grandpa and a little girl celebrating her birthday. I can “see” the grandpa pouring honey on the book, I can “hear” his soft, kindly voice, I can “feel” this is a happy occasion, and I “think” to myself, “WHY is he pouring thick sticky honey on a book?” The author has used three important strategies to write her lead.
One, she has created a beautiful picture of this birthday celebration, two she shows us a character performing an action, and three, she has surprised us with this character’s strange action. She has crafted an amazing lead that actually hooks us and reels us in to her story.
Now let’s look at another great lead.
If I Just Had Two Wings by Virginia Schwartz.
“Phoebe was dark as a shadow and just as silent on that scorching July Alabama morning. She pinched wisps of cotton carefully from their dried boll shells, which cut into her fingers like a sharp razor blade.”
Virginia Schwartz also uses three important strategies to invite readers into her writing. We can “see” Phoebe’s dark skin, “feel” the cotton shells cutting into her skin, “hear” the silence of that July morning, and we think to ourselves, “I just know Phoebe is a slave,” and because she is a slave we know her life is very difficult. She creates a vivid picture with her words, she introduces a character with an action, and she sets the mood.
So now we have learned two ways that good authors start their stories.
Polacco used:
creating a picture in our minds
introducing a character doing a specific action
then surprising us
Schwartz used:
creating a picture in our minds
introducing a character doing a specific action
then setting the mood.
One of my seed ideas is about the time a found a doe.
I could start my story like this...
I walked out through the garage and saw the deer just laying in the yard. I was surprised that she didn’t get up and run away!
or like this...
I walked out through the garage with my flip flops clacking at my heels trying not to drop the iced tea glass, my book, or my sunglasses. As I stepped into the sunlight I suddenly froze. Lying just a few yards in front of me was a beautiful young doe. As she turned toward me her ears flicked back and forth, but she didn’t get up. What was she doing here?
Which one do you think is better? Which one is more interesting? Which one makes you want to read more?
Let's try it. Look at the lead of your seed story. did you do a great job? Use this strategy to improve your lead.