This is my jar of words. One of my current big projects has me spending a lot of time with my jar of words, which is a good thing because jars of words are fun.
All of my time spent with the jar made me think that it would be fun if we all spent time together.
The plan:
1. Each week, I will choose three words from the jar.
2. I’ll post the three words here and on the Red Bird Crafts Facebook page where I’ll use #redbirdwritealong.
3. The challenge is to use the three randomly chosen words in some kind of short creative piece. It could be a sentence, riddle, poem, haiku, faux advertisement, slogan, blurb, love letter, fortune and more, more, more. Anything. The words can be tweaked slightly (ie: you can change the tense or make it plural.)
4. We’ll make our short pieces public.
5. You are welcome to read the comments on the Write-Along posts to see what others have shared.
I plan to share my writing in the comments, and I’d love it if you’d share yours as well. I also encourage you to share on Instagram or Facebook (or Twitter). If you choose to share on social media, be sure to tag it with #redbirdwritealong, so we can all read. If you choose to post on Facebook, would you consider posting on the Red Bird Crafts Facebook Page, so we can all read? Of course, you can keep your creation private — maybe in your journal or taped to your fridge? You know that is ok too.
Some of the writing might not be kid appropriate, so it is important to screen the content before letting children read directly from the blog.
This will happen weekly or bi-weekly. Anyone is welcome to join: kids , elders, teens, and even children who are pre-writers (you can write their words for them). Hey, family and friends! You too.
Will you join me?
Some thoughts:
1. Hand write or type the three words onto a page. This will help your brain form ideas.
2. Do some free association writing based on the words (write what comes to mind without any changes)
3. There is no expectation that this is going to be great writing. This is all about process and delving in.
4. It takes a bit of bravery to be willing to share, but I think it will end up feeling rewarding and fun. I’m especially interested in seeing all of the different ways the three words of the week can be crafted and interpreted.
Today’s three random words are:
Oh, and if you are a friend who visits my house, will you please, please add some words to the jar? That would be the best.
Check out the comments to see what others have shared! Will you write-along with me?
-Emily
PS. If you read my blog in a reader (like Feedly or bloglovin), you might want to pop over to the real deal to see my new logo. I feel really proud of it. More blog changes are on the way in the coming weeks/months.
Remember the corner of that room? Cement walls, covered with rubbery, pale, yellow paint.
We laughed. Words spraying out of our noses.
Followed by plastic wrapped bagels.
And, shuffling down the hall. To trigonometry.
-Emily/Red Bird Crafts
She follows me there
To every nook and corner
We laugh about it
YAY! Thanks for joining, Jennifer. 🙂
The use of “corner” to describe a bend in the trail may be a bit of a stretch, but I had fun writing this one. I will try to get my son to play along, too. If I’m successful, and if I get his permission, I’ll post a follow-up entry.
‘I set my pace to match hers, following her on the trail as we began the ascent. Although it was not a steep climb, she was but 5 with small legs that were beginning to complain. “Shhh!” she warned me, her finger touching her lips as we rounded a corner in the trail. “Do you here the faeries?” she asked me, “They are very shy of humans. We mustn’t startle them.” I heard only the birds twittering in the trees, telling the others of our passage below. I smiled broadly, laughing only inside at the brightness of her imagination and her earnest belief, and I made an important discovery. If I could keep her talking about the faeries, she would be so excited that she would not even notice the weariness of her limbs!’
Thanks for sharing, maxanyamom! Loved reading this. And, yes, if your son is happy to play and grants permission, please, please add his to the mix. Yay!
My daughter, Leah’s piece:
follow the leader
follow the leader
whereever they go
up down
down up and across
the streets of town
in a corner out a corner
we march in a line then
its time, time to go
back home so we all go
laughign home because
that’s what follow
the leader does to
you.
She stood there in the corner.
Punished.
She put herself there, not a parent, not a teacher.
As people walked by, they saw a girl standing there.
Nose pressed in tight.
For seemingly no reason at all.
They laughed.
And pointed.
Until the time came when they too, had done something foolish.
Said something inane.
And suddenly the others followed suit.
And joined the girl in the corner.
Thanks for joining, Kathy!
Got it! The 11 yo actually wrote something And I’m not sure what the best part of it is: the fact that he wrote something, the fact that he did so without anyone asking him again to do it, the fact that he completely surprised me with it, the fact that one of his motivations was to make me happy, the fact that he granted me permission to share it here, or the fact that he did find some small enjoyment in the process. All I know is that I got a perfect ending to a looong day! Without further ado, his contribution:
“One day at a laughing club, we had to follow a voice around a corner,”
Maxanyamom! Your comment was a great ending to my day too. I’m SO glad he posted. I will show my daughter in the morning.
Thank you for inspiring my little one to write! NOT usually her favorite thing to do, but this activity was right up her alley! She wrote willingly, and proudly came to me smiling, to show me her work. We’ll definitely be tuning in for the next 3 words picked out of the jar, Emily….hope it’s soon!
Here goes:
At the Carnival
I usually follow with my Mom and Dad in the carnival, but this year it was different. At the carnival I got lost so I sat in the corner and cried while waiting for my Mom. But the whole time she was just a little ways beside me. I started laughing so hard when I saw my Mom and Dad! The End.
-Remy (age 8)
I’m thrilled to hear this, Tracy! And, thank you, Remy for joining the Write-Along! I’m so happy you are here. 🙂
Well, that was unexpected and lovely to do! comes of reading stuff on ‘Song and Season’ for the last three hours, i think.
Follow me, follow me, the little girl cried.
As she led them through gateways and bushes and horse undersides
And they couldn’t, they couldn’t, they really just couldn’t
She was elusive and uncatchable, no matter how hard they tried.
Cos she was slippery and laughing and she just loved to tease
And she could shape change round each corner, with a grace and an ease.
So they laughed and they left her, to scamper and run
And to love her and squeeze her when she came back in the sun.
Oh, I love this, Evelyn! Thank you for sharing your piece.
oh you replied. that is very nice. I wrote on your wall…or whatever it is called… a comment on facebook anyway. i have just been reading ‘one bird at a time’ by annie Lamott which is one of the most delightful books about learning to be a writer that i have ever read. she is quite brilliant and funny with a wonderful way with words. and of course one basic rule is to write every day. even if office supplies doesn’t turn me on like ‘laughing’. Some other writer talks about writers being like dog. that have to learn not just to ;SIT but then the hard part is ‘STAY!! too right. interestingly i am reading Pema Chodron about meditation. i recommend ‘when things fall apart’ and she writes about dogs too! in relation to meditation. Sit, Stay, Heal. very clever! This post is from Evelyn who can’t work out what to put in the box below when it asks me to choose. so i am going for anonymous. doesn’t appeal to my ego but there you go, anonymous will be my next try. at least i have got savvy enough to copy my text before trying cos it gobbles up your words if you make an unacceptable choice!