Online courses: Creative Writing
Rebecca Stonehill is a published fiction author of four books, based in the UK. She has been teaching creative writing to young people for over ten years, empowering them to get excited about the written word and produce work they can be proud of.
The inspiration and creative writing activities for these courses will be taken from two exciting books.
For younger students (age approx 9-12 years) we will use Inkheart by Cornelia Funke and for older students (age approx 13-16 years) we will use Northern Lights by Philip Pullman.

I have chosen these books because they are rich in plot, setting, characterisation and opportunities for writing activities around them.
I will divide each book into ten weeks, giving the students a task of reading a certain amount between classes. (NB If they are unable to read the set chapters it is OK but it goes without saying they will get more out of the class and it will be more fulfilling if they read the full amount.)
Please note that very limited reading will take place in the class itself – during our hour together we will focus on fun writing activities. These will be based around (but not limited to) the following: character, setting, plot, conflict, multiple perspectives, imagining oneself in the story, poetic interpretation.
Skills students will be working on:
- Creativity
- Composition and structuring of short stories and poems
- Increasing vocabulary
- Literary devices to help bring writing alive eg simile, metaphor
- Confidence with the written word
The classes will all take place on Zoom.
What students will need to bring to the class: the book, enthusiasm and imagination!