Young writers in the local area are invited to celebrate National Novel Writing Month at the Santa Monica Public Library with a special program hosted by the Kids’ Writers Group.
The upcoming festivities are geared for children aged 8- to 12-years-old and will kick off at 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 26 in the Children’s Activity Room at the main library, according to Children’s Services Supervisor Ann Wilson, who said Thursday she helped organize the event after she noticed how most National Novel Writing Month activities are geared towards parents, teachers and their fellow adults.
“What about the kids who are aspiring writers?” Wilson asked, adding: “I know from conducting kids’ writing workshops for two years that they are out there, and they are eager and creative.”
Wilson said she got the idea for the workshop when she happened across a young published author named Adele Ciociola.
“I thought it’d be cool for her to come in and explain how she did it so other kids could follow in her steps,” Wilson said.
Being a Santa Monica resident and Roosevelt Elementary School alumna, Ciociola said she’s eager to share her writing experiences with others in the community who have similar aspirations.
With assistance and coaching from an editor, Ciociola published her first book “Holly Woodsnoff and the Oddball Neighbor” last winter and the young writer said Thursday she’s currently at work attempting to craft a second one.
Ciociola said her inaugural book, which is longer than your average children’s book, began as an 11-page paper that she wrote in fifth-grade as part of a school assignment.
Ciociola’s mother found the content to be quite interesting, so the current Lincoln Middle School seventh-grader went to work trying to figure out how to write a book.
In a recently posted Youtube video, which — like the upcoming workshop — seeks to walk viewers through the steps of creating a novel, Ciociola said there are three main parts to crafting a story but there are a lot of questions one should ask themselves before they put pen to paper.
“A lot of things are covered in the video,” Ciociola said, “but I’m basically going to tell people the steps that I walked through during my creative process. So it will be talking about the three-part story structure and other things that you need to add real depth to a story.”
Ciociola will cover specifics in the library’s workshop, but the young author said prospective attendees can begin brainstorming ideas for a potential book of their own because they’ll have the opportunity to begin their one during the writing workshop.
“When I wrote my book, my editor was really excited to help me and she guided me through the steps,” Ciociola said. “I know I wouldn’t have been able to do it myself and I think there are a lot of others in my position who might not be able to access an editor like I did, so I’m hoping to use my experience to help them accomplish a possible dream.”
“(My workshop) might even be more helpful because it’s coming from a kid who’s been in their shoes and can really relate to what they’re going through,” Ciociola added, stating: “I think it’s a really good opportunity and I think people should be encouraged to come to check it out because things like these don’t come around a lot.”
Residents who can’t make it can get the gist of the workshop online by watching Ciociola’s online video, according to Ciociola. It’d be worth it to go but I think they should at least check out my video and use it as a guide if they want to write a book of their own.”
brennon@smdp.com
