Build a Book Workshop Intro

 

Introduction

The Build a Book Workshop is about getting your students to create a book in a limited amount of time. They look at the whole process of how a book is made: writing, editing, selecting, designing, illustrating and marketing. This workshop enables students to see what is involved in producing a book and motivates them to start and to complete a piece of writing. 

They actually produce a book. It becomes a tangible object that sits on a shelf. You may also opt to have the book as an e-book and a web site if you wish. 

This process is very adaptable and can easily be used to build a book in a day, two days, a week, a month, a term or a year.

Some work needs to be carried out behind the scenes, some of which is quite technical, and this guide shows you how. If the technical work is too much, we also show you ways of getting help with that as effectively as possible.

Everything described in this manual for teachers is based on the experience of producing anthologies of children’s writers with schools. All of the books have supported a charity – in two cases this was the schools own library - and in all cases students’ confidence in their writing has increased.    

The Build a Book Workshop can be extremely cross-curricular and offers your students opportunities to:

·         improve their writing

·         understand the world of publishing

·         work collaboratively

·         understand the wider community

·         support the wider community

·         understand how businesses work

·         improve their IT skills

·         take part in an enterprise activity

 

This manual contains a step-by-step guide to setting up a Build a Book Workshop and making sure that a book is produced at the end of it. There are several choices at each stage of the process. It is probably a good idea to read it from cover to cover to start with and then work through it section by section when you have a clearer idea of your workshop shape. 

You may also order a book containing photocopiable resources from our web site. You may purchase this as a hard copy or as a PDF file. Also a template for formatting your book is available from our web site. 

Other Ways of Being: The Lady Rose

“We won’t be too long. We should be back before it’s dark.”

“And don’t let any strangers in. Oh, I wish you’d come with us. I don’t like leaving you on your own.” 

“I’ll be all right, Mum.”

“She will. Nobody’ll be able to get in anyway. The bank’s too steep.”

Kerry wished they would just get going. She’d not had any privacy to talk to Alex since they’d come on this stupid holiday and she was dying to call him without her parents hearing. “Just go. I’m fourteen now. I can look after myslef.” 

At last she heard the dinghy rowing away from the houseboat. She took out her phone and found Alex’s number.

“So you haven’t forgotten me, then,” he said when he answered. “I thought you must be having so much fun with your Mum and Dad going up and down the Broads on the lady Rose.”

“Ha! Ha! Never been so bored in my life!”

“Ooh. I wish you was here so that I could snog you.” 

Me too, thought Kerry.  “I wish you was here and all. I’m all alone on the boat. There’s two lovely cosy cabins.”

“Don’t say that. That’s just too frustrating.” 

“What you been doing anyway?”

“Oh you know. Not much.”

But she bet he had. They’d have all gone off to MacDonald’s or the cinema. And Lucy would have been there. She didn’t trust Lucy. Lucy fancied Alex and made no secret of it.

Her phone pipped twice.  Damn. It had lost the signal. So much for having a nice romantic talk with Alex then.

Still, it was good having some time to herself. She did her nails and washed her hair. She listened to her iPod for a bit, until the battery ran flat. She plugged it in to recharge and then she made herself a coffee. She flicked though the magazines she’d brought with her.

She tried her phone again. No signal.

She was getting hungry. Hopefully her parents would also bring some food with them when they came back with someone to look at the boat.  

She went to her cabin and picked up her book. She couldn’t settle to read it though. She even considered doing some of the homework she’d brought with her. But no, that would be desperate. She wasn’t quite that bored.

She’d been sitting still for quite a long time and was beginning to get cold. Perhaps she could go to sleep for a bit. That might make the time go quicker. She went back to her cabin and snuggled down under the duvet. She was soon warm and she drifted into a gentle doze. She didn’t think she actually slept. Something must have happened though. Her legs suddenly jerked and she sat upright in bed. It was dark now. But there was a red glow coming from the main deck.

“Hi, Mum, Dad,” she called. Had they got back and were they doing something to the boat?

There was no answer. 

She flicked the light switch.  Nothing happened.  Well, they had warned her about that. They’d said the power wouldn’t last very long.  But why weren’t they back yet? What was the time? She picked up her phone.  Darn! The battery had gone now.  Oh, great. Even if she could get her signal back they wouldn’t be able to let her know anything.

She rummaged in her drawer for her torch and flicked it on, so that she could see her wristwatch. Blimey! It was half past eight. Where were they?   

So what was that red light, anyway?

