Games for creative writing

5 Fun Writing Games to Play While You’re Waiting for Inspiration to Strike — Chippewa Valley Writers Guild

Kensie Kiesow

Have you ever been in a mood to write, but you’re not sure what to write about? Maybe you’re stuck on an idea that’s going nowhere, or a plot that’s going somewhere, but you don’t like where it’s ended up. Or, maybe you’re bored and this whole writing thing is something different to pass the time. In any case, games are a great way to relieve any stress or anxiety that might be preventing you from working on the next Great American Novel (cue waving flag and fireworks). Creative people often get stuck in their heads about their projects and it’s difficult to escape that spiral, especially when a deadline is fast approaching. However, it’s important to take a step back from your work every now and then to give your brain something else to chew on for a while, so let’s play some games!

This here game is the only one on this list that requires a group of writers (at least two, but the more the zanier!) and it can easily be adapted to a socially distant e-mail chain. Firstly, you will need a prompt. The more vague or ambiguous the prompt the better because then it opens each story up to multiple, vastly different interpretations, and we at the guild have found that prompts in the form of a picture or painting work wonders for this. Next, now that you’ve got a group of creative writers and an intriguing prompt, it’s time to start writing your stories. After each player has had a moment to divine a story from the selected prompt, they have three minutes of speed writing before passing the document onto the person next to them in a clockwise motion. If you wish to adapt this to a socially distanced, e-mail format, your group will have to devise a hypothetical circle around which to pass the documents. The number of rounds wherein your group passes the document is absolutely up to you and your group, but eventually, each story should be written to conclusion. Once the stories are completed and returned to their original writers, read them back to the group and try not to laugh! 

For this game, pick two books from your bookshelf completely at random. With your eyes closed, flip through the pages of the first book until some intuition from deep in your gut tells you to stop, then with that same gut intuition and your eyes closed, pick a line at random. This line will be what starts your story. Now, turn to the second book you pulled and choose another line using the same search process. As I’m sure you can guess, this second line will be the last line of your story. Write the starting line at the top of a piece of paper and the ending line on the bottom and try to connect these two, completely random thoughts!

Some poem formulas present unique creative challenges, like the sonnet or villanelle, which require a specific structure when written traditionally. Contemporary poetry writing has all but thrown propriety out the window, but sometimes returning to your grandparent’s age of poetry can be fun game to pass that unproductive time staring at a blank page. The pantoum form consists of four-line stanzas wherein the second and fourth lines of the first stanza become the first and third lines of the next stanza, and so on and so forth. Your poem can be however long you want, but in the last stanza, the pattern switches up. Instead, the third and first lines of the first stanza become the second and fourth lines of the last, so your poem should end with the beginning line. Sound complicated enough? If your answer is no and you’d like to take this poem a step further, steal four lines from your favorite song or poem and build the rest of your pantoum from there! 

With one sheet of paper, write a story or poem wherein the first sentence or first line contains twenty-six words. No more, no less. As you write, knock off one more word from each sentence or line until you end up with just one word. If you’re writing a poem, you can use enjambment to cheat a little bit, but if you want to up the ante, try to make each line a complete sentence. Conversely, you could write a story that begins with a one-word sentence and grows to twenty-six!

Dialogue is notoriously difficult to write. There hasn’t been one writer in the history of the world who hasn’t, at some point, struggled with dialogue. It always sounds too unnatural or trite to their ears, so this game can provide you with a little no-stakes practice. Firstly, you’ll need three hats. Or, you could use envelopes, boxes, your friends’ purses, bowls, what have you, but you need three containers. Cut up a bunch of little slips of paper and write out as many places as you can think of in ten seconds and put them in the first hat. These could be rooms in your own house, a Macy’s, a national park, or the surface of the sun. Into the second hat, dump an equal number of slips on which you’ve written your characters: a mother and her son, three teen gal pals, a chicken and a goose, or a priest, rabbi, and monk. In the third and final hat, list some interesting topics like hiking in the Andes, dentistry, baking, Frankenstein, etc. Your topics can be anything you want, but make sure you can get a story out of it. Choose one slip of paper from each hat and write a scene about what happens using ONLY dialogue! Your dialogue must include a mention of the place in which the characters are talking as well as some action, body language, and most importantly, a narrative. Writing dialogue can be stressful, but practice makes perfect and games make practicing fun!

Now, go write!

