How working and writing with children influences my own creativity
I have found that working and writing with children has helped transform me as a writer, and I would suggest it to anyone who wishes to be successful, especially in children's literature. Volunteering at Little Green Pig, a Creative Writing charity running after school clubs for disadvantaged children aged seven to eleven, has taught me valuable skills and enriched my own imagination.
The creativity exhibited by the children is so inspiring, and their responses to the weekly prompts and projects exude individuality and uniqueness. No ideas are too crazy, and it’s so wonderful to watch their imaginations run wild.
Before the children arrive, all volunteers have a briefing with the workshop leader to prepare them for the session. During this time, we discuss the prompt or topic of the week. Previous prompts have been things like ‘mad meals’, where the children made posters about an imaginary food concoction, such as dreamy cloud cakes, or mealworm spaghetti. Another prompt was ‘miniature worlds’, in which the children created stories around imagined characters living in a tiny world, such as a fly inside a lightbulb, or a fairy on a grape. When initially hearing the prompts, I felt distanced from them, viewing them only from my adult perspective of rationality. However, spending multiple weeks with these children has encouraged me to tap back into my childlike thinking. Recently, I have started working on the prompts myself, adopting the childrens’ limitless approach. I can notice my writing becoming freer, and I have been inspired to experiment with many different forms, themes and genres, such as fantasy, and dystopia, which I never would have delved into otherwise. I am so grateful for this all-round motivation to write and see things from a different perspective, as it has helped me develop as a writer through play. This approach would be helpful for any writer, especially those wishing to stimulate the minds of a young audience. Creating worlds without limitation is an important quality for children's literature.
During the session, we have snacks, games, writing, and sharing time, and being there to nurture their wellbeing and creativity is so rewarding. Helping with spellings and answering their questions has helped me gain an awareness of their vocabulary and the ideas and concepts they are aware of. This in turn, helps decipher appropriate content for my children's writing, as I am able to create stories they can relate to. Being around your target audience is another important approach for any writer, because you can adopt their way of thinking, and tailor your writing to their knowledge and interests.
This idea is furthered at the end of each session, where the children are invited to share what they've written with the group. Watching their confidence and enthusiasm blossom makes this such a wonderful experience. Many of them like to write comedy, and I can see the buzz they get from the reactions of the other children when they perform it. Being able to share creative work in a safe and supportive environment is both enriching for the children and myself. They blow my mind weekly with their amazing stories and it’s so special to witness young people engaging creatively in such a way. These children have inspired me to share some of my own writing with them, which felt exciting and rewarding. Having their support and first-hand reactions creates a space for me to test the waters with ideas, which is especially helpful for my future goal of writing children's poetry. I have found sharing ideas with my target audience a helpful insight into ideas that connect with them, and their attention-spans provide me with greater knowledge about the appropriate length to adopt in my writing.
Working with children isn’t always easy, but getting to know them, their personalities, interests and mannerisms has been an interesting insight into childhood psychology. In our debriefs after each session, we discuss how each child found the session, monitor their improvement and behaviour and try and see things from their perspective to gain a greater understanding of their thoughts and feelings. This empathetic approach has allowed me to consider the inner workings of the mind, which has helped with character development in my own stories. I have been able to express more emotion through my characters, which previously felt muted and distant. This approach would definitely help writers wishing to create child characters, as understanding their psychology could help in the transference of emotion into writing, which would subsequently connect with readers.
I have found that by allowing my writing to become freer and more experimental, whilst getting to know the children and sharing my work with them, has really helped with my progression as a writer. It is so exciting to watch the next generation of creatives emerging, and sharing this space with them encourages a two-way learning system. The children certainly all have bright futures ahead of them, and I hope I can inspire them to follow their passion and keep writing, just like they have inspired me too.
To learn more information about Little Green Pig, visit their website: Little Green Pig
Angelica Blake-Lawson is a 19 year old student currently in her second year studying English Literature and Creative Writing at the University of Brighton. Her previous blog for Writers & Artists is about Walking and Writing.
Instagram: @angelicabl_creative
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