She edged her way on to the main deck. The light was in fact bright enough for her to be able to see where she was going. It cast a really strange glow over the small area. She could see now that it was coming from a bulb on the dashboard. She switched her torch on so that she could read the writing next to the bulb. “Pump-out required.” What the heck did that mean?  Then she remembered half-heartedly watching the man at the boatyard giving her dad instructions about looking after the houseboat. “If that light comes on,” he’d said. “You’ll have to get her to the nearest service depot and have the septic tank pumped out. Don’t let anybody go to the lavatory until it’s done.”

Oh gross! She wouldn’t even be allowed to go for a pee now. She was convinced she could smell raw sewage. This really sucked. Where the hell were they?

Could something have happened to them? It was getting really worrying now. She shivered and her tummy rumbled.   

There were a few biscuits she thought, in the kitchen cupboard. She felt for the door and found the biscuits and a half-full box of cereal. That would keep her going a bit at least. Of course, she’d used up the last of the milk in her coffee.

She felt her way back to her cabin and sat munching the biscuits and the cereal with the duvet wrapped round her. When she’d had enough, she snuggled back down into bed.

It was annoying, this? Where the heck were they? Perhaps they couldn’t get back up the river with help because of the tide. Perhaps they couldn’t get under the bridges. Yes, that would be it. They’d be back in the morning, she guessed. Anyway, once it was light she might be able to get help. She might even be able to get off the boat and walk across the fields. The steep bank would be a bit of a challenge but she was sure she’d manage it if she could see what she was doing.  Best get some sleep now.  Yes, that would be the best idea. It got light early enough these days. Sleeping would make the morning come more quickly.

When she woke with a start later she had the sense that a couple of hours had gone by.  And she needed a pee. Did she dare use the loo, though?

The sickly smell of sewage warned that she shouldn’t. Best use a bucket and throw it overboard.  Gross. Bloody parents. Bugger them for bringing her on this holiday in the first place, and for leaving her on her own and for letting the septic tank get full.

She reached out for her torch. She couldn’t find it. Perhaps she’d knocked it off the bedside table. She knelt down on the floor and felt for it. It was no good. It just wasn’t there. She didn’t fancy trying to find the bucket in the dark.  Could she mange to go over the side of the boat? What if she fell in? She’d have to do something, though. She’d wet herself if she didn’t go soon. Oh why couldn’t she have been born a bloke. They had it easier.

She fumbled her way on to the outer deck. There was a little bit of moonlight and her eyes soon adjusted enough for her to be able to see what she was doing. It was cool out there, despite it being the middle of August. She managed to make her way over to the side that was away from the bank. She undid her trousers and pulled them and her pants down. She took her jumper off and tied it round her waist and then tied each arm though one of the rings on the side of the boat. She just managed to position her bottom so that it was over the side of the boat. Then for some reason, she couldn’t pee.

“Come on, come on,” she muttered to herself. She was dying to go and yet she couldn’t. It did come, eventually and then she couldn’t stop. It must have been one of the most unsuccessful wees she’d ever had. Because she wasn’t far enough over the side of the boat not much of it went into the water but ran down her legs and then into her trousers. It was a relief, though all the same and she guessed that in the grander scheme of things it didn’t matter that much.    

She fumbled her way back to her cabin, stripped her trousers and pants off and managed to find some clean ones. She was shivering now. She guessed it was partly because she was scared. It wasn’t really all that cold.

She still didn’t want to get undressed and get into bed properly. She thought she’d better be ready for anything. She lay on the bed and pulled the duvet over her. She couldn’t sleep, though. Perhaps she should change her mind about getting undressed? If she got into bed properly maybe she would sleep? She dismissed that thought. She knew she’d got to be prepared for all eventualities though she wasn’t quite sure what she was expecting.

Surely it must get light soon? The days were still pretty long. The night couldn’t last forever, could it?

The she heard the scrabbling noise. What could that be? Rats, perhaps? They couldn’t have got into the toilet tank, could they? Surely it was all sealed in? She held her breath. The noise stopped. What, so it had been her own chest squeaking as she breathed? Maybe. She had to breathe again eventually.

Then she heard something else. A sort of creaking. Was the tide changing? Would she need to go out and adjust the ropes? Surely she it had been low tide when they moored here? At least that would mean that worse the boat would float away from the bank a little. That wasn’t disastrous. If need be tomorrow she could swim over to the other bank. She tried to look out of the small cabin window. She couldn’t see a thing. It was as black as ever out there. She pressed her ear against the class. Yes, she could hear water running. The tide was surely changing.