15 Fun & Creative Writing Games And Activities For Kids

Help your children develop their writing skills with the help of games and practice.

Mark Twain said, “Writing is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words.” Although children may not find it that easy and entertaining, you can inculcate the habit through interesting writing games for kids. It is a fun and distinct way of piquing their interest in this skill by letting them enjoy it as they learn. In this post, we have a list of the best games and activities to help you engage your children in writing while having fun.

Fun Writing Games For Kids

Writing games need not be all plain, boring or intense. You can try some creative ways to make writing pleasant and enjoyable. Try these fun games for children to begin their lessons in writing.

1. Secret Pictionary

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A game of Pictionary is fun to play when there are more than three players. You can play this game even without the Pictionary cards as all you need is a pencil and a blank paper.

• The first player writes a random phrase and passes it on to the next player.
• The second player has to draw an image based on his/her perception of the phrase written by the first player. Fold the first phrase, and pass it to the next player.
• Now the third player has to understand the drawing by the second player and write a line or a phrase based on the drawing. Fold the paper to cover the first phrase and the first drawing, and pass it on.
• This shall go on with the phrase and drawing alternately until it reaches the last player.
• Unfolding all the pages at the end of the game will reveal a very funny short story.

Related: 367 Fun Pictionary Words For Kids Of All Ages

2. Telephone oracle

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Asking your questions to the Oracle is like sitting with a funny magic ball. Come up with wacky questions and gear up for equally wild answers.

• Every player has to write one question each which they want the Oracle to answer, at the top of the page.
• Now every player has to pass their papers to the person on their left.
• Each player has to answer the question according to their perception.
• Now the players have to conceal the question written on the top portion by folding it and then pass on the papers again to their left.
• This step is tricky but interesting. Every player has to write a possible question after reading the previous answer they see in their paper.
• Fold the paper such that only the latest question is visible and pass it to the left side player.
• The same rounds continue till the bottom of the page and end with an answer.
• At the end of the game, all the players unfold their papers to read their original question, the answers they have received, and everything in between. Kah-ray-zee! You will be surprised to see the crazy answers to your original question.

3. Finish the story

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Your search for creative writing games for kids ends here. This is a delightful and engaging game for their playtime.

• The first player writes two lines on a paper and folds the first line so that only the second line is visible to the next player.
• The second player has to guess the first line, read the second line, add another line to the story and fold the paper such that the first two lines are covered and only the last line is visible.
• All the players continue adding their lines to the story.
• The end result will be a very funny tale with no meaning at all.

Related: 10 Fun Kindergarten Writing Activities To Teach

4. Consequences

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This writing game is just so much fun that you will get addicted and play multiple rounds of it. You will need a pen, paper and a minimum of 6 players to play consequences.

• The first player has to write the name of a male, on the paper. After writing, conceal the name by folding the paper.
• The second player has to write the name of a female and then fold it again, to conceal it.
• The next player has to write about where they met and fold the paper.
• The fourth player has to write about what he said and fold to conceal it.
• The fifth player writes what she said, and conceal it.
• The last player has to write about what happens in the end.
• Then, unfold the paper to read a very funny story.
• Note that children can write any name, be it their favorite hero or friends in the school, parents or just anybody.

Interesting Writing Activities For Kids

These activities will not only help in bettering the writing skills but also prove useful in the day-to-day life of the family. Children get to explore their creative side.

5. Grocery list writing

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This is one such fun writing activities for kids which require minimal effort and is helpful in learning the names of many grocery items like types of bread, toiletries, spices, etc.

• Grab a pen and paper, and head to the kitchen pantry.
• With the assistance of parents, kids have to note down each item and the quantity required.
• Make an elaborate grocery list and head out for shopping.

6. Writing letters

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Writing letters is old school but is still relevant. So, why not introduce your kids to the old-world charm with this letter writing activity?

• Decide which form you wish to write — a formal letter or an informal one.
• Accordingly, choose whom to address the letter.
• Keep the letter content crisp if it’s a formal letter and give it an emotional feel if you are writing an informal one.

Related: 24 Fun Ways To Teach Your Toddler To Write Better

7. Advertisement writing

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This writing activity can keep their creative juices flowing.

• Pick an item to write about. For example, children may choose to write an advertisement for their favorite candy.
• Let them write an entertaining advertisement to sell the product.
• Kids can get innovative and may design brochures, leaflets or even a hoarding style ad.

