Drama is more than dialogue written for actors. A piece of drama is crafted by carefully developing each character and scene. But how does a playwright get started? Finding inspiration is as easy as looking at a picture.

"Useful tips and writing prompts show young writers how to use images to inspire drama writing"--Provided by publisher.

"Useful tips and writing prompts show young writers how to use images to inspire fiction writing"--Provided by publisher.

George Orwell set out ‘to make political writing into an art’, and to a wide extent this aim shaped the future of English literature – his descriptions of authoritarian regimes helped to form a new vocabulary that is fundamental to understanding totalitarianism. While 1984 and Animal Farm are amongst the most popular classic novels in the English language, this new series of Orwell’s essays seeks to bring a wider selection of his writing on politics and literature to a new readership. In Why I Write, the first in the Orwell’s Essays series, Orwell describes his journey to becoming a writer, and his movement from writing poems to short stories to the essays, fiction and non-fiction we remember him for. He also discusses what he sees as the ‘four great motives for writing’ – ‘sheer egoism’, ‘aesthetic enthusiasm’, ‘historical impulse’ and ‘political purpose’ – and considers the importance of keeping these in balance. Why I Write is a unique opportunity to look into Orwell’s mind, and it grants the reader an entirely different vantage point from which to consider the rest of the great writer’s oeuvre. 'A writer who can – and must – be rediscovered with every age.' — Irish Times

From Raina Telgemeier, the #1 New York Times bestselling, multiple Eisner Award-winning author of Smile and Sisters! Callie loves theater. And while she would totally try out for her middle school's production of Moon over Mississippi, she can't really sing. Instead she's the set designer for the drama department's stage crew, and this year she's determined to create a set worthy of Broadway on a middle-school budget. But how can she, when she doesn't know much about carpentry, ticket sales are down, and the crew members are having trouble working together? Not to mention the onstage AND offstage drama that occurs once the actors are chosen. And when two cute brothers enter the picture, things get even crazier!

This book advocates for a stronger role for young-adult literature in ELA classrooms, compellingly documenting how this body of work meets both the needs of adolescent students and the demands of the common core for complex texts and tasks. Integrating Young Adult Literature through the Common Core Standards provides a compelling template for teachers that uses young adult literature and inquiry learning to meet students' needs and the demands of the common core standards. The first part of the book addresses the widely adopted common core state standards by examining closely the standards' model of text complexity and demonstrating how young adult literature can fill the requirements of this model. The second part provides theoretical discussions and analysis of the standards as well as concrete applications of young adult literature within the classroom in order to give school professionals a comprehensive understanding of how young adult literature and the standards can work together. The book empowers schools and teachers to make intelligent, informed decisions about texts and instructional practices that benefit their students. Finally, the authors explore a powerful teaching approach that integrates current understandings about learning, young adult literature, and the common core standards in a way that will facilitate greater learning and understanding in English classrooms.