Suddenly the boat rocked. Her heart lurched. Had something bumped into it? She held her breath. It creaked above her. It sounded like a footstep. Then came another. Were they back?

She went to call out then just stopped herself in time. What if it wasn’t them? It could be anybody. Could that sound of water running before have been a boat arriving? Surely not. It had been the wrong sort of sound. So, if there was someone out there, they’d come across the fields. Who would be out in the fields at this time of night?

Had she remembered to lock the main door? She thought she had. She moved as quietly as she could to her cabin door and slid the bolt across. She’d only done that once before, right at the beginning of the holiday. It had stuck and she’d had a real job to get it open.  Her dad had told her not to lock it again. “It’s not as if you’ve got anything to hide, have you? You don’t lock yourself in at home, do you?”  It would be a problem getting it open again tomorrow. But she would face that in daylight. For now, she just needed to keep whoever was up there out.

It had gone quiet above her. Had she imagined it? Could it have perhaps been some sort of animal? She held her breath again and listened carefully.

Then the footsteps began again. They were definitely human. She heard him rattle the door. Well, at least that proved that she’d locked it. That was something. The footsteps went back again. She heard him jump from the boat and land on the bank. So, it was possible to get on to the bank. Then nothing.

She lay still for what she thought was about ten minutes. Tentatively then she stretched over towards the small window and raised the small blind. A hideous face was looking in. A mouth opened into a wide grin and she could see some rotten teeth and gaps where other teeth ought to have been.

She let the blind drop and flung herself back down on the bed. This was a nightmare. This must be a nightmare and she would wake up any moment now. Please let it be a nightmare.

She lay shivering on her bed for another ten minutes. Then she lifted the blind again. No one there. What should she do?

She decided she was going to get away. If she went off across the fields she’d get to civilisation eventually. She found a warm jumper and pulled it on. She still couldn’t find the torch. But perhaps it would be lighter outside and her eyes would get used to it.

She managed to undo the bolt on her cabin door without any trouble. Perhaps she’d loosened it the first time or perhaps she’d got stronger because she was scared.  Either way, she was out in seconds and could actually now see quite well to find her way to the main door. The clouds had cleared completely now and the moon was shining brightly. She opened the door and stepped onto the outer deck.

He was standing there. He was holding a drill.

“Get out of my way, you pervert!” she cried as she pushed past him.

The man lost his footing and fell neatly into the water.

“I hope you drown,” she muttered. She jumped for the bank. She landed fine but her left foot turned as it hit the ground, making her slip and hit her head on the mooring post. Stars twirled above her head and she had a pleasant warm feeling as she felt herself slip into the water, feet first.

She was going to die. She was sure of it. She tried to imagine what it would be like at her funeral and wondered whether Alex would cry.

 

When she came to she was back in her bed inside her cabin. She was in her pyjamas. Light was streaming in thought the window.

Had she dreamt it all? Her head did hurt, though. And she could hear someone knocking on the cabin door.

“Police!” cried a female voice. “May we come in?”

“I don’t believe you,” said Kerry. “Go away.”

“Well, if we’d wanted to hurt you we would have come in by now. Look out of your window. And here’s my ID card.”

Kerry raised the blind again. Sure enough she could see a policeman standing on the bank. He waved and smiled.

She pulled herself out of bed and picked up the card that the police officer had pushed under the door. It looked genuine enough but you could never be too sure, could you?

“You might be pretending to be police officers. How do I know you’re real?”

“You’ll just have to believe us, Kerry, my love. We’ve come to tell you about your parents. There’s been an accident. But don’t worry.  They’re going to be all right.” 

She opened the door. The police woman smiled at her.  

“There was a man here. I pushed him in the water.”  Kerry thought she was going to be sick. What if she’d killed him? 

“We know.  He came and told us this morning. In fact, if it hadn’t have been for him we wouldn’t have found your boat so quickly. He was able to tell us exactly where you were moored. ”

“That’s right love. Tom Jenkins. He’s a bit simple, but harmless enough. He didn’t do anything to you, did he? ”

Kerry shook her head. 

“Good.”

“So, would you like to get some clothes on and we’ll take you to your parents.” The policewoman rubbed her arm and smiled.

The sick feeling went away. She felt quite relaxed as she had a quick wash in cold water and then got dressed. Until she noticed the two large bruises on her thighs and remembered she had no idea how she had got out of the water and into bed.