8. Dialogue writing

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Dialogue is a conversation or interaction between two or more people. This activity can also improve their style of conversation. You can begin with simple dialogues.

• Write an introductory line to begin the activity.
• The next player has to reply to the previous line.
• Keep adding dialogues after each line. In the end, you will have your very own record of the conversation.

9. Written debate

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This activity is similar to dialogue writing, but will have an argumentative tone. This writing activity will help in enhancing their conversational and presentation skills.

• Pick a subject and write down your first argument on the paper.
• Let your child reply to the argument, putting forth his/her point.
• It goes on like a debate but in a written format.

Related: 13 Best Effective Ways To Improve Handwriting For Kids

10. Writing instructions

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Learn direct speech through this activity.

• Choose a subject to write instructions about. For example, an experiment on lighting a bulb.
• Kids must write about the tools required and elaborate instructions about how to light a bulb, in detailed steps.
• The style of writing must be communicative and simple to follow.

11. Writing a poem

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Poetry does not have any boundary or age. This writing activity best suits children who are artistic.

• Select a theme to write about.
• Kids can use rhyming words or just express their emotions in whichever poetic style they like.

12. Writing a message on the envelope

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Be it a birthday greeting or a thank you note, this activity will help the child write short messages on cards and envelopes.

• Pick a card or envelope depending on the occasion.
• Write a short crisp paragraph to convey the message.
• Add a salutation, “To” address and a “From” address.

13. Newspaper summary writing

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This activity is ideal for older kids. It helps in understanding their level of reasoning and perception.

• Assign a newspaper headline for them to read and follow.
• Kids have to go through the entire news article, read and understand it in detail.
• Now the challenge is to write a summary about the same news article in their style.

14. Five lines about their hero

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Children will enjoy playing this game for sure as it involves their favorite superhero.

• Find out who your child’s favorite superhero/ idol is.
• Ask them to write any five things about him/her, which they admire.

Related: 7 Basic Drawing Ideas For Kids To Try In 2022

15. Drawing words

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This activity does not involve writing directly but inspires to write and makes learning enjoyable for kids. Make their imagination run wild with this game.

• Choose a word to draw. It can be any word like sun, moon, precious, beautiful, mountain or anything.
• Let the child draw the word in their style. Do not insist on drawing it perfectly.

Writing is an integral part of children’s education that helps them express themselves better. It is a life skill that relates to communication and allows children to better understand and remember a particular concept. Writing skills should be developed in children from a young age. However, many children are not enthusiastic about writing because they feel it is a difficult task. In such circumstances, you may introduce writing games for kids that do not look like a task and offer them good practice. So, if your children are averse to writing, introduce games such as Secret Pictionary or Finish the Story and activities such as Dialogue Writing or Message Writing. Regular writing practice will enhance children’s skills a great deal.

Key Pointers

• Pique your children’s interest in writing by introducing Pictionary of secret phrases followed by drawing.
• “Finish the story” will enhance the child’s creativity as they take turns to add sentences to the story.
• Dialogue or advertisement writing, word drawing, etc., for your children as you scroll down.

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Didactic writing games. | Creative work of students on the topic:

Didactic games in the lessons of writing, reading and speech development

Objectives: Development of auditory perception, the ability to distinguish sounds in words, their place, conduct a comparative analysis of words, compose words from these letters, changing their order in word, activation of the vocabulary of students, fixing the spelling of words on the learned rule.

1. Wonderful transformation of words.

Listening to verses with "lost" letters. In each poem there is a word where instead of one letter there is another. After reading each poem, analysis is carried out and a new pair of words is written on the board. nine0003

They say that a fisherman

Fished a shoe in the river,

But then he

A house caught on a hook. (som)

Dropping the doll from her hands,

Masha rushes to her mother:

- A green onion (beetle) is crawling there

With a long mustache.

The doctor reminded uncle Mitya:

- Don't forget one thing:

Be sure to take

Ten herons before going to bed. (drops)

The bug didn't finish the booth; (bun)

Reluctance. Tired of…

On yellowed grass

The lion drops its leaves. (forest)

A cauldron gored me, (a goat)

I am very angry with him!

2. What the artist got confused.

Pupils work with cards on which they are painted:

Cancer (signed by MAC)

Goat (signed by rose)

mouse (signed Mishka)

Cat (signed by KIT)

fly (signed flour)