1. Character

2. Sensory Details

3. Dialogue

4. Voice Voice is... Voice is writing like you feel A piece emerges from your heart... from treasured memories intricately stored in the depths of your mind. It’s YOU! You find yourself coming alive through your pen. Just the right words... just the right flow of the meaning of your experiences. by Deb Schwartz, 2003

5. Voice So voice is a packaging, a wrapping up of all the ways in which you use words—your style, how you present dialogue, how you describe far mountains and peoples’ faces, and also how you reveal your heart.

6. Voice Nervous SadScared Angry WorriedHungryTired Embarrassed ConfidentImpatient Shy Excited Joyful Greedy Bored Cheerful Confused JealousAnxious Surprised AmazedLonely Horrified Guilty

7. Voice NERVOUS, you might write: My hands were so sweaty I could barely hold the microphone in my hand. Butterflies were bouncing off the walls of my stomach, and my knees were shaking. As the announcer called my name, I watched the curtain slowly rise to reveal the hundreds of people in the audience. I was blinded by the brightness of a spotlight shining down on me. "You can do this," I whispered to myself.

8. Voice Topic: Write about something you made and gave to someone. My hands feel sweaty and my brain seems blanker than a brand new sheet of paper. After five long minutes of thinking about what I had made in my past and given to someone…I finally recalled the gift. I was in first grade and I had nothing to give my mom for Mother’s Day.

9. Voice Topic: (Continued) She has always been a hard working woman: a human alarm clock, passionate home-maker, a real- world teacher. How could such a person not receive a token of gratitude on such a special occasion. It came to me by surprise because it was the last Friday before Mother’s Day and I had already given up hope of bringing home the perfect gift. My parents weren’t made of money like many of my friends’ parents. I can still remember the exact phrase my teacher said that faint morning, “Class. Today we are making rainbow flowers!”

10. Voice Topic: (Continued) I felt like I must have made it to the end of the rainbow and got all the desires of my heart granted. Her words brought color to the day and I couldn’t wait to express myself. My nerves of sorrow within were squirming in defeat against the sudden rush of anticipation. I waited as my teacher quickly laid out our supplies on our desks.

11. Voice Topic: (Continued) Then, I wondered how on earth we would make flowers with such items: coffee filters, markers, a cup of water, and green fuzzy wires. “Patience, dear, patience.” My mom’s common phrase chimed softly in my mind. I waited. As my teacher wrote the instructions on the board, I tried to look around her to get a head-start. Unfortunately, I had to remain grounded in my seat no matter how hard my rush of excitement tried to break free.

12. Voice Topic: (Continued) The instructions were simple: 1.Draw a tiny circle in the middle of each filter 2.Use a different color marker to make a larger circle around the smaller circle. (I wondered where this was taking me) 3.Using different colors each time, repeat until you reach half an inch from the edge. 4.Fold each filter into four equal parts. 5.Dip the point in the cup of water. 6.Watch the colors rise. ( Each color seemed to join hands with each other) 7.Open the filters and allow to dry. (Wow! I was impressed) 8.Attach a green wire to each filter in the center. (The wires delicately folded in any direction I lead it to) 9.My teacher forgot to put the most important step within each step which was to let the flow of love guide each step.

13. Voice Topic: (Continued) I looked at my completed bouquet of flowers. My eyelids swelled up and I knew if I’d let them drop, I’d release a river of joyful tears. Each flower seemed so alive, yet so intricately delicate…a perfect gift for my mother.

14. Voice Topic: Write about something you made and gave to someone. Yes, I can’t believe I actually read that topic correctly. This is going to be great, you wait and see. I know you’re wondering what I made that makes me feel so confident about this topic. The thing is, it literally just happened last week and every detail is still vivid in my mind to the last glue drop.

15. Metaphors/Similes

17. Openings

18. Character