What a Character: Writing for Children's Narratives
Learn how to build intriguing and authentic children’s book characters, and develop character-driven plot with a captivating voice.
This workshop will focus on character and voice to build a relatable and authentic narrative for children’s and middle grade fiction. We'll study classic children’s stories like Roald Dahl’s ‘Matilda’ to deconstruct what makes an appealing (and also, villainous) character and what drives the plot forward. Participants will then learn how to write their own intriguing character/s and how those characters can move the plot forward.
Learning Outcomes
Participants will:
Understand what makes a great character (referencing classic children’s books)
Outline steps for character development
Learn how to write a book that will appeal to a young audience through authentic character and relatable voice
Write a character background template
Create a character-driven plot and avoiding plot-driven character
Complete practical writing activities.
Format
This is a hybrid workshop with a focus on craft; it will be live streamed simultaneously to an online audience. It is a level 1 course, for beginner and intermediate writers, but is suitable for writers of all levels.
More information on program formats and level definitions can be found here.
About Shannon
Shannon Horsfall has an Honours degree (Class 1A) in Creative Writing at University of the Sunshine Coast and is currently undertaking her PhD. She is the award-winning author-illustrator of Was Not Me and Nomax (both HarperCollins), and the illustrator of Dear Santa (Scholastic), My Unicorn Farts Glitter (Hachette) and Once I Munched a Mango (SLQ). She has published short stories, poetry and flash fiction in the university anthologies in 2018 and 2019 and teaches Creative Writing as a sessional tutor at USC.