Character and Suspense L.O. – To be able to identify the ways a writer creates suspense.

There are many ways in which good writers build ‘tension’ or suspense: Describe things in ways that worry us Make us care about characters so that we worry about them Make a character sound foolishly unaware of what might be about to happen Make us expect terrible things to happen Use a variety of sentence lengths to vary the speed of the story

In groups of 4, think of a fairytale you all know well. Think about how you would retell it including at least 2 of the features below: Describe things in ways that worry us Make us care about characters so that we worry about them Make a character sound foolishly unaware of what might be about to happen Make us expect terrible things to happen Use a variety of sentence lengths to vary the speed of the story

Highlight the happy, calm words in one colour and the tense, worrying words in another Put a key at the top of the sheet e.g. = tense, worrying words = calm, happy words

In pairs, read the extract out loud. Try to let the highlighted words influence your tone of voice. e.g. “Over the green squares of the fields and the low curve of the wood there rose in the distance a grey, melancholy hill” “At every turn Baskerville gave an exclamation of delight, looking eagerly about him”

Use the sentence starters below to consider how the writer creates tension: 1.In the text ‘Baskerville Hall’ the writer describes things in a way that worries us. An example of this is when he says “ ” This is worrying for us because In the extract, the writer makes the character of Baskerville seem foolishly unaware of what might happen to him. He does this when he writes “ ” This is tense for the reader because The writer makes us expect terrible things to happen when he writes “ ” We expect terrible things to happen when we read this because

Extension Tasks: 1.How do Baskerville’s feelings change during the extract? Use quotes to support your ideas. Write your answer in full sentences. 2.Complete the storyboard started last lesson. Use colour and include background details.