13 Tips for Young Writers / Day Ten: Experience

by Dr. K. Mark Hilliard

Day 10: Experience

We can all write better about things we have done, things we have experienced. So encourage your young writers to think about these things when writing their first stories. Set up experiences to enjoy as a family, to give your young writer more to write about. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to do this. Of course you can travel to new places. This is an incredible way to build up new ideas to write about. You can also see what there is in your own town. Go on hikes, eat new places, try new foods at home, enjoy a nature scavenger hunt, visit museums, go to antique stores and think about the people who owned the items long ago, listen to music, and see new parks or playgrounds.

Another way to experience new things is to read more books. Go to the library, borrow books from friends, or buy new ones. Get your children books about things they want to start writing about.

Action Item

If you go on a new experience, have your young writers bring their journals. They can write and sketch ideas during the experience, or set up time after for them to reflect. Maybe they can take pictures of things they want to remember as well.