Year 10 welcome Dr Sarah Ayoub, Writer In Residence

Year 10 students were treated to an incredible Writer In Residence double period with Dr Sarah Ayoub, author, journalist and lecturer at the University of Sydney and the University of Notre Dame.

Dr Ayoub spoke to our students about characters, setting, dialogue as well as ‘showing not telling’. She emphasised asking, ‘what if’ and how this can propel writing into an entirely different direction with one minor tweak. Sarah also spoke about the power of observation and making sure dialogue is authentic. Students learnt about the importance of being avid and keen observers of life and the people and situations we come across – this feeds our writing and infuses creativity.

Dr Ayoub ran a very interactive and student participation session encouraging our Year 10 students to challenge themselves with a number of small writing interludes.

It was a delight to see so many of our students benefit and be inspired by honing their writing skills. It was fabulous to see a number of girls asking Dr Ayoub to take the time to read passages they had personally written for feedback, and we thnak her for her generosity.

An invaluable session for our girls!!

Below is a reflection from one of our students:

Today we had the chance to hear from the amazing author Sarah Ayoub and her workshop was such a great experience. She spoke about how characters can be revealed in subtle ways through what they say, do and even what they own. I really enjoyed the way she encouraged us to notice the little things in real life and bring them into our writing. It made storytelling feel more real and exciting. (Lucy, Year 10).

Mrs Nicole Harada, Teacher/Librarian