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- June 3, 2009: The Broad Appeal: It's time to swoon for June
- June 3, 2009: Learn to "Write Like a Rock Star!" at Gilford, NH's Public Library's 2009 writing camp
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- April 1, 2009: The Broad Appeal: Sowing seeds, sprouting fears, growing ch-ch-ch-children
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Archive for August 2006
Writing Camp 2006, Here and Gone!
August 24, 2006 by Lani Voivod, Chief Scribbler.
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And so another crazy summer writing (and creativity) camp has fumbled out of my brain and into the memories of 13 brave and unsuspecting kids who spent one of their fleeting-youth summers in the Lakes Region of NH.
This year’s theme?
The History of the Written Word:
17,000 Years of Expressing Ideas Crammed in One Measely Week
As always, the kids were spectacular, the ink was a-flowin’ fiercely, and I managed to put together nearly 80 Power Point slides so I could entertain the possibility of doing this one again without having to entirely reinvent the wheel, like I usually end up having to do.
Highlights?
Two reporters from two different local papers came to check out the action on Thursday. Here’s what James Mitchell - a strapping and focused college grad who also digs in philosophy, poetry, and journalism - punched out in record time, to hit the presses for the next day. (Thanks for the great article, James!) Friday, August 18, 2006
Creative writing camp concludes in Gilford
This was the third year the Gilford Public Library has sponsored the camp, taught by Lani Voivod. Voivod and her husband are professional writers who work for Mattel, writing for the company’s website, among other things. “This is kind of my attempt to get kids interested in creative writing,” said Voivod. The course teaches youths about the history of human communication and shows ways they can be creative with that communication. The class started Monday with participants learning about pictographs and hieroglyphics. They moved on learn about the progression of language. Voivod teaches that all stories have common structures. She describes the typical hero as an archetype in which heroes exhibit similar patterns. Heroes in stories all have a call to duty and they all have a crisis over that duty, face a tragedy, and emerge victorious, she said. She relates this idea to many modern movies and stories like Harry Potter and Star Wars. Student Samantha MacDonald said she thought the class was fun and particularly enjoyed learning the history behind language. Mixed with the history lessons were exercises designed to spark the creativeness inside each student. Voivod said she tries not to focus on spelling or grammar, allowing the kids to run with their ideas and thoughts. “It’s not about spelling or grammar; it’s about getting creative ideas out,” she said. Too often, she said, adults focus on the mistakes in writing which can stifle a child’s creativeness before it can even be developed. “If you concentrate on the good assets, then the other stuff falls away,” said Voivod. Klaus Schuler, like a few others in the class, has come back to partake in the camp for a second year. When asked what he has learned in the two years of writing camp, Schuler replied, “that I can a write better than I thought I could.” “The goal is to have them find ways to express themselves,” said Voivod. She added that she hopes the skills and passions that students learn in the camp will inspire them to continue with their writing throughout their lives. Voivod conducts a similar program for youths in the spring as well as a program for adults that meets weekly at the library. |
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