Family History Can Jumpstart Your Creative Writing Juices
Using family history as a basis for a non-fiction or fictional manuscript might just be the thing to jumpstart the creative juices to flowing! I know that when I read through journals, diaries, and histories pertaining to my family or my husband's family, I get all kinds of ideas for stories. I always think to myself, "Wow, that would make a great storyline!" But where do I start?
Many beginning writers need a bit of guidance in this potentially rich area, so it's always nice to discover a resource that will help the faltering wannabe or student gain confidence and find a starting point. The following article/review is about one such resource. So read on. . .
Family Tree: Writing Historical Fiction Based on Family History
Tools for Young Historians Series
By Jennifer Johnson Garrity
BrimWood Press
1941 Larsen Drive
Camino, CA 95709
(530) 644-7538
Historical research plus writing is an exciting and inspirational concept in our homeschool! And since we have a rich family heritage complete with lots of stories, photos, and documents that have been passed down through the generations, there is much ‘grist’ for the creative ‘mill’ around here. So I was thrilled to review Family Tree: Writing Historical Fiction Based on Family History written by Jennifer Johnson Garrity and published by BrimWood Press as part of their ‘Tools for Young Historians’series.
In a nutshell, Family Tree is a 76 page, soft-cover consumable writing guide to help children (ages 10 and up) learn how to create stories, novellas, or even books based on their own unique family histories. Both student and instructor are gently led “through the process of gathering historical information, weaving fact and fiction together to create a plot, and then refining both content and style to fashion a unique and exciting work of fiction.” Also, the primary focus of this writing guide is for “developing content and providing techniques for maturing a student’s writing style.”
The guide is divided into different sections/assignments that cover the research, writing, and editing phases. These divisions include:
*Introduction
*General Research
Interview – Phase One
Family Tree Chart
Interview – Phase Two
Interview Questions
*Specific Research
Choose Your Branch
Blending Fact and Fiction
Make Your Best Guess
Anachronism
Historical Photographs
Historical Research Notes
*Writing Your Story
The Plot
Fact or Fiction?
Write a Story, Not a Report
Creating a Roadmap
Beginnings
*Editing Your Story
Adjectives
Adverbs
Passive Language
Sentence Starters
Completing the Project
Student Checklist
*Instructor’s Notes
With Answer Key and Instructor’s Checklist
*Andrea’s Homeschool Tips (Written by homeschool veteran, Andrea Newitt)
An Introduction
Schedule for Younger Students
Grading Guide
If you visit the BrimWood Press website, you can download samples from this guide and also check out the other available resources from the ‘Tools for Young Historians’ series.
Family Tree is designed to be a supplement to any writing curriculum, and the project (from beginning to end) will vary anywhere from four to ten weeks. But the result is sure to be a family heirloom. However, I think it would be great to repeat this fascinating project every two to three years as the students mature and their writing skills and interests change. Think of the collection of family stories that can be harvested from the children’s imaginations! In addition, this guide is self-directed for the high school student or natural writer, so the possibilities are endless! However, it is assumed that the student has a basic grasp of sentence and paragraph construction in order to use the guide independently. Also, permission is granted to the purchasing family to make copies of the assignments, charts, and pages for multiple children and multiple projects.
I really like how the author stresses writing a story, not a report, and how to add historical facts and tidbits without overwhelming the reading audience. She gives the following advice:
You want your reader, first of all, to enjoy the story. Secondly, you want him to learn a little about its historical setting as he reads. Just as you wouldn’t dump a mound of salt onto a plate of food, you don’t want to dump a mound of historical information into one paragraph and serve it to your reader. You sprinkle salt lightly over your food, and want to sprinkle factual information lightly throughout the story. (page 39)
In my opinion, Family Tree is an excellent resource, and I plan on using it with my own children in a few weeks to create our own special stories. (As an extra note, I can see myself using this outstanding and comprehensive guide with my *own* writing.) I will allow my high school aged twin daughters to follow the guide and work independently, but I will probably use the suggestions in Mrs. Newitt’s homeschool section with my younger students. The result...they will all get to create a story, regardless of age or skill! And new ‘literary heirlooms’ will be added to our rich family heritage collection to be enjoyed for years to come.
Originally a product review at The Old Schoolhouse website in 2007.