The Five Rules for Writing Dialogue

Rule 1 Rule 2 Rule 3 Rule 4 Rule 5

Usequotation marks.

Separate dialogue tags from the quote with commas.

Capitalize the first letter of the word of the conversation in quotation marks.

Add end marks in the correct places.

Start a new, indented paragraph each time a new character speaks

On the bottom of our notes sheet from yesterday, add the proper punctuation to these sentences:1. now you know why I couldn't wait to get here said Esteban 2. wouldn’t it be wonderful to stay and watch the sunset Peter asked

Warm-Up:

Ever feel like you’re not getting anywhere with your writing???

Personal Memoir Writer’s Workshop Day 8

The Simple Sentence

Today’s GoalsDefine the components of a simple

sentence.Craft effective simple sentences.

Note Taking You will need to fill in the blanks on the

note sheet as you follow along with the slides

This worksheet will then become a handy guide for you as you continue to draft and revise your memoir

The SentenceAs much as any sane person needs to know…

Terms we’ll need Subject Verb Clause (group of words with a subject and a verb)

Independent-strong, stands alone Dependent-(subordinate)-weak, needs support

Simple sentence

A simple sentence has one independent clause and no dependent clauses:

The student yawned. If a simple sentence is an independent clause... and an independent clause has a subject and a verb... where is the subject and verb in this sentence?

Stop and Copy Find a place in your memoir to add a

simple sentence for emphasis. Remember how Jean Little ended her

memoir with the short and powerful: “I would not forget”? Where can you use a similar strategy?

Share your sentence with your neighbor and make sure you each have a simple sentence with a subject and a verb

Although a simple sentence cannot have a dependent clause, it can have modifiers:The tall student sitting in the back of my algebra class yawned loudly.

The basic sentence is ‘The student yawned’. The other words are modifiers - they are descriptive words.

Simple Sentence with Modifiers

Stop and Copy Find a simple sentence in your memoir. Add descriptive modifiers to “jazz” it up. Share your sentence with your neighbor

and make sure you each have a subject and a verb.

A simple sentence contains only one independent clause, but it can have more than one subject or verb:

TWO SUBJECTS: The student and his friend yawned.

TWO VERBS : The student yawned and fell asleep.

Compound Subject and Compound Predicate

Stop and Copy Find a simple sentence in your memoir. Add another subject to convey two ideas

in one sentence. Share your sentence with your neighbor. Find another simple sentence. Add another verb to describe more

action.

WW goal and checklist Goal: Check to make sure all of your sentences have a subject and

a verb; add simple sentences into your writing Indented paragraphs First person POV Past tense language Chronological order Conflict/Plot Structure Dialogue (correctly punctuated) Sensory Details

ClosureE-mail me OR Exit Ticket a simple

sentence and a simple descriptive sentence from your memoir)

HW reminder: You must have a draft of your climax by tomorrow! (Period 4 I will not see you tomorrow , so you need to have a draft of your falling action by Thursday!)