Starting in May 2013 Fiona Cram began contributing some hints and tips to get people writing. Below are links to the current Toolkit postings.
1. Four elements of effective storytelling
In December 2012 I attended the 28th International Papillomavirus Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico. I was there as part of a panel presenting on the personal and public benefits of prioritising Indigenous Health – but more on that later. I attended the pre-conference public health workshop and the second day of the workshop was devoted to “The power of story: Learning storytelling techniques from Hollywood’s master storytellers.”
2. Fabulous white hot speed writing
This post is about tools and techniques for creating a compelling story, as presented at the workshop by Jennifer Cecil, Executive Producer, Private Practice (ABC). Jennifer took us through a speed writing exercise – fabulous white-hot writing – that I’d really recommend you try yourselves.
3. Finding the shape of your story
This post is about outlining, for finding the shape of a story, as presented by Sarah Watson, Co-Executive Producer, Parenthood (NBC). It was the second writing exercise of the workshop.
4. Bringing the abstract to your reporting
The writing exercise I described in the second and third writer’s toolkit entries were originally about getting ideas on paper for a storyline in a television drama. If we take a different direction with this exercise it can be a useful process to go through to clarify and focus your writing for, say, a research paper or report.
Contributed by Fiona Cram